Top 10 Matches I’ve Seen at the U.S.
Open 8/25/07
9. Marat Safin over David Nalbandian 6-3, 7-5, 2-6, 3-6, 7-6 (8-6) on Louis Armstrong, 2006, 2nd round 8. Juan Carlos Ferrero
over Roger Federer 7-5, 7-6 (8-6), 1-6, 7-6 (8-6) on Louis Armstrong, 2000, 3rd
round 7. Tommy Haas over Robby
Ginepri 7-6 (7-1), 6-4, 3-6, 3-6, 7-6 (7-1) on Louis Armstrong, 2006, 3rd
round 6. Richard Krajicek
over Tim Henman 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 on Arthur Ashe, 2000, 3rd
round 5. Sargis Sargsian
over Paul-Henri Mathieu 4-6, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2, 7-6 (7-4) on the Grandstand, 2004,
3rd round 4. Robby Ginepri over
Tommy Haas 7-5, 6-7 (7-3), 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 on Arthur Ashe, 2005, 3rd
round 2. David Sanguinetti
over Paradorn Srichaphan 6-3, 4-6, 6-7 (7-2), 7-6 (8-6), 7-6 (7-5) on Louis
Armstrong, 2005, 3rd round 1. Magnus Norman over
Max Mirnyi 3-6, 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4, 7-6 (11-9) on the Grandstand, 2000, 3rd
round ___________________________________________________________________
This match was interrupted for about two minutes as the crowd on Louis Armstrong gave a standing ovation for Andre Agassi as Agassi lost his last match ever over on Arthur Ashe stadium at the same time. But it didn’t put a damper on the level of play or intensity on this court. Safin showed a surprisingly strong mental game, even though he gave himself no credit for that in his post-match interview. On match point in the fifth-set tiebreaker, Nalbandian controlled play the entire point, eventually ran Safin way wide into his deuce-side alley, the Russian made an unbelievable get and chipped it back as Nalbandian approached the service line, and Nalbandian excruciatingly missed a drop-shot on the tape, playing it too cute considering Safin was way off the court. To the fans delight, Safin’s on-court interview was even more entertaining than match point. I can’t remember exactly what he said, but in typical Safin fashion it was ridiculous and hilarious and featured plenty of instances in which Safin said he had been losing his mind and going mentally insane the entire match.
The main thing I remember about this one is that I barely
had any idea who Juan Carlos Ferrero was and I had almost never even heard of
Roger Federer. Fans could tell these guys were going to be the real deal
(although nobody at the time would have predicted just what Federer has done),
it was just disappointing that Federer couldn’t quite extend it to five sets,
otherwise it would have been an epic.
This was a rematch of a showdown you’ll soon hear about, one
year later, same round, different court. It looked like Ginepri would be ousted
with too much trouble after the first two sets, but he stormed back and forced
a fifth set. Two Ginepri-Haas 3rd round U.S. Open matches in
consecutive years, two five-setters! Throughout the fifth set, Ginepri held
easily while Haas struggled on his service games. Ginepri even had 0-40 on
Haas’ serve at 3-4 (I think) in the set. Unfortunately, Ginepri couldn’t
convert and Haas managed to get it into a tiebreaker. Once there, everything
changed, as Haas held all his service points and Ginepri held just one of his.
The tiebreaker wasn’t close and left the fans disappointed, but that only took
away just a little from an otherwise great match.
My brother, two friends and I will take the blame for
Henman’s loss. Sitting in a box just a few rows up from the court inside Arthur
Ashe Stadium, we started the wave at the 5-6 changeover in the fifth set with
Henman about to serve to stay in the match. This was a night match at the Open
and without any Americans being showcased, the atmosphere was not appropriate
for a night match at the Open so we had to stir things up. Anyway, it worked
with great success and delayed play for a few moment. Well, it didn’t work with
great success for Henman. An epic match went down the drain with his worst
service game of the night, punctuated by a devastating double fault to end the
match.
Sargsian-Mathieu was not only an extremely well-played
match, but the atmosphere was simply phenomenal. First off all, it was on the
Grandstand, my favorite court ever (first because tons of epic matches always
happen there, and also because it’s much a much more intimate setting for the
fans than Ashe or Louis since every seat is close to the court and the front
rows are practically right on the baseline and alleys). Second, the afternoon
match quickly became a night match as it progressed. Most importantly, it was
bordering on Davis Cup atmosphere, although the French fans were too few so the
rowdy Armenians completely dominated and got most of the neutral observers,
including me, to rally around Sarge. That could very well be what made the
difference, as Sargsian pulled it out in the fifth-set tiebreaker, although not
before Mathieu had one of the most epic holds of serve I’ve ever seen, at 5-5
in the fifth. That game lasted well over 15 minutes by itself.
Just as our crew takes part credit for Henman’s loss to
Krajicek, my brother, two other friends and I take even more credit for
Ginepri’s springboard win over Haas. Even though it was a night match in Arthur
Ashe that featured an American, the crowd was nothing short of buzzkill. Our
box provided by far the most vigorous support for Ginepri throughout the match.
We weren’t exactly the J-Block, but we finally got at least some of the crowd riled
up and backing Ginepri as the match entered the deciding set. A pleasant side
note about the crowd: two German fans, probably trying to do too good a job
keeping up with us, got kicked out of the stadium. Anyway, Ginepri played great
tennis during the fifth set and to our delight emerged victorious. He tried to
hit us a ball after the match but it went into the row behind us. Speaking of
going further than expected, Ginepri followed up this huge victory with two
more wins en route to the semi-finals.
3. Younes El Aynaoui
over Jiri Novak 7-6 (7-1), 5-7, 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-5) on the Grandstand, 2003, 3rd
round
This was the first match on the Grandstand on the middle
Sunday, and it turned out to be a shockingly good start to the day. El Aynaoui,
always one of the most charismatic and likable players on the tour, was a
favorite of mine and my dad and we saw every point of this match from the
second row in our normal spot in the Grandstand behind the far baseline. El
Aynaoui lived on his spin serve out wide in the deuce court; I’d love to know
how many aces and service winners he had on that alone. He also lived on his
slice backhand that he could somehow chip with alarming consistency just over
the net, making Novak, who came to net a ton, hit volleys at his feet
throughout the match. Novak, however, used his attacking, aggressive play to
make this one a thriller. At 5-5 in the fifth set tiebreaker, I witness one of
the best points and amazing shots I’ve seen at the Open. With El Aynaoui
serving, a long rally ensued before Novak stretched El Aynoui out wide to his
deuce court with a powerful approach shot. But El Aynaoui got to it and flicked
a top-spin crosscourt passing shot by Novak, giving him a match point. After a
Novak volley sailed long ay 5-6, El Aynaoui collapsed behind the baseline.
After the handshake and hugging of people in his box, he proceeded to launch
his shirt, spare shirts, wristbands, and tennis rackets into the crowd! I
didn’t get one, but it was still amazing.
In terms of drama, atmosphere, and general positive energy
between the players, this one was probably the best ever. An afternoon match on
Louis Armstrong, this one went well after dark. Our crew was decked out in the
Thai Paradorn shirts and we sat with the ever-faithful Srichaphanatics, banding
our red thundersticks and all. Sanguinetti got mad at us several times during
the match, screaming and gesturing and all that stuff, but there was never any
bad blood between him and Paradorn. In fact they even gave each other a high
five after one particularly amazing point in the fifth set, which I can’t
remember exactly because there was just too much drama in this one to recall
the specifics. I do remember after one point in the fifth set in which
Sangunetti ran Paradorn all over the court before Paradorn finally dove for a
shot that he couldn’t get, leaving him sprawled on the ground. He did nothing
for a few tense seconds, bringing a hush over the crowd, but then he rolled
over and started doing push-ups. Gotta love that! Unfortunately Sanguinetti,
who as you probably know has made a living off just getting the ball in play
and making his opponents beat themselves, was just too steady in the fifth-set
tiebreaker. Still it didn’t take away from how amazing the match was and still
remains, and Paradorn even did his traditional four-corner bow, which he
usually only does after victories.
I started out down low for this one, but ended up (after
going elsewhere for a while) watching this all-time classic on the overhang in
between Louis and the Grandstand with hundreds of other mesmerized onlookers.
Norman-Mirnyi featured an awesome contrast of styles; at the time Norman was the No. 3
player in the world, one of the quickest guys around the court and lethal from
the back of the court. 6’5’’ Max “The Beast” Mirnyi was and still is one of the
last serve-and-volleyers, and while he’s had some good results in singles, he’s
always been one of the best in the world in doubles. But Mirnyi hung with Norman throughout this
match, forcing a fifth set despite being down 0-2. In fact Mirnyi appeared to
have this match won several times in the fifth set tiebreaker. I’m not sure how
many match points each player had in the ‘breaker, but on two of Mirnyi’s, Norman hit two ridiculous
topspin lob winners. That’s right: he’s down match point and twice he lobs a
6’5’’ guy for winners. My brother remembers all the details because he was
front row for this one, but I’m pretty sure this one finally ended with both
players collapsing on the ground and the fans ready to do the same.
2007 U.S.
Open Draw Analysis 8/23/07
One of my favorite days of every year came on Wednesday with the U.S. Open draw ceremony.
I don’t think the day will go down as one of Andy Roddick’s
favorite of 2007. That’s because he would meet Roger Federer in the quarterfinals.
If Roddick had held his No. 4 ranking, that would have guaranteed him a spot in
a separate quarter from Federer, but because he failed to defend major points
in Cincinnati
and allowed Davydenko to overtake him, it put Roddick at risk. And it proved to
be a devastating turn.
Another thing that jumps out at first glance – literally –
is that five qualifiers in-a-row are listed right under Roger Federer’s name at
the top of the draw. Now obviously it doesn’t really matter who Federer matches
up with in the first two rounds because he isn’t going to lose at that stage
anyway, but it’s still interesting to see such a huge clump of qualifiers
there.
Finally, it’s a relief to see Djokovic on Nadal’s half of
the draw rather than Federer’s. While his draw is still brutal, the key is that
we can get a Djokovic-Federer final showdown if they both navigate their way
through the fortnight.
So that’s what stands out, but to really get a sense of what
Wednesday’s proceedings revealed, we need to dissect the 2007 U.S. Open quarter
by quarter.
TOP
QUARTER OF THE DRAW
This quarter is loaded. In fact it looks like it’s going to
be played out almost entirely on the three show courts: the Grandstand, Louis
Armstrong, and Arthur Ashe.
The draw certainly did not do Roddick any favors, but it
wasn’t particularly kind to Federer, either. The world No. 1 goes qualifier,
qualifier, and then most likely the winner of the John Isner-Jarkko Nieminen
first-round match. The U.S.
crowd will be pulling for Isner to make a run to the third round, and
personally I’d love to be there for an Isner-Federer night match on Ashe. It’s
not like Federer will be severely threatened by either one (even if Isner
forces a tiebreaker or two with his serve), but it should be entertaining. The
fourth round is where it will be both entertaining and difficult. The winner of
Gasquet-Ferrero looms there.
Roddick, meanwhile, has huge-serving Ivo Karlovic, scorching
hot Paul-Henri Mathieu, and the always dangerous Tomas Berdych all in his
eighth of the draw. He might have to get past two of those three before he even
gets to Federer.
The host of players doesn’t stop there. Unseeded players in
this quarter include – in addition to Isner – Feliciano Lopez, Igor Andreev,
Fernando Verdasco, and young American Donald Young. Young won’t have a major
impact in this Open, but he should draw a good crowd due to his recent showing
in New Haven
and he has a great chance of winning his first-round encounter with Chris
Guccione.
Best
First-Round Matchup – Paul-Henri Mathieu vs. Fernando
Verdasco. Mathieu has an extremely impressive 38-16 match record in 2007 and
he’s getting especially hot at just the right time. He reached the fourth round
of Wimbledon, won in Gstaad, and has enjoyed a solid U.S. Open Series in which
he’s currently in the semi-finals of New
Haven. Verdasco hasn’t been as good this year, but he
posted better-than-average results in each of his three U.S. Open Series
events. While Verdasco is best on clay, both of these guys are all-court
players who are capable of making a run in New York. Verdasco has proven he likes it
there, reaching the fourth round in 2005 and making it to the third round last
year before taking Roddick to five sets. I anticipate a high-energy match that
ends with Mathieu prevailing in four brutal sets.
Best
Potential Matchup – Federer vs. Roddick, fourth round. It
might not end up being the best match of this quarter – in fact it almost
definitely won’t unless Roddick is on fire and Federer is still in
early-tournament mode – but it has to be considered the best matchup. If
Roddick serves incredibly and Federer decides he wants to make things
interesting before turning it on later in the match, there could be some drama.
The other two best potential matchups are third-round affairs: Juan Carlos
Ferrero vs. Richard Gasquet and Tomas Berdych vs. Mathieu.
Most
Intriguing Storyline – The potential Roddick-Federer
rematch of last year’s final, this time in the quarters. Of course there is a
ton going on in this section of the draw that will peak interest. Fans would
like to see Isner win two rounds, and they’d also love to see Donald Young pick
up his second ATP win and first in a Grand Slam. But above all that, everyone
is already anticipating the Roddick-Federer quarterfinal.
Favorite
– Roger Federer.
BOTTOM
SECTION OF THE TOP HALF
Happy birthday, James Blake. OK not really, it’s going to be
difficult, but he is the six seed and yet is in a position where he’s favored
to get to the semi-finals.
Of course that’s not if Marcos Baghdatis, Nikolay Davydenko,
Tommy Haas, and Guillermo Canas have anything to say about that. This section has some talent and some
colorful characters, but win or lose it’s going to be all about Blake. The main
factor that’s watering down this part of the draw is that Andy Murray is taking
up a spot as the 19th seed and right now I don’t think he’s able to
play anywhere close to that level after missing a few months with a wrist
injury. A healthy Murray
would at least somewhat alter the complexion of this quarter.
Best
First-Round Matchup – Marcos Baghdatis vs. Max Mirnyi. I
know that’s not even great by any means, but it’s about the best there is in
this section. Unless Guillermo Canas catches fire like he did this spring, this
quarter is soft for the most part. There are some good potential matchups down
the road, but the first round is nothing to salivate over. Still, if Mirnyi
serves big and forces the issue early in points, this match could be close.
Both of these guys are fan favorites, so the stands (perhaps in the Grandstand)
will be packed regardless of the caliber of play.
Best
Potential Matchup – Guillermo Canas vs. Nikolay Davydenko,
fourth round. This match could last forever. Both of these guys are pure
grinders who make opponents work terribly hard to beat them. These guys aren’t
the biggest names in the sport, but if you’re at the Open and stop by this
match, I’ll bet you won’t forget it anytime soon. I’ll take Davydenko in five,
but the only thing I’ll guarantee is that the winner is going to have to fight
a good fight in order to emerge victorious. I would have considered the
potential Baghdatis-Haas third-round clash here, but Baghdatis already has a
good first-round match so I opted not to. Another—yes another—James Blake-Sam
Querrey showdown would take place in the third round.
Most
Intriguing Storyline – Blake’s best chance to reach his
first Grand Slam semi-final. He is the six seed and the Open, but the draw put
him in a sport where he has to be considered the favorite to reach the semi-finals
from his section. The J-Block should be hopping right from the start of the
tournament knowing that Blake has a relatively clear path to his first Grand
Slam semi. That doesn’t mean he won’t be
a part of some huge encounters along the way. Blake-Querrey in the third and
Blake vs. either Baghdatis or Haas in the fourth would mesmerize the Arthur
Ashe faithful.
Favorite
– James Blake.
TOP
HALF OF THE BOTTOM SECTION
Djokovic avoided Federer until the finals, but that’s about
all he avoided, as you’ll soon see.
This quarter also includes Radek Stepanek, Carlos Moya, 2006
semi-finalist Mikhail Youzhny, and most importantly Lleyton Hewitt.
Best
First-Round Matchup – Novak Djokovic vs. Mario Ancic. I’m
not that excited about it, but there’s really nothing else that has two names
even close to as big as these. Frankly this draw produced a lot of tantalizing
second, third, and fourth-round affairs, but unless a bunch of solid qualifiers
get placed in extraordinary spots of the bracket, the first round has left a
little to be desired. Normally Djokovic-Ancic would be a guaranteed thriller,
but then again Ancic would normally be seeded and therefore this would never
happen in the first round. But the Croatian sensation has missed tons of time
this year, and unless he shows something that he hasn’t showed during his brief
comeback stint, this one shouldn’t be too close.
Best
Potential Matchup – Novak Djokovic vs. Lleyton Hewitt,
fourth round. It’s simply terrible that these two have to play in the fourth round
because they are arguably the second and third best players on hard courts
right now. Hewitt destroyed Djokovic in the third round last year, and I didn’t
even have time to make my way from Louis Armstrong over to the Grandstand in
time because it happened so fast. This one will be much different and much more
entertaining. I like Djokovic in five in what should be one of the most intense
matches of this year’s tournament.
Most
Intriguing Storyline – The collision course of two of
the sport’s hottest players, Djokovic and Hewitt, who are set to meet way too
early. Mardy Fish and Amer Delic are the only two Americans in this section, so
even the partisan U.S.
fans will be focusing on Djokovic and Hewitt throughout this quarter’s
proceedings. Djokovic’s entire road is something to keep an eye on (potentially
Ancic, Stepanek, Del Potro, Hewitt, and then Moya or
Youzhny).
Favorite
– Novak Djokovic.
BOTTOM
QUARTER
Now we’re talking.
This quarter could produce the best tennis of the fortnight,
but it definitely could produce the worst. Consider some of the guys in this
section: Gonzalez, Safin, Ljubicic, and Nalbandian. All four of those guys
either been ranked in the top three in the world at one point in time (Safin,
Ljubicic, Nalbandian) or have the games to be top three in the world
(Gonzalez). Right now, neither one is close to that level. But each one –
especially Safin and Gonzalez – is capable of turning the light switch on at
any moment.
Nadal is playing much better than that motley crew right now,
but he’s never been as far as Safin (former champ) and Nalbandian
(semi-finalist) at the U.S. Open. He could have an easy time of it down at the
bottom of the draw, or his road could be miserable—and short.
I won’t guarantee that this quarter features the best
tennis—in fact it very well could produce the worst—but it’s the one I’d want
to see if I could only pick one to watch.
Best
First-Round Matchup – Dmitry Tursunov vs. Tim Henman.
Once again, this is the best by default, as nothing else really jumps off the
page. This one would have been better two years ago (in fact it was, at Wimbledon in the first round) when Henman was still
playing good tennis. Still, this will be a fun contrast of styles and if Henman
can serve well and impose his style before Tursunov takes control with his
baseline power, it could be another five-setter. Tursunov is well-liked by
tennis fans, but Henman will be the sentimental favorite in this one since he
announced he’ll be retiring in September.
Best
Potential Matchup – Fernando Gonzalez vs. Marat Safin,
third round. It might not produce the best tennis, but the entertainment level
would be off the charts. Unfortunately I think one of these headcases will lose
before this match becomes a reality, but if it does happen, I will absolutely
be all over it on Labor Day weekend. Can you imagine the shot-making going on
in this one? Wow, it’d be crazy to say the least. And just think if Safin and
Gonzalez both play something close to their best tennis; each one has top-2
potential when his game is on.
Most
Intriguing Storyline – Plain and simple: who will
advance out of this quarter? This section is littered with extremely talented
players, but almost every single contender comes with serious question marks.
Which one will flame out, and which one will right the demons en route to
making the semi-finals? Nadal retired in Cincinnati
with a forearm injury, and while that shouldn’t be a problem, he has never made
it past the quarterfinals here. Safin is playing terrible. Gonzalez is playing
terrible. Ljubicic is playing terrible. Chela is playing beyond terrible.
Nalbandian is playing worse than Ljubicic. Ferrer is playing well, but he’s
never done anything of note on hard courts. Which player will find his game? Or
will they all just stink up the joint and let Nadal sleepwalk his way into his
first U.S. Open semi-final? Who knows. But I do know that regardless of the
level of tennis being played, how this unfolds will be outrageously,
ridiculously fun to watch.
Favorite
– Rafael Nadal.
OVERALL
Things I like: Blake in a quarter without Federer, Nadal,
Djokovic, Hewitt, or Roddick. Djokovic on the opposite side of the draw from
Federer. Young with a chance to win a match. Isner with a chance to win two
matches. An onslaught of incredible potential Labor Day weekend matchups. No
Hurricane Ernesto (let’s hope).
Things I don’t like: Roddick and Federer in the same
quarter. Hewitt and Djokovic in the same eighth. Minimal enticing first-round
matchups. No Andre Agassi. No Srichaphantics.
Things I foresee: Federer over Roddick. Federer over Blake.
Federer over Djokovic. Yeah, I’m really going out on a limb.
____________________________________________________________
Will Agassi’s U.S. Open Torch Flame Out? 8/18/07
If Andre Agassi had ideas of passing his U.S. Open torch to a fellow American when he retired last year inside Arthur Ashe Stadium, his compatriot successors are not reciprocating.
At 35-years-old in 2005, Agassi went all the way to the finals, a run punctuated by a 7-6 in-the-fifth classic quarterfinal win over James Blake. Then last year, with back ailing, Agassi delivered again. This time the heroic effort came in the second round in the form of another one-for-the-ages thriller, a five-setter over Marcos Baghdatis. If Connors-Krickstein was once the staple rain delay feature on the Arthur Ashe Stadium video screens, now Agassi has two juggernauts to supplant it.
Ever since Agassi’s epic win over Baghdatis and emotional farewell speech after his third-round loss to Benjamin Becker, American tennis fans have had little to arouse their most passionate of emotions. Nothing to shout over. Nothing to cry over. Nothing to celebrate. And if recent Grand Slam results are any indication, there won’t be much celebration going on among the U.S.A. faithful next week around the grounds of the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.