Eubanks gets caught up in the ‘maelstrom’ going through Wimbledon.

LONDON, July 10 (Reuters) – Chris Eubanks earned plaudits as a television commentator, but at Wimbledon he had to settle for being a source of media fascination himself as he toppled Greek fifth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas in the fourth round on Monday.

The American reached the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time in his first Wimbledon main event, and along the way faced surreal reminders of his wild success.

“Everything from realizing I have two credentials at Wimbledon for the rest of my life, to checking my phone and seeing my name as an ESPN alert,” Eubanks said when asked what the most surreal part of her journey has been.

“The whole experience together has just been a whirlwind. It’s been something you dream about. But I guess I didn’t really know if that dream would come true. I’m sitting here now, so it’s pretty cool.”

Ranked 43rd in the world, the 27-year-old athlete broke into the top 100 just four months ago.

Now he is preparing for a showdown with Russian third seed Daniil Medvedev, who days earlier praised Eubanks for his “total tennis” and fearless style of play.

“It’s kind of crazy right now. It’s crazy to see my social media feed that I’m just used to because it’s a lot about me. I’m like, What is this? This is weird,” she told reporters.

“I’ve been able to find a way to compartmentalize everything, understand that this is a pretty big moment, but also say, ‘This is a tennis match that I have to play in a few days.'”

Tsitsipas’ win marked his ninth straight win on grass for the Tennis Channel commentator, who has earned the admiration of the Wimbledon crowd as the unlikely last American standing.

That crowd support could come in handy against the formidable Medvedev, who he lost to in straight sets earlier this year in Miami.

“What helps in analyzing my next opponent is that I played him a few months ago. That’s probably the biggest thing,” he said. “Also, different court, different surface, different conditions. That’s probably the biggest thing.”

Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York; Editing by Stephen Coates

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