From being five minutes away from death to facing Medvedev at the US Open: "Now I value every day"

Carlos Navarro - 1 Sep 2026 | 17:30
Sebastian Gorzny ATP US Open 2026

We discovered the incredible story of Sebastian Gorzny, one of the revelations of the last Grand Slam of the year: doctors gave him a 5% chance of survival... and now he shines in New York.

Go to comments section Preferir Puntodebreak en Google
Sebastian Gorzny and a brutal survival story.

What is the purpose of wildcards in the world of tennis? Is there a correct way to use them? The debate is there, on the table, and its intensity has increased in recent times. The presence of many legends in their final moments on the circuit, away from a ranking that provides direct access to tournaments, has opened controversies and debates, causing in several cases some tournaments to distance themselves from local talent to accommodate big names in their draws. The US Open has not been immune to this, although there are initiatives worth applauding. One of them consists of a playoff with the four best college tennis players, where the winner earns a wildcard for the tournament.. taken advantage of by Sebastian Gorzny, current #731 in the ATP ranking and the protagonist of an incredible story that will see him face Daniil Medvedev in the second round of the American tournament.

It would have been impossible for the Southern Californian to debut in a Grand Slam had it not been for this opportunity, an opportunity he has leveraged to make his name resonate strongly and have his story recognized by the general public. He was a perfect unknown: enrolled at TCU (Texas Christian University), where names like Cameron Norrie precede him, his good university performance has yet to find a reflection in professional tennis. What are his best results in 2026? A final in a Futures tournament and a quarterfinal in the Lexington Challenger; he arrived in New York after losing two matches in Winston-Salem, one in the qualifying round (against the #252 in the world) and another, as a Lucky Loser, in the main draw (against Cruz Hewitt, the son of Lleyton and currently #354 in the ranking).

The incredible life story of Gorzny: he was in a coma and just a few minutes decided his survival

But tennis does not understand moments and dynamics, especially if you are playing at home and come face to face with the opportunity of your life. The American overcame Raphael Collignon to debut professionally and advance to the second round of the US Open 2026, taking advantage of the wildcard and demonstrating the quality and depth that exist in this sport (and in college tennis in the United States, where he is an absolute reference). We will talk later about the madness that this tournament is; first, his life story takes center stage, that of a guy who had a 5% chance of survival... and is now winning at the US Open after saving five match points in his debut.

The five, as you can see, is the lucky number of a story that places us in the Kalamazoo tournament, the prestigious youth event for promising American players. Gorzny began to feel unwell after winning his first-round match: he went out to compete in his next commitment, but noticed his health was worsening. He could never imagine how the following hours would be: he would become the protagonist of an experience he himself defines as "traumatic."

"After my first-round match, I started to feel very bad. In the second round, I was down 5-0 and I saw that I couldn’t play, that I needed to leave. I ended up having seizures at 2 a.m. My father woke up, called the ambulance, and we went to the hospital. I went into a coma. I had inflammation of the brain tissue, an encephalitis, due to a mosquito bite. The doctors told my parents I had a 5% chance of coming out alive. They took out the tubes and told them that either I breathed... or nothing. There was nothing we could do.

Fortunately, I started to breathe when that happened and ended up having a total recovery, and quite quickly. I haven’t had any long-term side effects. I did some physical therapy and everything is fine. It was a very traumatic experience, especially for my family, as I just fell asleep and woke up, I was in a coma, I didn’t feel too much. Still, it has given me a different perspective on life. I am grateful for every day I am here, every moment, I try to savor every instant. I was in a coma for four or five days; it was a brain infection. Then I needed two months of physical therapy. I felt fine, but the doctors had me do mobility, balance, and strength exercises. In the end, I returned to the courts. I needed some time to reach my level again; perhaps that robbed me of six months of my progression, but here we are now."

Saved five match points in his debut... and now dreams of defeating Medvedev at Arthur Ashe

It’s one of those episodes that becomes a maturity blow, a way to understand this life as a true gift. Gorzny fully recovered from that infection and ended up becoming a very beloved guy at his university: his friends from adolescence, Alex Michelsen and Learner Tien, who grew up in the same area (Southern California), began accumulating successes among professionals... while he dreamed of joining them someday. "Alex and Learner, we’ve known each other since we were eight or ten years old, we grew up 15 or 20 minutes from home. Now I see them here and it feels like I’m ten again. It’s great to see Learner achieving what he’s achieving: we played like ten times in juniors and I beat him the first nine times. Now I tell him: 'What happened, dude?' He’s a great guy who has done great. I took a different path, went to university, and lived unforgettable moments there. Now I’m just enjoying this moment."

It’s a moment that could pass through Arthur Ashe, where he might face Daniil Medvedev in the second round. A Grand Slam champion against a guy outside the top-700, the magic of a sport where anything can happen, the hope that the Grand Slams will gift one of the biggest surprises in the draw. "A few weeks ago I was watching all these guys compete on television... and now I’m here. It’s exciting. I’m looking forward to a new challenge; it’s a new opportunity to test myself against the best. I invite everyone to come support me, let the crowd turn into one of those matches we play in Texas, at university." He saved five match points in the first round, he survived with a 5% chance... is it time to win a five-set match? Don’t put limits on the great story of the US Open 2026.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, De estar a cinco minutos de la muerte a enfrentar a Medvedev en el US Open: "Ahora valoro cada día"