THE MISSING LINK

Super Saturday at the U.S. Open, while not completely void of drama, was most notable for who or what was missing in action.  Three or the top four men in tennis were present in the semifinals, with Andy Murray being the lone exception.  Thinking Murray was primed to capture his first Grand Slam title, I picked him to win the tournament before it started.  Instead, the fourth-seeded Scot went down in the third round to Switzerland's second-best player, Stanislas Wawrinka.  Wawrinka then lost a heartbreaking five-setter to Russian Mikhail Youzhny in the quarterfinals.  Completing the chain, yesterday an exhausted Youzhny was overwhelmed by Rafa Nadal in the semifinals.  Tweaking his grip just before the start of the U.S. Open, Nadal has bumped up the MPHs on his serve and is clearly on a mission.  Perhaps Murray would not have been up the task of giving Rafa a real run for his money in the semifinals, but his absence was duly noted, and Rafa rolled in straight sets to reach his first U.S. Open final.

Kim Clijsters deserved to win the women's title.  Her monster semifinal against Venus Williams was the women's match of the tournament.  Vera Zvonareva played well to reach her second Grand Slam final, taking out the #1 seed Caroline Wozniacki (who is looking supremely fit and gorgeous these days).  But, again, what struck me most was the fact that Serena wasn't there.  Last year's memorable final between Kim and Serena included the famous blow-up at the lineswoman who called a foot fault on Serena, but Kim was already on the verge of defeating her fair and sqaure when the incident occurred.  Unfortunately, Serena sustained a foot injury which kept her from seeking revenge on Kim this time around.  Thus, the women's tourney really climaxed with Kim vs. Venus.  Taking nothing away from Clijsters, now a three-time winner at the U.S. Open, things may have been different if Kim was forced to get past both Williams sisters.

Without a doubt, the match of the day was Roger Federer vs. Novak Djokovic.  For three years in a row, Nole has suffered his U.S. Open fate at the hands of the Swiss maestro, he last two years in the semis, the year before that in the final.  You knew The Serb didn't want to lose to The Mighty Fed four years in a row.  But Fed hasn't been quite as mighty this year as in year's past.  In the spring, I was present in the Indian Wells Tennis Garden to witness Roger squandering match points and losing to Marcos Baghdatis.  Uncharacterisically, Federer did the same against Tomas Berdych in Miami.  Those were losses to guys he previously owned.  Soderling took Fed out in the quarters at the French to snap his unbelievable Slam Semi streak, then Berdych beat him again at Wimbledon.  In the press conference following the loss to Berdych, Roger revealed he had been struggling with some nagging injuries.  It seemed to explain why we weren't seeing the Greatest Player of All-Time at his usual awe-inspiring level.  But yesterday was different.  Federer didn't have the same mastery of his forehand and appeared to tank the second and fourth sets to conserve energy.  Djokovic was not only the hungrier, more determined man on the court, he was the braver one, too.  It's hard to say something was missing from a five-set epic, but indeed there was something... Federer's killer instinct.  Once again, Roger Federer had match points against an opponent he has dominated throughout his career and ended up losing the match.  Although the tennis season began with Roger winning the Australian Open and banking his 16th Grand Slam, 2010 will be remembered as the year when Federer lost his invincibility.

Today could be a historic day in tennis.  Rafael Nadal has the opportunity to capture the only Grand Slam title that has eluded him.  By winning the U.S. Open, Nadal would complete the Career Grand Slam at the ripe old age of 24.  Or Novak Djokovic could play spoiler and accomplish something even more rare... defeating Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the same weekend to win a Grand Slam title.  Either way, someone is going to find something they've been missing.

VAMOS! TO RAFA, RYAN, AND THE SPARKLER DRESS

Some awesome tennis today.  Nadal-Istomin was a lot of fun.  Istomin played as well as he could possibly play in the second and third and came away losing both of them, 7-6, 7-5.  

The Ryan Harrison match was exhilarating, inspiring, thrilling, and then crushing.  

Venus' sparkler dress was pretty cool and pretty sexy, but more distracting than should be allowed on court.  For viewers?  Perhaps.  Opponents?  For sure.  Querrey-Almagro next round.  I like Fish's draw, I like Isner's draw if the ankle stays healthy, and I like Gasquet's draw if he can keep it up.  Roger looks superb, and is headed for a showdown with Soderling.  With Rafa now bombing serves and Murray in line to win his first major, that semifinal would be one for the ages.

ALLEZ!

Where in world did the French men come from?  Well, France, I suppose.  A record twelve Frenchmen made it into the second round of the U.S. Open.  Five of them played their second round matches yesterday, with four advancing to the third round.  The one French player who lost, Guillaume Rufin, went down to fellow Frenchman, Paul-Henri Mathieu.  Arnaud Clement, who vanquished fan favorite Marcos Baghdatis in five tough sets in the first round, advanced again when Argentine Eduardo Schwank retired from the match with an injury in the second set.  Gael Monfils dismissed Russian Igor Andreev in straights to set up a third round clash against Janko Tipsarevic, conqueror of Andy Roddick. But the biggest French victory of the day by far was Richard Gasquet shocked the 6 seed, Nikolay Davydenko, 6-3-, 6-4, 6-2.  Gasquet, a former Top Ten player, was suspended from the tour for a few months last year for testing positive for cocaine.  Somehow, the ATP bought his feeble excuse that the drug entered his system when he kissed some random chick in a nightclub, and Gasquet was reinstated.  Now ranked #38, the man Brad Gilbert likes to refer to as Dickie Gasket played yesterday like the budding superstar he was a couple of years ago.  With a favorable draw, if he keeps up this form, he could make a deep run in this tournament.  Seven more Frenchmen take the court today.  Already this morning, one has advanced -- Michael Llodra -- and one has been eliminated -- Julien Benneteau.  It'll be interesting to see how the French fare as we move forward.  Will it just be a lot of hot air in the early rounds?  Or will one of them find a way to go all the way and give the French their first men's champion at the U.S. Open in 82 years.  Henri Cochet won in 1928 after another Frenchman, Rene Lacoste took the title in '26 and '27.  However, with the top four seeds on the men's side still alive, including Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, the odds of the French breaking the streak this year are slim to none.

Oh, by the way, including Nadal, 9 Spanish men are still alive in the tournament...

JANKO DOODLE DANDY

Adios, Andy...

Andy Roddick is out of the U.S. Open.  Playing in the night match slot reserved for the game's most exciting players, Roddick was anything but.  His conservative approach allowed Janko Tipsarevic, an eccentric Serb ranked 44 in the world, to dictate play.  After Roddick took the first set, Tipsarevic seemed to relax and gain in confidence, gradually slipping into a Zen-like zone.  A foot fault call in the third set send Roddick into a relentless tirade.  The lineswoman told Andy it was his right foot that hit the line, when in fact it was his left.  Roddick argued the logic of the call, saying his right foot never crosses in front of his left on the serve, and wouldn't let it go.  On replay, it was clear the call was correct but the explanation was not.  Roddick continued to berate the lineswoman as the third set went on.  After Roddick lost the set, the lineswoman was replaced, but Roddick was called for two more foot faults in the fourth set.  Meanwhile, Tipsarevic remained in his near-meditative state, controlling both the points and his emotions.  I believe Andy let the foot fault calls unnerve him because he was really angry at himself and needed to vent that frustration.  His inability to change tatctics and disrupt Tipsarevic spelled doom for his chances at this year's Open, and he knew it.  Though he seemed almost lethargic at times in the first two and half sets, Roddick's blood was already boiling.  The foot fault call just lit the fuse.  Late in the fourth set tiebreak, down 5 points to 4, Roddick raised his arms, urging the crowd to come to life. It's one thing to ask for the crowd's support, but nothing like inspiring their enthusiasm with great play. Americans before him like Connors, McEnroe, and Agassi were able to do just that.  Andy Roddick was not.  On this night, Janko Tipsarevic was the better player and the better man.

However, despite Roddick's early exit, all is not lost for American tennis.  Sam Querrey and John Isner both won their first round matches yesterday.  James Blake and Taylor Dent are both into the second round.  Mardy Fish won this morning to move on to the third round.  And 18-year-old Ryan Harrison pulled off a major upset yesterday by ousting Croatian veteran Ivan Ljubicic, the 15th seed.  It was the first time an American teenager beat a top twenty player in a Grand Slam since a 19-year-old Andy Roddick did it in 2001.

In August, Andy Roddick slipped out of the Top Ten for two weeks.  It marked the first time since the ATP Rankings began in 1973 that no American man resided in the Top Ten.  The American tennis media was all over the statistic.  Although Roddick quickly returned to the number 8 slot, the stat was significant in that it signaled the end of an era.  It's now been a full generation since Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Jim Courier, and Michael Chang formed an American armada at the top of the men's game.  Since then, only Andy Roddick has managed to take a single Slam at the 2003 U.S. Open.  With Roddick's chances of adding another trophy to his mantlepiece dwindling, it's now time to usher in the new generation.  Sam Querrey and John Isner have already arrived and are only getting better.  Mardy Fish, technically part of the last generation, is finally fulfilling his potential and could make it all the way into the Top Ten before long.  And now young Ryan Harrison joins them in the conversation.  Europeans Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have dominated the game for quite a while now, and will probably continue to do so in the foreseeable future.  But nothing lasts forever.  You get the feeling it's only a matter of time before another American man climbs his way to the top.

HOT FIVES IN THE CITY

On a sweltering day in New York, seven more five-set matches were played yesterday at the U.S. Open.  One would think the heat would cause points to be quicker and matches to be shorter, but that has not been the case.  The depth of the game has given us some great first round matchups and guys are slugging it out to the end despite the extreme conditions.

Novak Djokovic looked cooked, down 2 sets to 1 and a break in the fourth, and wilting in the heat as he is prone to do.  He dug down deep, stayed mentally strong, and managed to outlast his countryman, Viktor Troicki.

American and #19 seed Mardy Fish dominated Jan Hajek in the first, fourth, and fifth sets, but lost the second and third.  In one of the more final scorelines you'll see, Fish took the match, 6-0, 3-6, 4-6, 6-0, 6-1. Look for Fish to make a nice run after getting though a tough first-rounder and facing a favorable draw.

Fernando Verdasco, the #8 seed, hung tough and took out the Italian Fabio Fognini in five sets.

David Nalbandian, the #31 seed, played mostly in the evening when it was cooler, but still went the distance with Rik De Voest.  Nalbandian, who has been a hot player as of late, looked to be in real trouble in the fifth set, but pulled through 6-4 to stay alive.

The charasmatic Cypriot, Marcos Baghdatis, wasn't as fortunate.  The Bagh Man, seeded 16th and coming off a great U.S. Open Series this summer, was up two sets to one on the French veteran, Arnaud Clement, but let the match slip away and was sent packing.  It had to be a very disappointing loss for Baghdatis, who has had some great moments in majors, but loses in the first round too often.

Talk about disappointments, Ernests Gulbis, the Latvian, seeded 24th, lost in straight sets to another Frenchman, Jeremy Chardy.  Gulbis, a very talented player who had an outstanding clay court season, failed to win a single match at a Grand Slam this year.  That tells me he's not putting in the hard yards off the court and he may be lacking the mental toughness it takes to battle the big boys.

Rafael Nadal took the court in the night match against Russian and self-proclaimed madman, Teymuraz Gabashvili.  I saw this same matchup in Miami a couple of years ago, with Nadal cruising to a relatively easy straight set win.  Last night, Nadal had to fight a little harder, with a game Gabashvili going for broke.  Rafa won the first two sets in tiebreaks before winning the third, 6-3.  He served consistently bigger than we've seen in the past, averaging around 130 mph for the match.  If he serve at the speed and maintain his usual high first serve percentage, look out, he might just complete his Career Slam after all.

But the biggest story of the day was the heat.  Nearly everyone seemed to struggle with the temperatures and humidity.  Julien Benneteau threw up on the court, then gutted out a four-set victory over the 28th seed Radek Stepanek.

The coverage on ESPN just began a short time ago, but already they're reporting even higher temperatures and higher humidity today.  Victoria Azarenka, the #10 seed on the women's seed, and a popular pick to challenge for the title, passed out on the court this morning.  She was down 5-1 to Gisela Dulko in the first, wobbled, and collapsed.  She was carted off the court in a wheelchair.  Heat exhaustion may have played a big part in her demise, but apparently she took a fall in warmups and needed medical attention, so there seems to be more to the story.  In these conditions, it's survival of the fittest.  One way or another, this tournament is going to come down to the last man and woman standing.

OPENING DAY AT THE OPEN

Happy Birthday, Andy!

To celebrate his 28th birthday, Andy Roddick cruised to en easy first round win.  As for what he did to celebrate in the evening... I don't have that kind of scoop, you'll have to check the gossip columns.  

Gael Monfils was pushed to the limit by American Robert Kendrick.  A controversial call late in the fifth really seemed to be the difference in Monfils taking the final set, 6-4.  At 4-4, 30 all, Kendrick hit a ball very close to the baseline, Monfils was going to hit it with his racket but tried to pull away at the last second.  It was almost impossible to tell on replay if that ball hit Monfils racket first or the ground first.  Monfils didn't admit to anything, the ball was called out, and the Frenchman won the next point to close out the game.  Kendrick seemed to lose a bit of concentration and was then broken to end the match.  Tough way to lose for a guy like Kendrick who has come close to upsetting top guys in majors, but never seems to be able to seal the deal.

Robin Soderling was also tested.  After winning the first two sets against Austrain qualifier, Andreas Haider-Maurer, Soderling dropped the next two and had to pull out a nervy 6-4 win in the fifth.  Haider-Maurer served big and went for his shots, surprising the Swede with greater talent than you'd expect from a guy who plays mainly on the Challenger circuit.

Lleyton Hewitt, former #1  and winner of the 2001 U.S. Open, fell behind two sets to love versus another Frenchman, Paul-Henri Mathieu, before roaring back to take the next two sets and send the match to a fifth.  But, the aging Aussie tired in the deciding set and Mathieu took it, 6-1, to knock the #32 seed out of the tournament.

Chilean bomber Fernando Gonzalez has been struggling with injuries all year and was forced to retire from his first round match against Ivan Dodig, from Bosnia-Herzegovina.  Gonzo has been around a long time and produced a lot of great tennis, I hope he can heal up and make another run at a major before he calls it quits.

American Taylor Dent had an easy first round win.  13th seed Jurgen Melzer pulled out a five-set win, as did 21st seed Albert Montanes.  That makes a total of 5 five-setters yesterday on the men's side.  However, none of them compared to the excitement generated by a single shot of the racket of the magical Roger Federer.

PHYSICAL FITNESS

Technology has obviously changed the way the game of tennis is played.  Power and precision have anchored the game at the baseline.  Serve-and-volley specialists are a thing of the past.  The net game is still important for applying pressure and closing out points, but now you approach at your own peril.  In grinding his opponents down with punishing groundstrokes, Andre Agassi seems to have created the template for the contemporary game.  But, in order to play that type of physical game, you have to be supremely fit.  Gil Reyes made sure Agassi had the endurance to outslug and outlast the other guy.  In turn, that stamina gave Andre the confidence in his body to stand toe-to-toe with whoever was across the net, knowing he the fitter player.  Thus, he earned the nickame, "The Punisher."  On the men's side, today's tennis is all about punishment.  More groundstrokes means more running, and more running means greater risk of injury.  This summer, fitness has come to the forefront.  Repeatedly, we see examples of how dedication and training pay off on the court.  Look no further than Mardy Fish.

Mardy Fish, the 28-year-old American, lost 30 pounds while rehabing from knee surgery.  In interviews, he said he took a hard look in the mirror and asked himself how badly he wanted it.  His answer has become crystal clear.  He changed his diet, he worked his ass off in training, and now he's getting the results.  He lost to Sam Querrey in the final at Queen's Club, won Newport on grass, won Atlanta on hard courts, and yesterday lost in the final at Cincinnati to Roger Federer.  Now ranked 21 in the world, Fish has trained and played his way into the conversation of contenders at the U.S. Open.  The talent was always there, but the dedication wasn't.  Though it's relatively late in his career, he's now in the best shape he's ever been in.  It's allowed him to show the world he can play with the big boys.  Mardy Fish is finally fulfilling his potential.

David Nalbandian is another player who has always carried a few extra pounds.  Blessed with enormous skill and a shrewd tactical mind, the Argentine has reached the semifinals in all four Slams, but has never won one.  Like Mardy Fish, David Nalbandian is 28-years-old and nearing the dreaded tennis age of 30. Nalbandian had hip surgery last year, returning earlier this summer with a couple of huge Davis Cup wins for Argentina.  The U.S. Open Series showed David's renewed passion for the game.  He's lost weight, he's hitting the ball crisp and clean, and once again looks like a force to be reckoned with.  He even won the title in Washington D.C., taking out Marcos Baghdatis in the final.  

Marcos Baghdatis, the charasmatic Cypriot, is back in form.  Once the top junior in the world, he stormed onto the scene in January of 2006, reaching the final of the Australian Open.  Always entertaining, the Bagh Man has certainly played his share of thrilling matches and won a few of them. But, generally, it feels as if he's underachieved. During this summer, it's become evident that Marcos has trained hard.  He's leaner and moving around the court like a player who is not afraid of going the distance.  Improved fitness has allowed him to play the Agassi-like grinding game he needs to play to compete at the highest level.  His giant smile and pleasant court demeanor win him fans wherever he goes.  Crowds usually end up rooting for him.  It's good for the game to have him back in the mix.

Obviously, when you think of fitness in men's tennis, you have to look no further than the two headliners and living legends, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.  Federer defeated Fish yesterday in Cincinnati to claim another Masters shield and end a seven-month title drought.  He is currently tied with Andy Murray for the most points in the U.S. Open Series, but a tiebreaker gives Murray the edge.  Everyone talks about the beauty of Federer's game, how smooth he is and how easy he makes it look.  No doubt, that's in large part to the work he does off the court.  No one every questions his fitness.  Then again, rarely does it get mentioned.  One of the most remarkable things about Federer's career is his ability to remain healthy.  Mono threw him off a couple of years ago.  Some nagging injuries seem to have played a part in his subpar showings at the French Open and Wimbledon this year.  Besides those blips, Roger has been the picture of health, and it's enabled him to set all kinds of records for longevity and consistency.  Of course, Fed and Nadal do it in different ways.  Nadal's bulging biceps are two of the most useful marketing tools in the game.  You can see his fitness.  He's a beast.  And those muscles have been put to good use on the court.  He bullies guys.  Against him, players change their tactics for fear of going five sets with him.  He runs and runs and runs, and never seems to show signs of getting tired.  Nadal has taken Agassi's mentality and multiplied it.  He exemplifies the modern game.  A game in which you have absolutely no chance if you're not in perfect physical condition.