Petrova is pretty consistent too. She hasn't had any spectacular result, but she seems to be often able to reach the second week.

[ September 04, 2005, 02:28 AM: Message edited by: andrea ]

Oh, I realize a Russian would advance either way in those two matches, but none of the "caliber" of the slam contenders last year, i.e., Myskina or Dimentieva.

Good point ... I didn't really think of Petrova. However, her injury issues, relative to Dementieva put her behind Elena in my book. She has produced in the Slams quite well this year. Having said that ... I'm so incredibly frustrated that she, with her massive tools, seems to have problems closing out matches. HUGE forehand, HUGE serve, great speed, but mentally ... she just doesn't have the toughness that even Dementieva seems to posess.

I really like her chances against Vaidisova ... Nicole has such a pretty game, but I have to go with Nadia here. As for the possible match against Sharpie ... I'd love to see Nadia put it together, but ... she's probably going to hit 60 unforced errors and lose in straights. *shrug*

Nick

How did Mystinka lose to Likhoseva(sp?) My goodness. And Mauresmo....ungh ungh...she ain't ready. Although Groenfeld is a very good player.

Well its set...Juicetine Henin Hardenne vs Mary Pierce in the 4th round. I hope Mary just blasts Juicetine off the court. Nick Boliterri is sticking with his feeling that Pierce is going to win and Clijsters as his second choice. Pierce to me is the favorite in the match over Justine. This is not clay and Mary has been hitting the ball so well lately. If Mary doesn't have a brain fart she should win that match. A Davenport/Pierce semi is possible and would be no joke the way those ladies hit the ball. I still think Venus will come through on the other side. I think she'll beat Serena and then more than likely Kim. Sharapova/Venus would be another fitting semifinal with Sharapova looking for revenge and Venus looking to whoop her again. I'm gonna go ahead and pick a Venus/Lindsay final in a rematch of Wimbledon.

Cupcake Kim is gonna be in for a rude awakening when she faces Venus. With Serena out the way, Venus can get back to playing her normal game. If people are gauging the way she played against Serena today the way she'll play against Kim than they aren't followers of tennis much. Venus will not be as tense and will be able to swing more freely. It was so important for Venus to win that first set today cuz at the end you could tell that the ghost of grand slams past was getting into her brain. I'm gonna go with Venus to win that match though. If Kim wins it will be well earned because I expect the ghosts of grand slams past to creep into her mind in that match. Its one of those things where I think Kim has to be 100% to win the match whereas Venus doesn't have to be 100%. Kim better hope that its pre-Wimbledon Venus she faces. Venus has 5 slams and knows how to win not playing her best and I think Kim will once again be forced to do things she's not comfortable with. Yes, Kim has the win over Venus from the Bank of the West but Bank of the West is not a grand slam. Kim knows this is the time she has to step it up. She's the overwhelming favorite to win and all eyes are on her to back up all the great hard court play she's had this year. So the pressure is definitely more on her. I'm still going with Venus but wouldn't be too upset if Cupcake Kim won. Kim is a sweetie and I'd like to see her eventually break through.

Dementieva defeated Schnyder 6-4 6-3.
A disappointing match by Schnyder, I expected much more from her.
Now Dementieva is up against Davenport. Lindsay should win easy, but with Dementieva you never know what could happen.

Agreed, with Dimentieva's serve being what it is, and the good year Schnyder's had, I'm surprised it wasn't more competetive, in fact, I expected Schnyder to win.

She made "only" 8 double faults today.
Schnyder won only 44% of receiving points. Too low against Dementieva's serve.

[ September 05, 2005, 02:39 PM: Message edited by: andrea ]

Wow ... Tell us what you really think. (Note: That was sarcasm.)

The Serena matchup is always a tough one for Venus, no doubt. I think that all of us who follow tennis know that each player brings out different things in a match-up and while Venus has had Kim's number recently ... I think that Kim has a great shot tomorrow night. (BTW ... I follow tennis quite a bit, good sir. Note: That was sarcasm. I don't need to get my ass chewed out.)

Granted, the match at Stanford was under strange circumstances ... post-Wimbledon let down for Venus, fatigue, yada yada ... but, I think that Kim has a chance if she can keep up with the Venus's forehand.

I think that Venus is a tough match-up for Kim because she has incredible pace, a tough serve and while Kim CAN defend very well, she really needs to dictate to win.

Bottom line, I like Kim's chances here if she can keep her own serve and manage to withstand the barrage from the ground. Kimbo MUST be assertive with her forehand and not be afraid to move forward against Venus's backhand. *shrug* If she plays deep in the court, she'll be in trouble because when Venus gets on a hot streak ... i.e., the 3rd round against Hantuchova from 3-all in the 1st to 3-0 in the 2nd ... she's incredibly tough to stop.

Nick

[ September 05, 2005, 03:22 PM: Message edited by: The_Hammerman ]

watching pierce and henin-hardenne...sloppy match on justine's part. way too many double-faults. not making pierce work for it...and mary's getting the benefit of some bad calls. she (justine) looks out of sorts.

[ September 05, 2005, 06:17 PM: Message edited by: tennisballs ]

As I texted to my entire cell phone list ... VIVE LA f**kING PIERCE! Whew ...

Nick

Justine may be Belgian, but she sure served like a Russian tonight. Yikes.

Pierce played her heart out. She smacked the ball like usual, but I don't think I've ever seen her move so much, so fast...so well! What a great story. Mauresmo's next for her. Venus, Kim, Mary, Lindsay, Amelie...I wish they could all win, for so many different reasons...this is going to be a great week!

ach meine leben...wish i could join you on that one nick...but can't. good for pierce, but justine's my girl. mary's just too weird for me. after what she's been through she deserves a little luck, but wish henin had made her work for it. alas...i'm sad. i shall face east and bow for justine.

gasquet is up next. so far i'm batting '0' today. no one i've wanted to win has pulled it off. hope the french dish can play his game...

couldn' agree more hammerman....vive le pierce...maryyyyyyy!

Just got in with my boyfriend from the night session and all I have to say to Justine is "Allez your ass back to Belgium biatch" Ugh I can't stand that girl. Justine has lost in the 4th round or earlier 3 of the last 4 years at the US Open. And lets be honest....if Myskina's French Open win was a fluke because Justine was out injured in '04 than Justine's '03 US Open win was an even bigger fluke with both Williams sister out, no resurgent Lindsay into the picture yet. Yes, she had to beat Capriati and Clijsters in the final but Capriati had never been past the semis and Clijsters is a head case in the slams. I'm already hearing the excuses for Juicetine and its interesting that she gets a pass when she loses. Some people were talking about the hamstring and the pained expression she had on her face. That pained expression was an "Oh my god this b*tch is finally exposing my piss poor serve for what it is" The girl is a fighter and I'll give her that but I was tired of people calling her one of the favorites when her record at the Open sucks and she hasn't even played that much hard court tennis this year. Hustling to get those night session tickets were definitely worth it to see her lose. Justine: On her way to JFK!

[ September 06, 2005, 01:44 AM: Message edited by: ltskinmdterp ]

I gotta disagree on Justine. I don't think her slam wins were flukey. When she's at her best, she really does compete better than anyone else on the tour, except Serena during her prime. Her backhand is a nasty weapon, and her movement is usually pretty good. Justine's serve was rediculously bad tday though.

All credit to Pierce though. That first set was crazy, she went like 5 games without making an unforced error. She was serving bombs and hitting shots right off the baseline. Pierce seems like a fitter, less mentally tough Davenport. Too bad her career was filled with injury--she should have at least two more slams.

[ September 06, 2005, 08:42 AM: Message edited by: Neptune ]

As one of Pierce's biggest fans, I couldnt be more elated on her performance last night. I still, however, get quite nervous at her seemingly inability to close out matches. She had what like 4-5 match points? I am soooo happy that she is in the QF matching her best performance at the Open. The Mauresmo match out to be interesting with Mary trailing that series 4-2. The last two matches (this year) have gone decisively to Mauresmo but both were on carpet and neither were at a Grand Slam. I like Mauresmo but we know how she starts to crumble at the end of Grand Slams. I hope its a night match tomorrow night so that I can see what should be some wonderful tennis. VIVA MARY

This was a big win for Mary Pierce, and she looked absolutely great out there. However, with 10 double faults, Justine Henin-Hardenne (whom even Pierce acknowledged at the end of the match was not healthy) would have lost to just about any top 20 player on this particular day. So, not trying to take too much away from Pierce's performance, the match seemed to be more about Henin-Hardenne's off-peak performance.

hey neptune and cattledog...glad you guys are around. seems like taking target at justine has been rampant around here. not sure why. preference is preference, but curious why people dislike her. she's one of the few players who can play below her game and still manage to defeat top players. while some can handle lesser ranked players on off days, she has come through on a number of big occasions against her top ten peers. kudos to pierce for pulling it together and maintaining composure, but still wish it had been a tighter match. henin's charge in the first set threw mary off and you could see her start to fold...she's going to need a little more gas in the tank to make it further. would be nice to see though...

I don't see how anyone could have watched that match last night and said Justine was close to 100%. I was definitely rooting for Mary, and am thrilled she got the win, but come on, that's not the same player who beat Clijsters in 3 straight grand slam finals.

As for Clijsters being the "overwhelming favorite" tonight or in the tournament, what the hell are you smoking, terp? Nobody who is 0-4 in slam finals can ever be considered an "overwhelming favorite" to win a tournament; nobody who is 3-6 against an opponent who won the most recent grand slam can be considered an "overwhelming favorite" to win their next match. That said, go Kim.

Finally, go Momo. Take out Pierce, take out Lindsay, and then if it's Kim, at least we'll have one new slam champ. If it's Maria, then just demolish her.

I'm not smoking anything. If you paid attention to some other of my posts you'd see that I still give Venus the edge in that match regardless of Kim's hard court record this year. Until she proves it at the slams I'll go with those who already have the slams and who have better head 2 head records over them. I simply said she's the overwhelming favorite to win because thats what the media and commentators have been saying. I should have put overwhelming favorite in quotations. I know my tennis.

As for Justine..in her interview she claims the hamstring did bother her last night but I think a bit of that had to do with Mary's exceptional play. I still don't understand why the odds makers had her in the top 3 of favorites to win the title. Didn't they learn their lesson from Wimbledon? As soon as the draw came out and I saw that round of 16 match with Mary I thought "bye bye Justine" with the way Mary has been playing and the scratchy way Justine has.

Please name one commentator who has called Kim the "overwhelming favorite" to win this tournament. If you're saying she's the favorite of an overwhelming number of commentators, that's different and you should clarify that. Most of everyone I've heard has said she's a slight favorite, if that. But I feel pretty darn confident is saying that nobody has said she's the "overwhelming," "prohibitive," "clear," "obvious," or "strong" favorite to win, either tonight or on Saturday.

And this isn't the first time Kim has come into a Slam as the hottest player on tour. Yet she has yet to win one when it really counts. I wouldn't mind seeing her win but I certainly won't be betting the rent money on it.

You know ... (Captain Obvious moment looming ahead) ... everyone is saying that Justine was playing less than 100% ...

HOWEVER, let's be real folks ... How many matches have we seen where both players are playing at a high level?

I feel that people aren't giving Mary as much credit as she deserves. Justine's serve is sketchy at times ... (((I like the fact that she goes for as much as she does becauseon the second serve because it can be very difficult to attack.))) However ... it has been this way for YEARS. I really want to bitchslap Tracy Austin because ... ever since 2002, she's went for more on her serve. She knew that she needed to neutralize the return game of the "Big Babes", and in 2003, it seemed to work VERY well for her, however ... the girl STILL had the same number of double faults as she has now. I'll look up the stats to be sure, but I swear she would hit 6-8 doubles a match. Hell ... I remember the commentators saying that "Wow, Justine really takes chances on that 2nd serve ... blah, de blah, blah."

In the match against La Pierce ... I believe that Justine's inability to win points off of her first serve set the tone for the entire match.

In the first set ... Justine had 3 double faults, therefore ... when she was getting her second serve in, she was winning 3 out of 5 points. Therefore, she was having DECENT conversion on her second serve.

However ... Pierce's aggressive return game was incredibly solid. She was really teeing off on EVERYTHING in the box. I would have been incredibly flustered if I were in Double H's shoes because she was hitting a high percentage of first serves (69% is FANTASTIC for Double H) ... yet your opponent is having a better conversion percentage on her first serve than second serve (50% on the first to 60% on the second).

In the second set, Justine was probably thinking ... screw it, I'm just going to hit hard all the time since I'm not really winning enough points on my serve. In this set, she was hitting her first serves with more pop and she was more successful converting points on her first serve, 64% of the points in Set #2 vs. to 50% of the points in Set #1, so ... why not go for more on the second as well. *shrug*

Unfortunately, as her service percentage dropped, Pierce was able to get more chances on the Double H second serve. Excluding the 7 double faults, Justine's 2nd serve conversion rate was 8 of 19 in the 2nd set. IIRC, most of the double faults were at the beginning of the second set. Therefore, one could possibly assume that once she started having problems getting the ball in the box, her velocity decreased and Pierce had more of a chance to dictate the point.

Meh ... I rambled, but the point to this rather lengthy ramble is that ... Justine played less than stellar, but I really think that the way that Pierce was able to jump on the Double H FIRST serve in Set #1 had a major role in the final result. If Justine would have been able to win points on her first serve early on, she wouldn't have felt the pressure to go for broke on the serve in the 2nd set.

Nick

[ September 06, 2005, 12:37 PM: Message edited by: The_Hammerman ]

OK..calm your hiney...it is not that serious. I know Patrick McEnroe said she's the overwhelming favorite and she is the favorite among many of the commentators. I guess its many of the tennis fans I've heard thinking she's the overwhelming favorite simply because she had a hot hard court year. But again...she's never stepped it up at the slams. Will she tonight? Maybe. She's going to need some things to go her way though, ie Venus spraying the ball and serving with a low first serve %

People who live in glass houses need not throw stones. =)

Nick

[ September 06, 2005, 12:59 PM: Message edited by: The_Hammerman ]

Interesting. According to Reuters, Pat said this:

Just sayin'.

P.S. How do these tennis fans you talk to explain Kim's loss to Shuai Peng over the summer?

When did this turn into a P&R thread. I imagine it's hard to be right all the time isn't it?

All these experts with so little to say...drop it, girls, good matches ahead!

Pierce played very well; Justine had some serve trouble which tends to throw off any player's confidence. Mary finished it off though and showed better movement than I've ever seen from her. She's a factor.

Kim and Venus are basically playing a final-worthy match. The winner has the hardest path to the championship with Maria the likely semifinalist and LD the likely finalist. Tough road. LD should get past both Elena and the winner of the Pierce/Amelie match which is up for grabs in my mind. It is a great opportunity for Pierce though and I imagine she'll be more than ready for it.

Kim has been a stronger mental player since her long wrist layoff. I don't think her grand slam results of the past matter at all at this point. Martina N. took a long time to win her first slam as have a few others. It's not a factor...Kim's draw is a big factor though needing to win three final worthy matches to take the title. It just seems that LD has the best road to win the US Open this year...

[ September 06, 2005, 01:38 PM: Message edited by: Bryan ]

I can't remember who said what, but I don't remember anyone official, or otherwise, saying there was a clear favorite at the Open...I think we've all heard that 6 or 7 women could realistically walk away with it, and they've been saying this for weeks now, if not longer.

Like I said before, Mary's movement was a huge factor in her match with JHH. She got to balls she usually wouldn't have (anyone else stand up and clap in front of their television when she chased down that lob that went over her head, and passed JHH with a backhand down the line? I was cheering like a madman on that point!) Her movement seemed to lift her confidence as well.

And as we all have said, Justine served horribly. She shanked a lot of backhands too. I give her props for fighting in the first after being down 5-0, but I don't think anyone would say she played a very good match.

I don't have the Justine hatred that some people seem to have here. (all mine is geared toward Hewitt and Hingis ) I love JHH's one handed backhand. Along with Mauresmo and Gasquet, I think she's got one of the best backhands in the game. Like her or not, she's tough, she's a fighter. All that said, I'm glad to see Mary get a breakthrough against her, and advance to the QF of the US Open.

Given how the announcers are always going on about how deep the women's field is these days and how many different women have won Slams the last couple of years, I have a hard time believing any tennis commentator or journalist saying anyone was an overwhelming favorite. I would especially skeptical of anyone having said it about Kim given she's never won one.

Bryan wrote
Kim has been a stronger mental player since her long wrist layoff. I don't think her grand slam results of the past matter at all at this point. Martina N. took a long time to win her first slam as have a few others.


Martina mostly played Wimbledon and the US Open from 1973 until her first win at Wimbledon in 1978. Her first major title was French Open doubles title in 1975 with Chris Evert. She didn't play the Australian until 1980. So she only had two chances in most years to win a major in her first six years on tour in singles.

Kim Clisters has the game, but her mental toughness has been suspect in major finals. She will need to really raise the level of her game to take this title at Flushing Meadows.

Kim also has set a timetable of retirement in 2007. That could change, but she needs to get past that hurdle (mental toughness) in the big matches. Maybe she should call Nancy Liebermann to help her raise her game and fitness level.

[ September 06, 2005, 05:06 PM: Message edited by: TommyC84 ]

What a funky first set from Sharapova-Petrova. For the first 4 games, Maria played some of the test tennis that I have seen. Wow ... Then, the errors crept in and Petrova really started to hit that backhand up the line. Things evened out when it was back on serve, but Sharpie just seems to get over the hump while Petrova gets stuck in a rut. *shrug*

I really liked Petrova's attempt to change pace ... she should try to slice against Sharpie, attack the net. I'm not really big on attacking the net these days, but Petrova should try to use it to her advantage today because ... frankly, what else can she do?

Nick

Damn, Petrova was obviously mercilessly pummeled by multiple ugly sticks as a child, but she's putting up one hell of a fight. What I like about the match is that neither of them are backing off, and the high unforced error count for both is there to prove it.

Does anyone get the impression that the people calling this match are asleep? There were a few points where the ball was well beyond the baseline with no call, and the players had to play right through them. And how about that ball bouncing on the court during a point? And there was no let call?? What was that??

I'm not a big fan of Maria Shriekapova. Albeit, she's pretty good but. Did you hear Ted Robinson mention that Alan Mills - tournament ref at Wimbledon thinks Maria is cheating when she shrieks as it prevents her opponent from hearing the ball.

How about that ball tossed on the court and the umpire did not let them replay the point. She won't be at any tournaments anytime soon. I'm surprised they didn't find the rascal who done it and toss him/her out on their butts.

I'm waiting for Venus/Clijsters with bated breath. Looks like not before 10pm.

"Shriekapova." Good one.

Yeah, late start for VW/KC. frown

I dont care for Maria either. Its not the shrieking.... its the mini fistpump after every single point she wins- whether she hits a winner or her opponent makes an error.

When you hit a winner, no problem- when you gut out a point and come up with something good and force an opponents mistake after, no problem- but when an opponent makes an error during a standard point, its tacky and a certain level of gamesmanship...

It might be out of intensity, but to me its something like a little kid does on court during junior tournaments until they grow up and realize that there is such a thing as court courtesy...

Oh well- maybe its just me.

Is anyone watching that first VW/KC? Then talking heads echoed you guys that Venus is relieved to not have Serena around

*bows head in shame & slinks away to the corner*

Wow ... Clijsters-Venus is very entertaining. I'm sure that this has been mentioned before, but lawd ... Venus is looking like Whitney and not in a good way. I love the dress, but she looks TORE up tonight. *shakes shead*

Nick

How amny opportunities will Kim blow tonight? This girl cannot capitalize . It's easy to see why she's never won a Slam......

Hey Hammer!! LOL Sorry- I love you dude... and its okay once in a while when you are exited on big points....

But on every single point?? I loved when Petrova got some major fist pumping and arm pumping going... it was like a big F-U to Sharapova LOL

Id still love to mess with you off court though, Hammer *swoon* wink

Man, Venus and Kim have my loyalties divided. If Kim wins this match, she better win the whole damn tournament, or else I'll be pissed.

Kim gets the win, 6-1 in the third. Venus ran out of gas in the third set...she had the momentum up 6-4, 4-2, but Kim just wouldn't let her have it.

It's encouraging to see Kim not only come back from being down, but also because she did not allow Venus to impose her will. If anything, Kim was able to impose herself onto Venus...keep coming back, deny those break points, and force Venus into some tired errors. Granted, Kim was making some errors early on, but she cleaned that up in the third set.

I'd like the Open winner this year to be someone who hasn't yet won a major: Either Kim, Mauresmo or Dementieva. And of those three, Kim probably has the best chance.

[ September 06, 2005, 09:57 PM: Message edited by: Bulldog1977 ]

Wow, what a great night of tennis. Two three set matches with all 4 ladies slugging it out.

It's kind of funny how McEnroe and Austin were saying they didn't have "a good feeling" about Clijster's chances in the second. Boy, did she hang tough. She kept blowing a lot of game points, but it seems like when she got the second set, finally, it was over. Venus went away in the third. She looked really tired.

Petrova choked. Gah. Man I don't like that Yuri. I do appreciate the fact that Maria clearly loves tennis, and like Mac(?) said, her technique is wonderful. And she was actually quite charming in that interview just now on CBS. But there's still something way fake about her, and besides, GO KIM!

Kim's defense was once again fantastic today (Venus's was really good for the first 2 sets as well). She showed her nerves in the 2nd, everytime she was up a break she stopped going for her shots and Venus was able to establish control of the point. But then she toughened up again on Venus's serve. You knew that once she got over the hump and held, it would be a huge boost for her (obviously). In the third, Venus looked out of it, and Kim smartly just kept the ball in play -- but not by pulling up on her shots, instead hitting solid shots with plenty of margin for error.

She needs to study some of the shots of her eyes from the third set. She didn't glance away, she didn't look up at her box, she stayed focused on her racquet and on Venus. Didn't even blink. On Friday she'll have to have the same focus, the same steeliness, from the first ball. Ditto Saturday.

Tomorrow: Dementieva is probably the NICEST person on the planet, but she had her chance last year. Davenport needs to win in straights. And I do think she'll attack Elena's serve far better than J-Cap was able to do last year. And Elena won't have enough answers for Lindsay's serve -- if Lindsay has a halfway decent serving night.

Mary? Momo? My heart is with Amelie but I can't actually ROOT for her because I have had enough pain in my life. Either one winning will be great, and I will root for either against Lindsay. I can certainly see Pierce's groundies immobilizing Mauresmo but nothing's a given at age 30 in the women's game. Plus who knows, perhaps Momo can take a pointer or two from the eyes of Kim??

Since I love both Kimmie and Venus, this was tough to watch because both players knew that it was a golden opportunity given their recent wins against Sharpie.

Venus really looked tired after she was broken at 5-all in the second set. Clijsters was aggressive in the 3rd set and Venus's backhand looked pretty sketch towards the end of the match. Congrats to Kimbo and now ... take out Sharpie.

Kick ... *cough ... f**kING TEASE ... cough* ... I not only grunt loudly (BPJ and Jeffy can attest to that, *grin* ... no, not in that way, pervs.), but I pump my fist CONSTANTLY AND, *gasp*, I talk trash in the middle of a match. Lord knows I do not play well with others on the court ... off the court, *grin*, different story. wink LOL BTW, I'm having a horrible cramp in my inner thigh ... ahem.

In the very least, you MUST come to the RCA's next year. There's nothing better than calmly watching a tennis match until you hear BPJ shouting his undying love for Robby Ginepri while the rest of us look in the opposite direction ... OR my personal favorite, "PARADORN SQUEAKYPANTS!!!!!."

Nick

One last thing ... VIVE LA PIERCE! Momo is going to choke anyways, why not choke in the quarters and give La Pierce a chance to beat Lindsay again. I sound extremely hateful ... quelle surprise ... but, La Pierce has to be on fiyah tomorrow otherwise, Momo will slog off another chance against Davenport.

[ September 06, 2005, 10:11 PM: Message edited by: The_Hammerman ]

Very random thoughts:

Does Venus have a new deal with Reebok yet? It looked like she was wearing Serena's Nike headband, turned inside out.

I laughed a little when Venus was compared to Whitney Houston (oops, I mean Mrs. Brown). But at least Venus has an excuse. Your hair weave would look raggedy too if you were sweating it out on a court every day.

At this point, I really, REALLY hope Kim wins this. As much as I'd like to see Amelie win, it would be magical if her breakthrough came at the French.

Edited to add how much I can't stand Sharapova's father. There's classy: Lindsay's mom or Oracene Williams; kooky: Richard Williams; and just plain obnoxious: Maria's pappy.

[ September 06, 2005, 10:15 PM: Message edited by: Neptune ]

I think it was past Venus' bed time. That's my only explanation for Venus running out of gas, aside from Kim moving her around the court like a yo-yo. They did get a very late start and Clijsters may have just handled it better.

Either way, I'm happy that Kim dug deep and didn't fade away.

Well that was an interesting night of tennis. My boyfriend and I just got back from Ashe and he has no nails left. The Sharapova/Petrova match was good. Maria needed that tough match to prepare her for her semi. Petrova I just felt didn't have the guts to pull it out in the third, especially after Maria took her "bathroom break". My boyfriend swears she's shooting up and I just wasn't in the mood to entertain him.

As for Venus/Kim...I'm still scratching my head on that one. What happened to Venus at 3-1 in the second set. About to serve for a 4-1 lead it was like the wheels came off. Broken 3 straight times? Then she went up 4-2 with a break and I was like "ok she won't let Kim in again" and she did!! How could she have been tired? Was it anything lingering from the flu? She didn't play any rough matches leading into the quarter. Was it a Serena letdown? Could Venus have actually choked? I said that if the match had to go 3 it was going to be over quickly cuz you could tell Venus was spent. She had nothing left. Credit Kim though because she could have easily gone away after losing that first set and going down a break in the second. She stepped it up and this could be one of those career changing wins for her. Congrats to Kim...she's a sweetie and I either want her, Mary or Lindsay to win. I'm still proud of Venus but the better player won tonight.

Interesting to note: there have only been three matches of note so far that have gone deep into the 3rd set on the women's side:

Dementieva d. Chakvetadze 6-1 4-6 7-6(5)
Likhovtseva d. Myskina 0-6 6-3 7-6(6)
Sharapova d. Petrova 7-5 4-6 6-4

So give the Russians this -- when faced against each other, they seem to put on a show...

Man I want to call in sick tomorrow: Martina v. the Kooz! Mary v. Momo (at noon - I'll have to have lunch at a bar)!! ROBBY V. CORIA! Oh crap, I wish I'd done more work on Tuesday...

As for Hammer's grunts, I really can't say. I was too in awe of his awesome strokes to notice anything else.

(Being bored, I did some checking. Interesting facts:

Regardless of what happens this week, by the end of this tournament, Russia/U.S./Belgium/France will have accounted for the past 26 grand slam champions and 42 of the past 44 grand slam finalists.

Those four countries include 9 of the past 10 Fed Cup champions (including this year).

5 of the 6 Olympic medals in the past 2 Olympics went to those 4 countries.

All 8 quarterfinalists in this US Open and this year's Wimbledon came from those 4 countries.

6 of the 8 quarterfinalists from each of the first 2 slams this year came from those 4 countries.

Crazy...