Live Reports From the 2008 U.S. Open
Saturday
The 2008 trip got started with one of the best day's in our U.S. Open tennis viewing history.
It started in Louis Armstrong Stadium, where 6'6'' Sam Querrey took on 6'10'' Croat Ivo Karlovic. It was a decent match and entertaining for sure, but it would pale in comparison to the standard set by future matches. The best part of course, was watching two of the biggest servers on tour from the front row behind the baseline (thanks to long-time Louis Armstrong ushers Kevin and Mickey). Karlovic is able to hit down on the ball such that it is capable of going over the baseline wall even though there is a lot of room behind the baseline; much more than in the Grandstand. Karlovic almost killed me several times.
The first two sets went as expected, with neither man able to break serve a single time. To the delight of the pro-American crowd, Querrey won both tiebreakers and that left Karlovic a bit mentally out of it. Querrey secured a crucial service break in the third set and that was easily enough for him to finish off the match. The victory booked the 21-year-old Querrey a spot in his first U.S. Open fourth round.
It started in Louis Armstrong Stadium, where 6'6'' Sam Querrey took on 6'10'' Croat Ivo Karlovic. It was a decent match and entertaining for sure, but it would pale in comparison to the standard set by future matches. The best part of course, was watching two of the biggest servers on tour from the front row behind the baseline (thanks to long-time Louis Armstrong ushers Kevin and Mickey). Karlovic is able to hit down on the ball such that it is capable of going over the baseline wall even though there is a lot of room behind the baseline; much more than in the Grandstand. Karlovic almost killed me several times.
The first two sets went as expected, with neither man able to break serve a single time. To the delight of the pro-American crowd, Querrey won both tiebreakers and that left Karlovic a bit mentally out of it. Querrey secured a crucial service break in the third set and that was easily enough for him to finish off the match. The victory booked the 21-year-old Querrey a spot in his first U.S. Open fourth round.
Sam Querrey blasting another big serve.
Ivo Karlovic. He doesn't look happy, and there's a reason why.
Action on the Grandstand had not quite heated up yet so I headed into Arthur Ashe Stadium, where Rafael Nadal and Legg Mason Classic runner-up Viktor Troicki were in the first set. It's hard to watch tennis from the upper deck in Arthur Ashe and I rarely do it unless the circumstances are extenuating. I think Nadal--as the No. 1 player in the world, the four-time reigning French Open champion, the current Wimbledon champion, and the winner of Olympic gold in Beijing--qualifies.
Troicki hung with him for a while but the Serb dropped serve at 4-4 and Nadal quickly closed out the set. The general thought was that Nadal would steamroll now, but Troicki surged to a 3-1 lead. Amazingly enough, he would not win another game the entire match. I was out of there after the second set, but not before seeing some unbelievable points and a great effort from Troicki. Nadal, as usual, was simply too good.
Troicki hung with him for a while but the Serb dropped serve at 4-4 and Nadal quickly closed out the set. The general thought was that Nadal would steamroll now, but Troicki surged to a 3-1 lead. Amazingly enough, he would not win another game the entire match. I was out of there after the second set, but not before seeing some unbelievable points and a great effort from Troicki. Nadal, as usual, was simply too good.
Rafael Nadal vs. Viktor Troicki. View from the stratosphere of Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Rafael Nadal tracking down a nice shot by Viktor Troicki.
I planned on heading over to the Grandstand, but Jurgen Melzer had a surprising two-set lead on Andy Murray and Stanislas Wawrinka (Roger Federer's gold medal-winning doubles partner) was starting a fifth set against Flavio Cipolla on Court 11, so obviously I stopped by the outer court.
The stands were not entirely packed, but a better seat (or more like standing room) was available on the opposite side so I went over there and pretty much got right up on the fence, right near the court. Both men looked exhausted and soon the match extended past the brutal four-hour mark, so the quality of play was not exactly scintillating. Cipolla had no weapons but annoyed Wawrinka by offering backhand slices with no pace and absolute moonballs from the forehand side. The Swiss did not handle it too well, but he finally broke serve at 4-4 and served out the match with a little bit of trouble. Unfortunately I did not arrive in time to see why they did not shake hands at the net, but they absolutely did not shake. Instead they just stood at the net talking for a few seconds, and in a none too friendly tone. Apparently Cipolla had been injured in the fourth set and Wawrinka thought he was faking, so he began imitating Cipolla's limp. Who knows who was mostly at fault, but it sounds like I missed some fireworks. At least I saw the lack of a handshake; I'm pretty sure I had never seen a match with such a result in person.
The stands were not entirely packed, but a better seat (or more like standing room) was available on the opposite side so I went over there and pretty much got right up on the fence, right near the court. Both men looked exhausted and soon the match extended past the brutal four-hour mark, so the quality of play was not exactly scintillating. Cipolla had no weapons but annoyed Wawrinka by offering backhand slices with no pace and absolute moonballs from the forehand side. The Swiss did not handle it too well, but he finally broke serve at 4-4 and served out the match with a little bit of trouble. Unfortunately I did not arrive in time to see why they did not shake hands at the net, but they absolutely did not shake. Instead they just stood at the net talking for a few seconds, and in a none too friendly tone. Apparently Cipolla had been injured in the fourth set and Wawrinka thought he was faking, so he began imitating Cipolla's limp. Who knows who was mostly at fault, but it sounds like I missed some fireworks. At least I saw the lack of a handshake; I'm pretty sure I had never seen a match with such a result in person.
Above: Stanislas Wawrinka serving. Below: Wawrinka doing an interview for U.S. Open radio before leaving the court. Cipolla, meanwhile, exited to the tune of several boos.
Murray was still down two sets and in the process of a close third over on the Grandstand, so I stopped by another outer court for some doubles while waiting to see if the Scot would eventually make things interesting. One of my favorites, Guillermo Canas--along with partner and fellow Argentine Lucas Arnold Ker--was going up against Spaniards Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco. Lopez and Verdasco are an experienced doubles squad and I had seen them play recently in Cincinnati. They ended up winning, but I bolted to the Grandstand when I heard Murray won the third set.
Guillermo Canas preparing to return serve.
Obviously I did not have a front-row seat for this as I normally do on the Grandstand, since I had opted to go watch Nadal and some outer courts instead of staking out a prime spot for Murray. The rest of the crew, however, was stationed in the normal spot and apparently got some serious air time on CBS. My dad's hat kind of stands out if you know what I mean.
The fourth set went by in a flash, as Melzer either had in injury or just started tanking in preparation for the fifth set. At the start of the fifth, the Austrian's play suggest he had been faking or tanking a little bit throughout the fourth. Melzer came up with some nice shots and made things extremely competitive during the first half of the final frame of play. Murray, seeded sixth and heavily favored, eventually took control and cruised to a come-from-behind triumph. This would be the first of several memorable matches over the weekend.
The fourth set went by in a flash, as Melzer either had in injury or just started tanking in preparation for the fifth set. At the start of the fifth, the Austrian's play suggest he had been faking or tanking a little bit throughout the fourth. Melzer came up with some nice shots and made things extremely competitive during the first half of the final frame of play. Murray, seeded sixth and heavily favored, eventually took control and cruised to a come-from-behind triumph. This would be the first of several memorable matches over the weekend.
From left above "usopen.org": Les, Phil, Dad (where is the hat!?!?!?), James. Chip (in yellow) is in the third row on the aisle.
Andy Murray serving his way to a comeback victory.
Murray doing what has become his trademark flex following a big win.
David Nalbandian ready to serve.
Gael Monfils taking apart Nalbandian.
To say the Grandstand match did not disappoint would be an understatement. Del Potro came into the U.S. Open having won four tournaments (the first four of his career!) in-a-row and 19 consecutive matches. Simon came in as arguably the third hottest player in tennis behind Nadal and Del Potro. The Frenchman won the title in Indianapolis to kick off the U.S. Open Series and he followed that up with an improbable run to the Masters Series Toronto semis.
I saw Del Potro play three matches in Washington, so I knew what he was all about. With Simon, on the other hand, I had no idea how he kept winning all these matches (he is what some people refer to as a "pusher"), so he was one of the guys I most wanted to see in New York to find out the answer for myself.
I found out to say the least. Del Potro, slightly favored due to his incredible run, took the first set but Simon responded in a second-set tiebreaker to level things at one apiece. The 6'6'' Argentine--still only 19 years old--roared back to seize the third with ease, but Simon clawed his way back to force a deciding fifth. In the end, however, Del Potro just had too much power for his counter-punching opponent. He secured a break midway through the set and Simon never came all that close to breaking back.
The only thing this one really lacked was a fifth-set tiebreaker, one of my favorite pastimes of the U.S. Open. Other than that, Del Potro-Simon left nothing too be desired. The quality of play was borderline unbelievable and the contrast in styles was wildly entertaining. Del Potro fired away with massive groundstrokes throughout the match--he started missing some in the fourth set but that was it--while Simon's human backboard was in rare form. Simon used DP's pace to block back shots with pace of his own, and he rarely ever missed. I'm confident I could count on one hand the number of players who would have defeated Simon on this day, and that number includes Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Del Potro, and probably nobody else. This one might be in my Top 5 matches I've ever seen at the Open; it just gets bumped down slightly since it did not end in a decisive tiebreaker (all of my clear-cut Top 3 ended in fifth-set 'breakers).
I saw Del Potro play three matches in Washington, so I knew what he was all about. With Simon, on the other hand, I had no idea how he kept winning all these matches (he is what some people refer to as a "pusher"), so he was one of the guys I most wanted to see in New York to find out the answer for myself.
I found out to say the least. Del Potro, slightly favored due to his incredible run, took the first set but Simon responded in a second-set tiebreaker to level things at one apiece. The 6'6'' Argentine--still only 19 years old--roared back to seize the third with ease, but Simon clawed his way back to force a deciding fifth. In the end, however, Del Potro just had too much power for his counter-punching opponent. He secured a break midway through the set and Simon never came all that close to breaking back.
The only thing this one really lacked was a fifth-set tiebreaker, one of my favorite pastimes of the U.S. Open. Other than that, Del Potro-Simon left nothing too be desired. The quality of play was borderline unbelievable and the contrast in styles was wildly entertaining. Del Potro fired away with massive groundstrokes throughout the match--he started missing some in the fourth set but that was it--while Simon's human backboard was in rare form. Simon used DP's pace to block back shots with pace of his own, and he rarely ever missed. I'm confident I could count on one hand the number of players who would have defeated Simon on this day, and that number includes Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Del Potro, and probably nobody else. This one might be in my Top 5 matches I've ever seen at the Open; it just gets bumped down slightly since it did not end in a decisive tiebreaker (all of my clear-cut Top 3 ended in fifth-set 'breakers).
Up close and personal with Juan Martin Del Potro.
Gilles Simon serving.
Above: Del Potro celebrating after match point. Del Potro while thanking the fans.
Dad and Richard at Del Potro-Simon.
Me, Phil, Richard, and Chip at Del Potro-Simon in the normal spot, front row Grandstand.
Les, Dad, James, Chip, Phil, me, and Thomas after Del-Potro Simon.
There was no time to waste as No. 4 seed David Ferrer and qualifier Kei Nishikori were going into a fifth set over on Louis Armstrong. Ferrer had stormed back from two sets down to force a decider and now it was an absolute barnburner. The Spaniard is always fun to watch--I saw him in Miami earlier this year--because, quite simply, he is crazy. He breaks his fair share of rackets, but the best is when he talks to--and screams at--himself in disgust. Being in a fifth set against a qualifier, this happened almost all the time--almost after every point he lost.
Whatever he says to himself, it apparently helped him while serving to stay in the match at 4-5. On Nishikori's first match point at 30-40, the 18-year-old Japanese sensation appeared to be in control at the net, but Ferrer came up with a shocking backhand down-the-line passing shot that hit the line to keep him alive. Ferrer then held serve to level things at 5-5. Soon, however, Nishikori had another match point with his opponent serving at 5-6. Ferrer came up with a huge down-the-tee serve to save it, but the third match point, which turned out to be as equally incredible as the first, proved to be too much. Nishikori made two spectacular gets before forcing a shotr ball out of Ferrer, which he pummeled with an inside-out forehand to clinch the victory.
Whatever he says to himself, it apparently helped him while serving to stay in the match at 4-5. On Nishikori's first match point at 30-40, the 18-year-old Japanese sensation appeared to be in control at the net, but Ferrer came up with a shocking backhand down-the-line passing shot that hit the line to keep him alive. Ferrer then held serve to level things at 5-5. Soon, however, Nishikori had another match point with his opponent serving at 5-6. Ferrer came up with a huge down-the-tee serve to save it, but the third match point, which turned out to be as equally incredible as the first, proved to be too much. Nishikori made two spectacular gets before forcing a shotr ball out of Ferrer, which he pummeled with an inside-out forehand to clinch the victory.
David Ferrer vs. Kei Nishikori in Louis Armstrong Stadium.
We didn't--and we almost never--have night tickets for Arthur Ashe, but this year that hardly turned out to be a problem. Our ticket-getting plan worked to perfection both nights. On this night, Dinara Safina did us a favor by taking forever--three long sets--to win her match, the first match of the night session. That pushed the James Blake vs. Mardy Fish clash back late enough for a lot of fans (clearly not die-hards) to hit the exits after the first set. So we camped out by the exits after set one and kept asking for people's tickets until we finally got great ones. It didn't take long, as I quickly procured two tickets for seats about 10 rows from the court right near the middle of the sideline. SCORE!
Unfortunately, Blake played miserable tennis so we did not get the five-set epic that we had hoped for. Fish played well, but to say he won it as opposed to Blake losing it is stretching the truth. I guess since Blake was playing so bad and showing no emotional signs of snapping out of the funk, the J-Block members took it upon themselves to energize their man. The only thing that plan got them was a scolding from the chair umpire. After hearing a relatively inappropriate comment about Fish's fiancee, the ump said, "Thank you, J-Block. Your enthusiasm is amazing, but please be respectful."
A five-setter ending after 2:00 AM is what would have been amazing, but it never came close to happening. Blake forced a third-set tiebreaker and led 4-2, but in typical fashion he lost the last five points of the match to throw it all away.
Unfortunately, Blake played miserable tennis so we did not get the five-set epic that we had hoped for. Fish played well, but to say he won it as opposed to Blake losing it is stretching the truth. I guess since Blake was playing so bad and showing no emotional signs of snapping out of the funk, the J-Block members took it upon themselves to energize their man. The only thing that plan got them was a scolding from the chair umpire. After hearing a relatively inappropriate comment about Fish's fiancee, the ump said, "Thank you, J-Block. Your enthusiasm is amazing, but please be respectful."
A five-setter ending after 2:00 AM is what would have been amazing, but it never came close to happening. Blake forced a third-set tiebreaker and led 4-2, but in typical fashion he lost the last five points of the match to throw it all away.
James Blake vs. Mardy Fish from a great seat in Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Fish serving; Blake could not touch it.
Handshake after Fish rolled over Blake.
At least Blake's lackluster performance allowed us to arrive at the McDonalds near our hotel in Flushing at 12:52 AM, eight minutes before advertised closing time but less than two minutes before they actually locked it up. A great end to another incredible day at the U.S. Open!
Sunday
Four of the eight men's singles matches on Saturday went to five sets. I saw the fifth set (if not more) of every single one.
Why not one more for an encore?
Both Louis Armstrong and the Grandstand started out with men's singles on Sunday, so it was a toss-up to pick which would be the best one. Last year I decided to watch Ivan Ljubcic and Juan Ignacio Chela instead of David Ferrer and David Nalbandian (mainly since Ljubcic-Chela was on the Grandstand) when those matches were going on simultaneously. Although both went to five sets, the quality of Ljubcic-Chela was mediocre while Ferrer-Nalbandian turned out to be one of the best matches of the 2007 Open.
Why not one more for an encore?
Both Louis Armstrong and the Grandstand started out with men's singles on Sunday, so it was a toss-up to pick which would be the best one. Last year I decided to watch Ivan Ljubcic and Juan Ignacio Chela instead of David Ferrer and David Nalbandian (mainly since Ljubcic-Chela was on the Grandstand) when those matches were going on simultaneously. Although both went to five sets, the quality of Ljubcic-Chela was mediocre while Ferrer-Nalbandian turned out to be one of the best matches of the 2007 Open.
This time I planned one picking the one in Armstrong since on paper Nikolay Davydenko vs. Dmitry Tursunov is far more enticing than Nicolas Almagro vs. Gilles Muller. The day began, however, with the usual sprint to the Grandstand to stake out seats for the entire day. Once there, of course, it's hard to leave. I stuck around talking to some of the Grandstand old-timers that we have come to know over the years. A few even tried Richard's impossible puzzles!
Richard giving a thumbs up. So far no thumbs up from the hopeless puzzle-doers.
Almagro took the first two sets against Muller, but the qualifier from Luxembourg had just come back from two sets down in his previous round to stun Tommy Haas, so he could not be counted out just yet. Muller stormed back and won both the third and fourth sets in tiebreakers, and he even had to save match points in the fourth. That set up a deciding fifth, throughout which Dad and I were whole-heartedly behind Almagro and Phil not-too-quietly supported Muller. A few times when Almagro came over for his towel (the players' towels are always right in front of our Grandstand spot) he gave Dad looks that either meant he appreciated the crazed support or thought Dad was some crazy lunatic rooting for a random Spanish guy for no apparent reason! Probably the latter. Unfortunately we were unable to pull Almagro through. Neither man was able to break serve in the fifth (although both blew several chances) until Muller finally did it with Almagro serving to stay in the match at 5-6. Muller finished it off with a winning volley and collapsed in some kind of summersault at the net, somewhat reminiscent of Magnus Norman after he beat Max Mirnyi in probably the best match we've ever seen at the Open. Muller-Almagro--who would have thought!--is most likely now in my Top 10.
Nicolas Almagro.
Nicolas Almagro.
I quickly stopped by Louis Armstrong after Almagro went up two sets to love. In a comeback effort of his own, Tursunov had three break points at 0-40 on Davydenko's serve early in the third set. He blew all three, however, and unable to put that out his mind, he dropped serve with ease in the very next game. I was out of there in a flash. Back to the Grandstand!
Dmitry Tursunov serving, to no avail.
Gilles Muller signing autographs after another improbable victory.
Today's matches on the Grandstand just go to show that you never know which match is going to be the one. The one that you just have to be at. Muller-Almagro on paper should have been a snoozer, while Igor Andreev vs. Fernando Verdasco should have been a four-hour baseline war. Well, Verdasco-Andreev turned out to stink, which was unfortunate, but I guess not all that surprising since you never know what you are going to get from Verdasco. He had been having a great year, but he is still up-and-down and today he was way down. Andreev erased him in three sets, of course I was out of there after the first.
Igor Andreev (and Dad's U.S. Open hat).
I went back to Louis Armstrong for the end of a women's match between Sybille Bammer and Marion Bartoli. Needless to say I could done without that match, but I wanted to secure a seat in a baseline box for the upcoming match between Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Tommy Robredo. By all accounts from the people around, Bammer-Bartoli had been one of the worst matches of the entire tournament, but fortunately Bammer ended it soon after I arrived.
Not a scene you see every day: a pro tennis player with a daughter (much less an eight-year-old) out on the court. That's Sybille Bammer, her daughter, and MaliVai Washington.
Perhaps
we were due for a string of relatively disappointing matches after a
scorching start to the weekend. The first set of Tsonga-Robredo, at
times, was awesome, with Tsonga storming back from behind with some
great shot-making and his Ali-esque celebrations that were on display
at this year's Australian Open. Of course it wasn't quite to that
extent, as Tsonga finished runner-up Down Under and now he was losing
to player he should almost always beat on hard-courts when 100 percent
healthy (Tsonga had not played since May leading up to the U.S. Open due to a knee injury).
After dropping the first set in a tiebreaker, opportunities to
celebrate became few and far between for the Frenchman. Tsonga's game
showed the rust in it and Robredo is not who you want to play when you
aren't in stellar form. Robredo played great, barely missed at all, and
rolled over Tsonga in straights. Nonetheless it was entertaining
tennis, especially from the front row.