UCLA Sophomore Gimelstob Upsets Bjorkman, 2-6, 7-5, 6-2

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. —  Wild-card entry Justin Gimelstob, a UCLA sophomore, defeated eighth-seeded Jonas Bjorkman of Sweden, 2-6, 7-5, 6-2, to move into the quarterfinals of the $328,000 Franklin Templeton Tennis Classic on Wednesday.

The 19-year-old from Morristown, N.J., ranked 436th on the ATP Tour, rallied from a 6-2, 2-0 deficit. Gimelstob will play his first career quarterfinal Friday against top-seeded South African Wayne Ferreira, who beat Brett Steven, 6-4, 6-4.

“I’m pretty fired up. I’m so excited,” said Gimelstob, who plays No. 1 in the lineup for the Bruins. “I was thinking about playing one point at a time, and I wanted to hang in there and be positive.”

Gimelstob, a 6-foot-5 right-hander who will turn pro in June, is appearing in his third ATP tournament. He won first-round matches in last year’s U.S. Open and last month’s San Jose event.

After losing the first set in 29 minutes, Gimelstob broke Bjorkman in the 11th game of the second set and evened the match by holding serve. He broke Bjorkman in the third game of the final set and added another break in the fifth game.