Jack Sock back to winning ways at the Hall of Fame Open 

Jack Sock still has a long way to go in re-establishing himself as a serious threat week in, week out, on the ATP Tour, but he certainly took a massive leap in the right direction at the Hall of Fame Open in Newport, Rhode Island.

After surviving Alex Bolt in a topsy-turvy match on Tuesday, Sock backed up his win by completely dismantling world No. 55 Yoshihito Nishioka, 6-2, 6-3, on Wednesday. The match, which took barely an hour to finish, was hardly a fair fight. Sock dominated on serve, winning 88 percent of first-serve points as well as 59 percent of all points.

Sock won the toss, elected to receive, and broke Nishioka in the first game. His performance was filled with perfectly executed trick shots as well as vintage 100+ MPH forehand winners on seemingly every crucial point. His swagger was back in full force.

Sock’s Thursday quarterfinal against Kevin Anderson will present him with a much more difficult test, as the American clearly enjoyed returning Nishioka’s often sub-100 MPH serve. Nishioka lacked the firepower to test Sock’s movement on the grass, something Anderson is sure to do in the beginning stages of the match. We can’t say Sock is officially back just yet, but with a win over the former Wimbledon finalist on grass, he just might be.