The Championships - Wimbledon 2023
Tim Clayton - Corbis

American Chris Eubanks put everyone on notice by going deep into the Wimbledon quarterfinals after debuting in the prestigious tournament as the 77th-ranked tennis player in the world.

"This has been a very, very surreal, whirlwind, eye-opening experience. It's tough to really describe and put into words," he told  CBS Mornings. "To answer whether or not I understand the magnitude of it, especially back home, I don't think I do just yet."

Eubanks got past some tough competition, including No. 12 seed Cameron Norris in the second round and No. 5 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Round of 16. The 27-year-old Atlanta native ended his Wimbledon journey on Wednesday's quarterfinal round, losing to world No. 3 Daniil Mededev. However, Eubanks impressed the crowd by almost pulling off an upset and taking Medvedev to five sets.

After losing the first set, Eubanks made adjustments and won the next two. The fourth set also looked promising, but it went into a tiebreak that Medvedev survived 7-4. The Russian-born player took care of business in the last set, winning it all with a final score of 6-4, 1-6, 4-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-1.

"I caught a nice little rhythm for that second, third, and a good bit of that fourth set. I was playing some of the best tennis I probably have ever played in my life," Eubanks said.

Earlier this month, Eubanks himself wasn't necessarily expecting to find this level of success during grass season. He even shared some messages in which he talked about the difficulty of playing on grass.

However, he exceeded expectations and left the match against Medvedev with 321 winners hit -- breaking Andre Agassi's record from 1992.

"Dear @wimbledon, Thank you for allowing to fulfill my childhood dream," Eubanks wrote on a social media post. "Thank you to all the family, friends, and fans who reached out and showed support. Wimby 2023 will always have a special place in my heart."

Eubanks is going home with a $430,000 paycheck, which he joked about how "it sounds good until you get taxed." While he plays for the love of the game, the prize money will be a huge help when preparing for the US Open in August.

"It provides that level of security to know that, OK, my necessities are going to be met for the next little while, my team will be paid for the next little while, and now I can just kind of play free," Eubanks told CBS Mornings. "And I think that's something. I play some of my best tennis when I am playing free." 

Money aside, his everyday life in the US might also be a little different from what he is used to, with many more people knowing who he is.

"It will be interesting to see how different things are," he said. "I have my routine, places I like to go. Often times I go to my favorite restaurants by myself and just eat and go on about my day."