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U.S. Open Recap By
The B Man Too Good? Just when I thought not another word of praise could be written about Roger Federer, FedEx rolls over Lleyton Hewitt, posting one of the most lopsided Grand Slam final results in recent years. Did you see the score? Federer beat Hewitt 6-0, 7-6, 6-0. What that score means is that in two of the three sets of tennis, Roger Federer won every single game. And this was against a guy who 1) beat Federer in five sets just last year in Davis Cup competition, 2) is himself a U.S. Open *and* Wimbledon champion, and 3) leads their career head-to-head series. The caliber of competition doesn’t matter to Federer, though. Al Costa, the former French Open champion in the first round and someone who has beaten me on hard court before? WUDD-ever. Andre Agassi, the former US Open champion and crowd favorite? Yawn. Tim Henman, the perennial Top 10 player who I only recently won against for the first time. Zzzzzzz. Don’t get me wrong: there is nothing yawn-inducing about Federer’s game. It’s beautiful, sinuously powerful thing to behold. I just hope Federer hasn’t already become too good, so good that Andy Roddick and others don’t have a chance to at least make things competitive, or to challenge Roger to further elevate and sharpen his game. Best Matches · Joachim Johansson vs. Andy Roddick, men’s quarterfinal · Carlos Moya vs. Olivier Rochus, men’s third round · Jennifer Capriati vs. Elena Dementieva, women’s semifinal · Mary Pierce vs. Maria Sharapova, women’s third round · Roger Federer vs. Fabrice Santoro, men’s third round No Respect? There are some who wonder whether Elena Dementieva deserves at least a little more respect. Why are commentators and crowds snickering at her serve? Why don’t more people talk about what she does right? She’s reached two Grand Slam finals this year, after all, and she has been able to a lot with a game that has some, er…ummm, limitations. Well, there are several reasons I’ve had a hard time showing Dementieva any respect. The serve is an important part of tennis, and I think it is embarrassing for women’s tennis, and the sport overall, to have as a top payer someone who can’t capably perform one of the game’s integral tasks. Tennis players have to serve. Quarterbacks don’t have to be mobile. An NBA center doesn’t have to be great a free throws. Tennis players have to serve. To be fair, Elena has worked on this aspect of her game. At the French Open, she practically double faulted herself out of the title match. In her semifinal vs. Jennifer Capriati, Elena not only cut down on the doubles, she actually really went after her serve, surprising Capriati with some serves hit with serious pace. The way she pitches slice and spin is another story completely. Her serve may arrive only half as quickly as a serve hit by Lindsay or Serena, but the way her serve spins into or away from her opponent is significant. We saw repeatedly in her semifinal match how Jennifer had to move to return Elena’s serve, or had to adjust her stroke. For that reason, I love the junk on Dementieva’s serve. It effectively takes the returner out of her comfort zone or forces her to otherwise amend her plan for the point. I’ve had issues with Elena Dementieva totally aside from how she serves, too, and it’s certainly worth discussing those issues in light of her gritty quarterfinal and semifinal performances, and against the backdrop of the tragedy in Russia. It’s hard to respect a player who is easily inclined to question the injuries of others (as she did with Venus Williams earlier this year) or who creates unnecessary divisiveness with other players on tour (as she did when she suggested that Maria Sharapova is more American than Russian). I would hope her experiences this week have taught her a few things about “reality”. Russia’s school hostage crisis must have made her feel very foolish about suggesting Sharapova isn’t “real” Russian (the black ribbon effort was reportedly spearheaded by Sharapova), and the moxie she showed in fighting through tough quarterfinal and semifinal matches with an injury will hopefully teach her a thing or two about questioning whether an opponent is “really” hurt. Breakthrough Performances · Svetlana Kuznetsova · Joachim Johansson · Olivier Rochus · Amer Delic · Shinobu Asagoe Russian Power Move For all we know, Myskina, Sharapova, and Kuznetsova may be “one hit wonders,” though there are aspects of each player’s game that makes you think more Grand Slam success is due for each. Whether they individually Slam again is secondary, however, to the superlative achievement of Russian tennis. To have broken through so significantly this year…WOW. When tennis fans and historians look back and see that three consecutive events were won by Russian women, it will be read as a reflection of the strength of the nation’s sports program. What is American tennis doing to support talented young players? John McEnroe didn’t even know who Shikha Uberoi is prior to her match with Venus Williams, despite the fact that Shikha has played very well on the ITF tour. If you trust Mac and Ted Robinson, you’d think Angela Haynes came out of nowhere… WRONG! For every Vera Zvonareva, there is a Shenay Perry or Jamea Jackson waiting to break through. For every Nadia Petrova, there is a Marissa Irvin or Ashley Harkleroad. The Russians are playing hungry. They are fierce and powerful. The young American women? Virtually unknown by our tennis elite. I can only hope that Svetlana’s win, and the powerful symbolism of a Russian winning the United States Open, will serve as a kick in the pants to the USTA, and to Chris Evert and John McEnrore and Tracy Austin and Mary Carillo others who should be doing something to cultivate young American talent. The Best of the Rest · Brendan Evans and Scott Oudsema won the Junior Doubles (their third Grand Slam of the year) · Martina Navratilova reached the Mixed Doubles semifinals (a heartbreaking three setter) with Leander Paes; Martina also reached the Women’s Doubles quarterfinals · Scoville Jenkins reached the Junior quarterfinals. Serena vs. Jennifer What more can be said about the now infamous match in which Serena Williams was robbed a handful of points via awful line calls? Well, it should be said again that Serena handled herself in the days after the match with poise and a wonderfully honest perspective on her game and the game as a whole. It should be said again that Jennifer Capriati should not be considered a “poor sport” for not getting involved in the dispute. It should be said again that instant replay is NOT for tennis, because the game is all about momentum and creativity, and instant replay inhibit both. It should be said again that instant replay IS for tennis, because it’s bad for the sport to have its integrity questioned on such a grand scale. Best Story of the US Open · Roger Federer wins three Slams in one year · Andy Roddick fails to defend, and makes hysterical new ending to his American Express commercial · All Russian women’s final · The line calls in Serena vs. Jennifer · Andre Agassi and Lindsay Davenport: should they retire, or do they have more great tennis left? |