J. C. Aragone traveled to New York this month without any guarantees. For him to even land a spot in the qualifying tournament for the United States Open, he needed several other players to drop out. So he waited.

“And then the phone rang,” he said.

Aragone, 22, got good news and capitalized, winning all three of his qualifying matches to earn a berth in the main draw as the 534th-ranked player in the world. His run was stirring enough to capture the attention of fans who gathered to watch his first-round match against Kevin Anderson on Monday afternoon.

But there was more to the story. The part about how Aragone was comatose for three weeks at age 16. The part about how he was found to have diabetes. The part about how he missed three years of competitive tennis. The part about how he needed a ticket just to attend the Open last summer. And the part about how he was just months removed from playing No. 5 singles — No. 5! — for the powerhouse tennis program at the University of Virginia.

But there he was on Monday, taking his place on one of the sport’s biggest stages against Anderson, a former top-10 player who ended the party with a 6-3, 6-3, 6-1 victory.