US.3- Viewing the Spectrum From Both Ends

On Night 2, a blue-clad SuperSerena easily (surgically, really... with nary a single smile or blip of emotion from the first ball struck to the last) dispatched Bojana Jovanovski, sending a direct message to the field about the WTA landscape over the next two weeks. On Day 3, some of Williams' (younger) fellow Americans gave a glimpse of THEIR (farther off) futures. Meanwhile, Venus Williams made an announcement that served to raise even more questions about HER's.

The learning curve that a young player, American or otherwise, must traverse was on full display on the grounds of the USTA Billie Jean King Tennis Center on Wednesday.

16-year old Madison Keys had been the youngest player in the U.S.'s pre-Open wild card tournament, and was the youngest player in the main draw and youngest 1st Round winner on Monday. Today, the big-hitting Floridian faced off with #27 seed Lucie Safarova. Keys quickly grabbed a 5-0 lead on the Czech, who was either taken aback by the power of the big teenager, or was just pulling her usual now-you-don't-see-me-but-soon-you-will act. Keys took the 1st set 6-3 and went up a break at 2-0 in the 2nd. Safarova turned things around to knot the match at one set all, but Keys got a break late in the 3rd to take a 4-3 lead. It was then that either nerves or fatigue -- or some lethal combination of both -- finally descended upon Keys. The Czech broke back immediately, then swept the final two games, as well, to win 3-6/7-5/6-4.

Chalk it up as a learning experience for the promising Keys, who, if she can stay healthy, seems like she could one day fit in rather nicely in the Big Babe, go-for-winners class of players who are capable of winning any tournament they enter if they can just keep their own game in working order.

"Baseball is ninety percent mental. The other half is physical." - Yogi Berra, former New York Yankee catcher, showing off his flair for numbers

In tennis, the "difference" might be even more pronounced, especially for a young player.

Flashforward a few years, and maybe Keys will more resemble the version of 19-year old American Christina McHale that we saw today. McHale's learning curve has been on full display on the tennis world's biggest stages the last three seasons. In Melbourne in '09, she was on the losing end of a dramatic 1st Round match against Aussie Jessica Moore in the wilting Australian heat. At the end of her physical rope, McHale teetered around the court, looking ready to fall over Azarenka-style at any moment. Ultimately, she lost a 9-7 3rd set. My advice at the time? "Hydrate! Hydrate! Hydrate!" She locked away that part of her training, only to have another monster test fall into her lap that she would go on to fail. Earlier this year in Paris, McHale led Sara Errani in their 1st Round match by a 5-0 score in the final set. Her lost her concentration, then, as she later admitted, she allowed "panic" to overtake her as she found a way to "pull a Novotna" and lose the match (again, in a 9-7 final set). Rather than sulk, though, she went off and played a $50K challenger. She made it through qualifying and won the tournament to claim her first pro singles title.

McHale has been surging ever since. Two weeks ago, she upset world #1 Caroline Wozniacki, then a week later got her second '11 win over Svetlana Kuznetsova. In New York, with her ranking inside the Top 60 for the first time, she faced off with #8 seed Marion Bartoli in the 2nd Round today. After fighting through the 1st set and winning a tie-break, she grabbed a 3-0 lead in the 2nd. But she didn't repeat her Roland Garros fumble, and instead closed with style. Serving up 5-2, McHale didn't panic... and then "pulled a Serena" and smashed an ace on match point. to close out her 7-6/6-2 win.

With the physical and mental aspects of her game improving all the time, McHale's fortunes continue to look up.

But while those players were experiencing the brightly-colored spectrum -- with varying degrees of Day 3 success -- that is the start of their careers, Venus was experiencing the more murky other side of her's. While Serena was snugly fit into her 2nd Round slot and the youngsters were staking their claims to future success, Venus was exiting the tournament.

Turns out, ESPN2 might have (inadvertently) been onto something about never mentioning Williams' 2nd Round opponent, Sabine Lisicki, the last two days, since the German ended up NOT playing the American. Instead, she got a walkover into the 3rd Round when Venus pulled out with the same illness that has dogged her for months. Later, she released a statement saying that she'd been diagnosed with an auto-immune disease that effects her energy level, and also causes joint pain. Williams' season is likely over, but hopefully she'll find a way to treat and live with her recently-diagnosed ailment in a manner that will allow her to not only return to the game in 2012, but also live a long and healthy life.

Later in the afternoon, 19-year old Bannerette Coco Vandeweghe put up a nice fight against Samantha Stosur, getting the look at a few break points at 4-4 in the 2nd set before going down in straights. But where Vandeweghe failed to make the American girls' big day a triple threat, it was a former college tennis star who stepped up and pulled off the feat.

While Keys and Coco still have to learn some of the things that McHale has picked up through experience, 21-year old Irina Falconi showed just what on-the-job-training looks like. Earlier, this season, Falconi won the similar pre-RG version of the wild card tournament that Keys claimed last week, then reached the semis in the WTA's College Park event last month. She was set to face off with #14-seeded Dominika Cibulkova on Court 11 before Venus pulled out of the tournament, but saw Williams' loss as her Ashe Stadium gain as the day's final hours of sunlight bore down on Flushing Meadows. It looked as if it was going to simply be a nice first-time experience for Falconi when she found herself down 4-1 and two breaks in the 3rd set against the Slovak. But then Falconi refused to lose.

Roaring back, Falconi won four straight games and served for the match at 5-4. She was broken. But the American wasn't going to let her opportunity slip away so easily. She broke back, then served for the match again at 6-5. Falconi saved the best for last, racing to reach a Cibulkova drop shot on match point, finally catching up to the ball as she was about to run into the changeover area, then flipping an angled forehand along the top of the net and out of the Slovak's reach to close out her 2-6/6-3/7-5 victory. Falconi exploded, leaping into the air with Connors-like intensity as the crowd at Ashe who'd been disappointed about not seeing Venus ended up happy that they'd been able to witness a totally unexpected great moment.

Just like that, another American star was born in New York. Or two. Or (almost) three or four. The likes of Melanie Oudin and Beatrice Capra pulled similar spotlight-stealing feats the last two years, only to sink once they left the Big Apple. What Keys, McHale and Falconi's (and maybe Vandeweghe's) futures hold is a wait-and-see situation, but that likely not the case for the American at the other end of the success spectrum. While those of the Bannerettes' seems brighter all the time, and Venus' remains cloudy, Serena's future is STILL now.

Without Venus, I guess this means that Serena is now "playing for two" Uh-oh.



=DAY 3 NOTES=
...elsewhere, #2-seed Vera Zvonareva struggled against Kateryna Bondarenko, but won 7-5/3-6/6-3. Anabel Medina-Garrigues won, too, taking out qualifier Laura Robson. So, is the Spaniard's career-long quest for her first slam QF picking up steam? Whoa! Don't get ahead of things. She faces Zvonareva next, and would face the winner of Lisicki/Falconi after that.

Speaking of "Zvonareva," I'm not sure what Tennis Channel is accomplishing doing those on-site spelling bees for fans at Flushing Meadows, using players' names as the word list. Today, the "stumpers" offered up were "toughies" like "Keys" and "Williams." Oooh. Then, when a "fan" finally gets a name that an elementary school kid might not be able to tackle, they act as if they've been asked to spell "Buyukakcay" (as in Cagla) or something. Or appear dumbfounded on a whole different level by the task, since it's obvious they've never heard of anybody named "Soderling" (a two-time slam finalist) or "Zvonareva" (the world #2, and runner-up at THIS TOURAMENT last year). Anyway, I had to turn the sound down today to avoid getting into an argument with an uncommunicative video screen.

Meanwhile, if you were metaphysically in tune with this Open, you might have heard Petra Kvitova wince today. Her 1st Round conqueror, Alexandra Dulgheru, wasn't even the best Romanian on the court today in her 2nd Rounder against Monica Niculescu. In another case of a young player not being able to solidy her position after an upset in the previous round, Dulgheru lost 6-3/6-0.

In Men's Doubles, the #1-seeded Bryan brothers, the defending champs, were ousted in their opening match by Ivo Karlovic and Frank Moser.

...in some Early-Round Award news, as mentioned yesterday, the "Upset Queens" (Romania) and "Revelation Ladies" (U.S.A.) have been determined. The "Poor Souls" is still in doubt, but the Czech Republic's 2-5 1st Round mark, after such a great all-around Wimbledon, seems to put the Maidens in the lead for the (dis)honor. The only other nations with more 1st Round losses were Russia (8) and the United States (7), but those two counties also put the most women (8 each) through to the Final 64.

If Sloane Stephens wins her 2nd Round match tomorrow against Shahar Peer, she'd be the "Last Wild Card Standing." Otherwise, she'll share the honor with Madison Keys. The "Last Qualifier Standing" is still up in the air, too. Robson and Romina Oprandi lost today, but Silvia Soler-Espinosa and Michaella Krajicek are still to complete their 2nd Rounders.

...once again, the "Maria and Andy Show" is currently taking place on Ashe tonight, as the Russian/American pair was YET AGAIN been scheduled to play under the lights on the same night for what seems like the umpteenth time. Not wanting to be like ESPN2, here's where I'll mention that Roddick is playing Michael Russell, while Sharapova faces Anastasiya Yakimova in the nightcap. By the way, it's the first time ever that a women's match has been scheduled as the second match up on back-to-back nights.

...the revisionist history on ESPN2 once Venus pulled out of the tournament was somewhat amusing. Once Lisicki had advanced, Patrick McEnroe talked about how the Venus/Lisicki match had been the women's "Match of the Day." Funny, then, that the network never even saw fit to give any discussion of that fact much of the time of day before it was announced that it wouldn't happen.

Speaking of odd decisions, what was up with ESPN2's moves during the tail-end of the Keys/Safarova match? The network, which so often likes to tell everyone that no fans will watch unless an American player is on air, finally gets what it wants -- a young, promising American in a big career moment -- when Keys got that break for a 4-3 lead in the 3rd. Two games from the youngest player in the draw getting the biggest win of her career moving into the very first crucial moment in a big-time match, ESPN2 suddenly decided that it was NOW going to be the network that moves around the grounds and shows other matches. Rather than Keys, the network began to air the Zvonareva/K-Bond match, missing Keys' serve getting broken and the match slip away. Oh, the network eventually returned, but it missed "the moment." ESPN3.com and Tennis Channel picked up the slack in the moment, but why would the lead carrier of the tournament bail out at THAT moment? Astounding.

...and, finally, P-Mac was on a (mini) rampage again today against the sounds the women make on the court. During the McHale/Bartoli match, when Bartoli was given a point penalty for "hinderance" after, thinking she'd won the point with a winner, she yelled out in the middle of a rally, McEnroe yet again brought up "The Issue," saying Bartoli's sound was far less a "hinderance" than his own personal pet peeve. With that, Mary Joe Fernandez, or maybe Pam Shriver (I'm not sure which one it was), noted that WTA head Stacey Allaster had told her that NO player had ever come to her to complain about the noise. Just then, an ESPN poll flashed on the screen, showing that 57% of the fans responding didn't support a rule against "grunting." It still wasn't enough to dissuade McEnroe, as he said the question should be about "excessive" grunting (good luck coming up with the rules for THAT distinction) or, noting (in an ESPN2 first) that the men also "grunt," about "shrieking." And so on and so on.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Give it a rest, Patrick. Are you going to make this an endless personal crusade? You cannot be serious.




**"REVELATION LADIES" WINNERS**
[U.S. Open]
2006 Russia
2007 Ukraine
2008 Slovak Republic
2009 Belarus
2010 North America
2011 United States
[2011]
AO: Czech Republic
RG: North America
WI: Great Britain
US: United States

**"UPSET QUEENS" WINNERS**
[U.S. Open]
2004 Russia
2005 United States
2006 France
2007 Russia
2008 China
2009 United States
2010 Taiwan
2011 Romania
[2011]
AO: Russia
RG: Romania
WI: Russia
US: Romania

*BACKSPIN 2011 RISERS*
[Monthly/Quarterly winners]
JANUARY: Vera Zvonareva, RUS
FEBRUARY: Vera Zvonareva, RUS
MARCH: Victoria Azarenka, BLR
1Q...Andrea Petkovic, GER
APRIL: Victoria Azarenka, BLR
MAY: Petra Kvitova, CZE
2Q CLAY...Victoria Azarenka, BLR
JUNE: Marion Bartoli, FRA
2Q GRASS...Sabine Lisicki, GER
JULY: Vera Zvonareva, RUS
AUGUST: Agnieszka Radwanska, POL
[2011 Weekly Award Wins]
8...Andrea Petkovic, GER
7...Sabine Lisicki, GER
5...Victoria Azarenka, BLR
5...Peng Shuai, CHN




TOP QUALIFIER: Romina Oprandi/ITA
TOP EARLY ROUND (1r-2r): xx
TOP MIDDLE-ROUND (3r-QF): xx
TOP LATE ROUND (SF-F): xx
TOP QUALIFYING MATCH: Q3: Alexandra Panova/RUS def. #6q Andrea Hlavackova/CZE 3-6/6-2/7-6(7)
TOP EARLY RD. MATCH (1r-2r): xx
TOP MIDDLE-RD. MATCH (3r-QF): xx
TOP LATE RD. MATCH (SF-F/Jr.): xx
TOP NIGHT MATCH: xx
=============================
FIRST WINNER: Monica Niculescu/ROU (def. Patricia Mayr-Achleitner/AUT)
FIRST SEED OUT: #5 Petra Kvitova (lost to Dulgheru/1st Rd.)
UPSET QUEENS: Romanians
REVELATION LADIES: Americans
NATION OF POOR SOULS: Nominees: Czech Republic, Japan & all nations of Asia
LAST QUALIFIER STANDING: Oprandi/ITA, Soler-Espinosa/ESP & Krajicek/NED to play in 2nd Round; Robson/GBR lost in 2nd Round
LAST WILD CARD STANDING: Keys/USA lost in 2nd Round; Stephens/USA to play in 2nd Rd.
LAST AMERICAN STANDING: xx
IT: xx
MS. OPPORTUNITY: xx
COMEBACK PLAYER: xx
CRASH & BURN: Wimbledon champ, #5 Petra Kvitova/CZE (1st Rd./lost to Dulgheru) & Roland Garros champ, #6 Li Na/CHN (1st Rd./lost to Halep)
ZOMBIE QUEEN: xx
LADY OF THE EVENING: xx
BROADWAY-BOUND: xx
DOUBLES STAR xx
JUNIOR BREAKOUT: xx




All for Day 3. More tomorrow.

Read more...

US.2- Serena vs. the World

Join me, a few years into the future...

Serena Williams steps to the podium to make her Tennis Hall of Fame speech in Newport. Someone has just called her "the best ever," and everyone who she ever beat looks up and says to themselves, "Yeah, maybe she was." If she holds to form, Serena is about to see fit to thank all those players for helping her get to such an exalted position in the history of the sport. After all, without all those other women to climb over, she'd never have had the opportunity to reach the top.

"I want to thank you for making this day necessary." - Yogi Berra, former New York Yankee catcher, (mis)speaking on "Yogi Berra Day" in 1947

Williams makes her 2011 Open debut on Ashe tonight (in the featured second match up, no less) against Serbia's Bojana Jovanovski. It should be the kick-off for what might be a very telling tournament that was set to revolve around Serena long before the first ball was set to be struck in anger on Monday. Barring a monumental, chaos-inducing loss along the way (or maybe even IF that were to happen), the next two weeks in New York might just provide a template for the tour's four biggest events for the next few seasons.

It'll be Serena vs. the world.

Fittingly, it'll be her first match in this tournament since her "F-Bombs Heard 'round the World" loss to Kim Clijsters in '09. Williams (sort of) addressed the issue when questioned about it yesterday, saying, "I just remember I lost, and that I got really popular; a lot of people were telling me I was, like, super cool, that they never saw me so intense." Alllll-right. One thing Serena isn't good at is talking around topics she is tired of or doesn't want to discuss too much. From Dinara Safina's rise to #1 ("(She) had a great year. She won... Rome and Madrid. Hahaha.") to whether or not her failure to win Wimbledon after a year-long absence was "good" for the WTA ("Yay, go women's tennis!), Serena usually goes the sometimes-snide, usually dryly humorous and sarcastic route with her comments. She doesn't always pull off the trick as gracefully as some players (say, Federer, when he was at the top of his off-court "game"), and even sometimes when she's not outwardly showing a lack of interest in a topic (such as her saying yesterday that she's "always wanted" to win the U.S. Open Series) you sort of believe she's PROBABLY thinking along those lines inside her head. I don't have a problem when she does this (the tour can always use a little flavor), but some likely do. Just like with what happened two years ago AFTER the incident with the linesperson.

Serena vs. the world.

Such is the situation of any player who can "defeat" another before they ever walk onto the court. The desire to chip away at the edifice is often impossible for some to resist (hence, the "love her or hate her" Sports Illustrated cover last year. Williams has faired pretty well in the arena, though. In the end, just like Andre Agassi and Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe, she'll likely far outrun and outlast her detractors and nemeses.

"The pitchers were afraid of him because he'd hit anything, so they didn't know what to throw. Yogi had them psyched out and he wasn't even trying to psych them out." - Hector Lopez, on Berra

Similar things will likely be said about Serena's abilities come her day of honor. Which means that every time Williams hits the court, big dealings will be going on inside the head and body of her opponents. It's surely the case at this slam.

At the '11 Open, trying to succeed where so many others have failed against Serena, are a growing group of talented twentysomethings trying to sniff out a few slam victories in the soon-to-be 30-year old Williams' "golden years" on tour (which might just last a bit longer than anyone would have even thought a few years ago, as Serena's injury-related absence has led her to talk about having five or six "good years" left in her career). The major contenders were there in force as this tournament began. Caroline Wozniacki (21), Victoria Azarenka (22), Petra Kvitova (21), Sabine Lisicki (21) and Andrea Petkovic (23) amongst them, with Maria Sharapova (24) not nearly as long in the tooth as our memories might lead us to assume. Aside from the bounced Kvitova, they're all still there. Aside from Sharapova, who struggled to advance on Day 1, they all moved forward with ease on Day 2.

This U.S. Open could turn out to be "an example for the ages," as Williams, after a year out, right after the rise of young twentysomethings into Wimbledon's Final 4, hot off her sizzling hard court season, attempts to face them ALL down as the #28-seeded near-unanimous choice by the pundits (Carl just about stands alone... something he's used to, I'm assuming, since most people have a sense of smell) to walk away with the title.

Serena vs. the world. What else is new?

One day, if thirteen-time slam champ Williams catches up with Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert (both with 18) on the all-time WTA slam title list, and puts pressure on Steffi Graf (22) and Margaret Court (24), she'll have cobbled together even more evidence for all the eventual (and current) "best ever" talk. While they may still be relegated to being simply "ladies in waiting" by the time this Open concludes, those aforementioned twentysomethings will likely be the players charged with trying to prevent Williams from reaching such epic tennis statistical heights.

Well... game on, then.



=DAY 2 NOTES=
...so, winning slams in 2011 gets you what at the U.S. Open? Ummm, zip. Nada. Nothing. Zero. Well, that's not entirely true. Kim Clijsters got a few extra weeks off, since she didn't even make the trip to New York. As for both Petra Kvitova and Li Na, they got the chance to catch early flights out of NYC, avoiding all the post-slam hustle-and-bustle that neither has handled particularly well this summer.

#6 Li became the second women's seed to exit this Open, following Kvitova becoming the first on Monday, losing to Romanian Simona Halep 6-2/7-5. Kvitova, too, lost to a Swarmette (Alexandra Dulgheru). Both the Czech and Chinese women had 28 unforced errors in their 1st sets, and ended with around 50 UE's for the match, too. Not shockingly, it's the first time both the RG and SW19 champs have gone out in the 1st Round at the Open... just like it's no surprise that they'll now share this slam's "Crash & Burn" award, as well.

...Sabine Lisicki now has a date with history (and why ESPN2 commentators seem to have brain-lock when it comes to highlighting this contest in advance is beyond me... it'll be the first really big match of the tournament, and it was visible in the crystal ball as soon as the draw was released), as she'll face Venus Williams in the 2nd Round. Lisicki, like Venus' 1st Round opponent Vesna Dolonts, had a little difficulty hopping a non-cancelled flight to New York (she was trapped in Dallas a little longer than she wanted to be after winning the title there on Saturday), but the German seemed none the worse for wear today against Alona Bondarenko. She never lost more than three games in any of her five matches in Big D, and she only lost three in each set against the Ukrainian in the Big Apple today. Now, though, the proverbial rubber will hit the road.

Venus' history at this tournament is quite compelling. She debuted in '97, the last time she was unseeded before this year, and went all the way to the final. It set up a pattern that has carried through nearly her entire career at Flushing Meadows. For one, she's never lost before the Round of 16, but even more impressively, she's never lost in NY to a player who doesn't have a slam title AND a #1 singles ranking on their current career resume. Also, in her twelve previous Opens, Venus was twice the champ, and the player who defeated her has ultimately been crowned the champion eight other times. So, other than in '99 and '04, the road to the title has gone through Venus for most of the last fourteen years.

Lisicki is 23-4 since Roland Garros, with two singles titles and a slam SF under her belt. But she'll be facing down an entirely different mountain of achievement come the next round. If she can triumphantly ascend it, who knows what she might be capable of not only in this slam, but in her career. Well, at least that what history will be whispering in her ear when she takes the court.

...in other matches of note: #21 Daniela Hantuchova fell to Pauline Parmentier, while Victoria Azarenka surely had a better 1st Round (def. Johanna Larson 6-1/6-3) this year than she did 2nd Round last year. Meanwhile, Caroline Wozniacki had a good, Rory-less time against Nuria Llagostera-Vives (6-3/6-1), Flavia Pennetta finally rediscovered her game against Dallas finalist Aravane Rezai, Shahar Peer narrowly avoided becoming the "Second Seed Out" (after being the first sent packing at the last two slams) when she won a streaky three-setter over Sania Mirza (getting her first win in five tries against the Indian) and Roberta Vinci won the third installment of her summer trilogy with Irina-Camelia Begu, taking the rubber match in straights sets.

Queen Chaos made her first appearance at this Open, and had a rather calm afternoon, defeating American Alison Riske (one of the few young U.S. women NOT to win her 1st Round match) 6-2/6-0. She'll next play in a "Battle of the Jelenas" match with Ms. Dokic, who (surprisingly, a little, to be honest) knocked out Olga Govortsova 6-3/6-1. Heck, even two of the former slam champs in the draw not named Serena won: Svetlana Kuznetsova in straights over Sara Errani, and Ana Ivanovic over Ksenia Pervak, who squandered an early advantage against the Serb, who was playing with a heavy heart after the death of her grandfather.

...one of the bigger 1st Round stories this week so far has been the success of the young American women. Bannerettes Madison Keys, Irina Falconi, Christina McHale and Coco Vandeweghe have advanced to the 2nd Round, along with Vania King and Venus Williams (with Serena still to play). 18-year old Wild Card Sloane Stephens added her name to the list in dramatic fashion in the early evening, notching her first career main draw slam win over Hungarian qualifier Reka-Luca Jani, whose name I absolutely LOVE. Quick -- say it five times fast! Or, even better, try it in a "drunken voice." Oh, it'll provide great fun for hours... or at least a few seconds. Jani twice served for the match in the 3rd, and held a mini-break in the deciding tie-break, but Stephens pulled through 6-2/3-6/7-6.

Stephens, along with Keys, is one of two Wild Cards to win 1st Round matches. Three qualifiers -- Laura Robson, Romina Oprandi and Silver Soler-Espinosa -- advanced. Qualifier Michaella Krajicek is still playing as I post this.

...through (most of) the 1st Round, this slam's nation awards are producing some really interesting nominees. Despite competion from the Spaniards (Pous-Tio, Soler-Espinosa and Suarez-Navarro) and Americans, it's hard to imagine the Romanians NOT winning the "Upset Queens" award simply on the strength of their wins over the season's two participating slam winners, Kvitova (lost to Dulgheru) and Li (Halep). In the "Revelation Ladies" race, the Brits registered some notice, but the Americans seem ready to clean up here what was swiped away in the "UQ" competition.

Elsewhere, while Clijsters said earlier this year that she wouldn't play in Asia, the Asians seem to have boycotted the tournament that the Belgian has won the last two years. The "Poor Souls" award isn't finalized just yet, but while the Czechs (Kvitova, Zakopalova, Benesova & Hradecka, with Zahlavova-Strycova losing as I post this) have been pretty woeful so far, the overall (lack of) success of the countries of Asia has been astonishing. Only three women -- Peng Shuai, Zheng Jie and Agkul Amanmuradova -- from an Asian country advanced, as the continent produced as overall 3-10 record. Ouch.

...and, finally, following on the heels of her "trivalry" comment about the Djokovic/Nadal/Federer dynamic earlier this summer, Tennis Channel's Mary Carillo pulled another good one out of her quiver today. New York Jet quarterback Joe Namath picked up the nickname "Broadway Joe" during his playing days. Today, during an interview with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, she called the fan favorite Frenchman "Broadway Jo-Willie." It's even a better moniker when you consider that Namath's middle name is Willie, as well. Nudge, nudge. Good one, Mary.




**"CRASH AND BURN" WINNERS**
[U.S. Open]
2007 Maria Sharapova, RUS (3rd Rd.)
2008 Ana Ivanovic, SRB (2nd Rd.)
2009 Elena Dementieva, RUS (2nd Rd.)
2010 Victoria Azarenka, BLR (2nd Rd.)
2011 Petra Kvitova, CZE & Li Na, CHN (both 1st Rd.)
[2011]
AO: Jelena Jankovic, SRB (2nd Rd.)
RG: Kim Clijsters, BEL (2nd Rd.)
WI: Jelena Jankovic, SRB (1st Rd.)
US: Petra Kvitova, CZE & Li Na, CHN (both 1st Rd.)

**VENUS AT OPEN**
1997 RU - lost to Hingis
1998 SF - lost to Davenport
1999 SF - lost to Hingis
2000 - Champion
2001 - Champion
2002 RU - lost to S.Williams
2003 -
2004 4th Rd. - lost to Davenport
2005 QF - lost to Clijsters
2006 -
2007 SF - lost to Henin
2008 QF - lost to S.Williams
2009 4th Rd. - lost to Clijsters
2010 SF - lost to Clijsters
2011 ??
--
blue - Venus or player lost to won title

*SLAM MATCH WINS - OPEN ERA*
[women]
306...Martina Navratilova
299...Chris Evert
278...Steffi Graf
210...Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario
210...Venus Williams (post-US 1r)
202...Serena Williams (post-Wimbledon)
[men]
232...Jimmy Connors
224...Roger Federer (post-US 1r)
224...Andre Agassi
222...Ivan Lendl
203...Pete Sampras

*BACKSPIN 2011 PLAYERS-OF-THE-MONTH*
JANUARY & AO: Kim Clijsters, BEL
FEBRUARY: Caroline Wozniacki, DEN
MARCH/APRIL: Caroline Wozniacki, DEN
APRIL/MAY: Caroline Wozniacki, DEN
MAY/pre-RG: Maria Sharapova, RUS
MAY (RG): Li Na, CHN
JUNE/JULY (grass): Petra Kvitova, CZE
JULY: Serena Williams, USA
AUGUST (pre-US): Serena Williams, USA




TOP QUALIFIER: Romina Oprandi/ITA
TOP EARLY ROUND (1r-2r): xx
TOP MIDDLE-ROUND (3r-QF): xx
TOP LATE ROUND (SF-F): xx
TOP QUALIFYING MATCH: Q3: Alexandra Panova/RUS def. #6q Andrea Hlavackova/CZE 3-6/6-2/7-6(7)
TOP EARLY RD. MATCH (1r-2r): xx
TOP MIDDLE-RD. MATCH (3r-QF): xx
TOP LATE RD. MATCH (SF-F/Jr.): xx
TOP NIGHT MATCH: xx
=============================
FIRST WINNER: Monica Niculescu/ROU (def. Patricia Mayr-Achleitner/AUT)
FIRST SEED OUT: #5 Petra Kvitova (lost to Dulgheru/1st Rd.)
UPSET QUEENS: xx
REVELATION LADIES: xx
NATION OF POOR SOULS: xx
LAST QUALIFIER STANDING: xx
LAST WILD CARD STANDING: xx
LAST AMERICAN STANDING: xx
IT: xx
MS. OPPORTUNITY: xx
COMEBACK PLAYER: xx
CRASH & BURN: Nominees: Wimbledon champ, #5 Kvitova (1st Rd./lost to Dulgheru) & Roland Garros champ, #6 Li (1st Rd./lost to Halep)
ZOMBIE QUEEN: xx
LADY OF THE EVENING: xx
BROADWAY-BOUND: xx
DOUBLES STAR xx
JUNIOR BREAKOUT: xx




All for Day 2. More tomorrow.

Read more...

US.1- Another Natural Disaster

Flushing Meadows experienced two natural disasters before the start of play. First, it was a 5.8 earthquake. Then Hurricane Irene. The grounds saw a third today... courtesy of Petra Kvitova.

Who knew that it'd only take a few hours into Day 1 for the first major post-Irene clean-up on a show court to have to take place? Then, almost as soon as the first major mess had been taken care of, another bigger one ALMOST happened.

In a USA Today article that appeared today, Wimbledon champ Kvitova said, "For me as a person, I'm not feeling different (than) before Wimbledon. But I know people recognize me, and everything around me is a little different... I don't like too much the attention, (but) it's important for the WTA, the tournament and for everybody."

What the future holds for the 21-year old #5-seeded Czech still seems especially bright, but she's not going to win this year's U.S. Open. Her error-strewn, straight sets loss to Alexandra Dulgheru today saw to that. With a 2-3 record since lifting the Venus Rosewater plate at the All-England Club, Kvitova is going to need all those right-thinking, pressure-thriving traits that her coach and everyone else has been praising her for the last few months in order to eventually make her way through the latest dense thicket of expectations to thwart the aspirations of a rising women's tennis star.

"It gets late early out here." - Yogi Berra, former New York Yankee catcher

Kvitova's first-up match on Louis Armstrong Stadium today highlighted all the things that led many to believe that, while her future seemed limitless, the Czech might not be quite ready to win a slam at the start of the summer. After an immediate break from play after winning in London -- part injury-related, perhaps, but likely largely a smart decision to try to decompress -- Kvitova has had a very difficult time harnessing her powerful forehand, an element of her fire-on-all-cylinders game that has sometimes abandoned her during her career. When she's "on," she's nearly unbeatable. When she's "off," she usually beats herself. She lost twice to Andrea Petkovic in tune-up events coming into the Open, but often struggled to claim the matches she DID win in Toronto and Cincinnati. There was hope that the big stage would help to center her game, and that after getting a few matches under her belt she'd be in form for the second week. But it wasn't meant to be, as her opening match in Flushing Meadows presented a microcosm of her post-Wimbledon troubles.

Kvitova tried to hold together her game in the opening set, a stanza that included six breaks of serve between the two players. Twice, the Czech was a point away from getting break #7 and locking away the set. But her unforced errors kept Dulgheru's service game in play, and the Romanian held and forced a tie-break. There, Dulgheru raced to an early lead, and won 7-3 to claim the set. While her opponent produced over twenty unforced errors of her own, Kvitova trumped her with thirty-two, two-thirds of them courtesy of her wayward forehand. In the 2nd, Kvitova went up 2-0, but then fell right back down the hole. Dulgheru won six of the final seven games. Fittingly, the match ended on a forehand return error off the Czech's racket -- her fifty-second UE of the day. She also only put in 49% of her first serves. Dulgheru won 7-6/6-3.

Such an early exit isn't anything resembling a deathblow to talk of Kvitova's future, but it surely puts her in the position of having something to prove again in '12. That said, it's noteworthy to take a glance at the results of other first-time slam winners in recent years. After Serena Williams won the U.S. Open in '99, she went out in the 4th Round in her next slam. It'd be five years before she exited so early in a slam again, but it took her two years to reach her second slam final and two and a half before she won #2. Once she did, she was off on her "Serena Slam" run. Maria Sharapova followed up her '04 Wimbledon title with a 3rd Round exit at the U.S. Open. She'd go eleven slams before she had a similarly early loss at a major. It took her two years to win her second slam, as well.

Of course, there's at least one example on the other side of the equation. After Ana Ivanovic won the Roland Garros title in '08, her fall was precipitous. She followed up with 3rd, 2nd and 3rd Round exits at her next three slams, and hasn't reached a slam QF since. Francesca Schiavone was the "First Seed Out" at Wimbeldon last year after winning in Roland Garros. And then there's Svetlana Kuznetsova, who's been a constant hit-or-miss wild card at slams since she won the Open in '04. Kvitova has proven to not be a "clone" of Venus Williams or Justine Henin, who followed up their maiden slam wins with a second before the end of the season, but where she falls along the slam winner sliding success scale is still to be determined. But one would think that a good head, big game and enough intelligence to try to learn to, if not dial back on some of her shots when she's misfiring, then at least slightly redirect a few in order to give herself more margin for error, slow down her slide on days like this pretty cruddy Monday for the Kvitova family. Either way, her loss today DOES throw her post-slam title career trajectory up for discussion.

While Kvitova was losing, over on Arthur Ashe Court, the Czech's fellow Wimbledon finalist was about ready to have to fight for her own Open life. Maria Sharapova, after having survived tough early-round battles with youngters (Caroline Garcia in Paris, then Laura Robson in London) in the last two slams, got yet another from 19-year old Brit Heather Watson today. The Russian's spotty play from the Cincinnati final against Jelena Jankovic (ol' QC... she's already causing chaos and she hasn't even played yet) seemed to carry over to this match, and Watson took full advantage of Sharapova's unexpected gifts. She jumped up 5-2 in the 1st set. Sharapova saved two set points, but Watson took the stanza 6-3.

In the 2nd, Sharapova went up a break and led 4-2, but double-faulted to break herself to give it back. Watson got to within a few points of the match, but could never quite get into position to win. Sharapova took the set 7-5, then predictably quickly surged ahead 3-0 in the.3rd. Often, young players in this situation will lose the final set at love, or maybe win one game. Not Watson. She battled, and got things to 4-3 before Sharapova finally pulled away to win 3-6/7-5/6-3. Just like Kvitova, Sharapova put up over fifty unforced errors... but the three-time slam champ found a way to win, while the one-time one didn't.

It's still not a good sign that Sharapova has started so poorly at this Open, already throwing in a half-clunker before Day 2. For a player who thrives on confidence, the memory of her performance in this match will continue to sit on Sharapova's shoulder, ready to grab her by the throat at any moment over the next two weeks. I guess we'll see whether or not she can "trick" herself into having complete confidence that she can keep that little gremlin at bay for six more matches. I didn't agree with Chris Evert today on ESPN2 when she said she thinks this tough win will help Sharapova later in the tournament. That's the case with many top players, but it never has been with the Russian. It seems like I've been saying this at every slam lately (probably because I have), but I still cling to the notion that Sharapova can't win a slam unless she coasts all the way through the draw. She's never won a major any other way, and now the throught will be put to the test once again. I figure that her history in moments like this will eventually breakdown, but so far it's proven sound. So, until further notice, I'm sticking to it.

The Sharapova-Kvitova quarter seemed like a two-headed monster twenty-four hours ago. Now, one of those heads has been lopped off. I'm still dubious about Sharapova's chances to actually win this tournament, but who in the draw seems in position to beat her until she at least reaches the semifinals? Rezai? Goerges? A-Rad? Wickmayer? They've all got issues of their own to deal with.

Sometimes, survival is the key to slam success. Sharapova at least gave herself a chance today. Kvitova will have to figure things out so that she can do the same the next time.



=DAY 1 NOTES=
...first things first. The very first woman to advance to the 2nd Round on Day 1 was Laura Pous-... no, wait. No it wasn't. It was actually Monica Niculescu, who defeated Patricia Mayr-Achleitner (the Austrian, by the way, was on the other side of the "First Win" equation in Melbourne in '09, becoming the first woman to advance there) 6-3/6-3.

Laura Pous-Tio LOOKED like she was going to be the first female winner of this U.S. Open, taking a set and 5-2 lead on Misaki Doi this afternoon in their early match. But Doi forced a tie-break and ultimately won it 14-12. While the Japanese player was extending the match late in the 2nd set, Niculescu snuck through the proverbial back door (the match was about half-way through the 2nd when Pous-Tio was close to wrapping things up) and was the first to reach the Final 64.

As it turned out, Doi went up a break in the 3rd and held a 2-0 lead. But Doi began to cramp, and Pous-Tio won the next five games. Doi eventurally retired from the match down 5-2 in the 3rd. Thus, it was a case of delayed satisfaction for the Spaniard, but a whole lot of work (and pain) for nothing for Doi.

...with Kvitova being the "1st Seed Out" at this Open, she might have also wrapped up the "Crash & Burn" (dis)honor, as well. It'll take something monumental to knock her off the podium. On ESPN2, Evert said that Kvitova's loss, as well as Sharapova's near one, shows the depth of the women's game. True, but I'm sure the talk tomorrow will be more about the things lacking at the top of the sport rather than the talent of the rest of the field.

In other words, the usual.

...meanwhile, after back-to-back years in which teenage American girls -- Melanie Oudin in '09, Beatrice Capra in '10 -- have starred in the first week at Flushing Meadows, 16-year old Floridian Madison Keys threw her name into the hat for the distinction this year. Getting into the tournament by winning the USTA's Wild Card Playoff tournament, the youngest player in the draw took out 37-year old fellow American wild card Jill Craybas in the 1st Round. Craybas has played almost as many U.S. Opens (15) as years Keys has been alive. The powerful Keys led 6-2/4-1 before a case of nerves (including a very wild forehand she jokingly later called "interesting" -- allowed Craybas to close to 4-4. Keys won though, 6-2/6-4.

...in other matches of notes, Tsvetana Pironkova actually got a slam win over someone not named Venus. Her opponent -- Virginie Razzano -- DID have a name that starts with a "V," though; Agnieszka Radwanska defeated her sister Urszula; and, while Watson failed to close out Sharapova today, one Brit DID advance to the 2nd Round. Qualifier Laura Robson defeated Ayumi Morita.

...ESPN2 NOTES: Hannah Storm was stylin' in an all-white outfit (hmmm, would Tim Gunn say it had "major wow factor?"), and Patrick McEnroe once again went on a tired, overwrought rant about Sharapova's shrieks on Ashe. I thought it was funny how, in the middle of his much-warmed-over argument (coming from the sibling of a player whose on-court actions caused far more upsets than any of the sounds emanating from any of the women, by the way) that if the player on the other side of the net apparently has no issues with the noise then it's not an issue. And, as has been said often over the years in this discussion, most players say they're too concentrated on what THEY'RE doing to even hear what's happening on the other side of the court during points. Of course, that didn't stop P-Mac from going on for another minute or so on the topic.

It's too bad McEnroe couldn't focus as much of his energy on pronouncing Jill Craybas' name in any way seemingly close to correct, considering she's been on tour for, oh, about fifteen or so years. The WTA pronouciation guide phonetically lists her name as "Cray-bis," and all the women on ESPN2 today -- depending on various levels of diction -- either said it that way or "Cray-bus." Close enough for the benefit of the doubt, I say. Many of them, though, led by McEnroe (and later followed up by Mike Tirico), called her "Cray-bass." I don't remember ever hearing her name said quite that way, but it WAS either amusing or frustrating to listen to commentators (MJF & Shriver providing the counterpoint) have a single conversation with both individua's saying the name of the player differently... yet neither ever asking the other, "Hey, which one of us is right, anyway?"

...now, a little housekeeping:


==AUGUST PLAYER AWARDS (pre-Open)==
*TOP PLAYERS*
1.Serena Williams, USA
2.Maria Sharapova, RUS
3.Agnieszka Radwanska, POL
4.Sabine Lisicki, GER
5.Andrea Petkovic, GER

*RISERS*
1.Vania King/Yaroslava Shvedova, USA/KAZ
2.Samantha Stosur, AUS
3.Vera Zvonareva, RUS

*FRESH FACES*
1.Christina McHale, USA
2.Irina-Camelia Begu, ROU
3.Petra Martic, CRO

*SURPRISES*
1.Petra Cetkovska, CZE
2.Galina Voskoboeva, KAZ
3.Angelique Kerber, GER

*VETERANS*
1.Liezel Huber/Lisa Raymond, USA/USA
2.Zheng Jie, CHN
3.Nathalie Grandin/Vladimira Uhlirova, RSA/CZE

*COMEBACKS*
1.Jelena Jankovic, SRB
2.Aravane Rezai, FRA
3.Kateryna Bondarenko, UKR

*DOWN*
1.Kim Clijsters, BEL
2.Petra Kvitova, CZE
3.Julie Goerges, GER
4.Melanie Oudin, USA
5.Svetlana Kuznetsova, RUS

*ITF PLAYERS*
1.Aleksandra Wozniak, CAN
2.Andrea Hlavackova, CZE
3.Victoria Larriere, FRA

*JUNIORS*
1.Victoria Kan, RUS
2.Yulia Putintseva, RUS
3.Anett Kontaveit, EST

...and, finally, Venus Williams -- unseeded in Queens for the first time since her Open debut in '97, when she reached the final -- is playing on court tonight as I wrap up this DS. It's her first tour action since Wimbledon (she's battled a virus for quite a while though did play some WTT sets), and the twenty-ninth time under the lights in her career at the U.S. Open. Her opponent is Vesna Dolonts. As of Sunday, Dolonts was still in Russia after having visa problems. Then her flight was cancelled due to the hurricane. She finally arrived at the airport this afternoon and headed directly to the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center grounds for her match, eschewing even checking into a hotel. Yep, it sounds like she arrived VERY prepared for the match. Venus has won twenty-five U.S. Open night matches in her career, more than any other woman ever. The outlook for #26 looks pretty favorable (she just locked away the 1st set). As always, though, if something stupendous occurs after this Daily Backspin's deadline, there's always a chance I'll hop back into the mix with a "U.S. Open at Night" post later this evening, or "Open for Brunch" recap tomorrow morning.




*RECENT "FIRST SEED OUT"*
[U.S. Open]
2005 #28 Flavia Pennetta, ITA (lost to Schruff)
2006 #15 Anna-Lena Groenefeld, GER (lost to Rezai)
2007 #29 Samantha Stosur, AUS (lost to Cornet)
2008 #24 Shahar Peer, ISR (lost to Li)
2009 #25 Kai Kanepi, EST (lost to Chang)
2010 #8 Li Na, CHN (lost to K.Bondarenko)
2011 #5 Petra Kvitova, CZE (lost to Dulgheru)
[2011]
AO: #28 Daniela Hantuchova, SVK (lost to Kulikova)
RG: #19 Shahar Peer, ISR (lost to Martinez-Sanchez)
WI: #22 Shahar Peer, ISR (lost to Pervak)
US: #5 Petra Kvitova, CZE (lost to Dulgheru)

*RECENT "FIRST VICTORY"*
[U.S. Open]
2009 Vania King, USA (def. Yakimova)
2010 Francesca Schiavone, ITA (def. Morita)
2011 Monica Niculescu, ROU (def. Mayr-Achleitner)
[2011]
AO: Evgeniya Rodina, RUS (def. Rogowska)
RG: Simona Halep, ROU (def. Kudryavtseva)
WI: Kimiko Date-Krumm, JPN (def. O'Brien)
US: Monica Niculescu, ROU (def. Mayr-Achleitner)

*2011 SLAM "Q-PLAYERS OF THE WEEK"*
AO: Vesna Manasieva (Dolonts), RUS
RG: Sloane Stephens, USA
WI: Alexa Glatch, USA
US: Romina Oprandi, ITA

*BACKSPIN 2011 JUNIOR PLAYERS-OF-THE-MONTH*
JANUARY: An-Sophie Mestach, BEL
FEBRUARY: Monica Puig, PUR
MARCH: Alison van Uytvanck, BEL
APRIL: Monica Puig, PUR
MAY: Irina Khromacheva, RUS
JUNE: Ons Jabeur, TUN & Ashleigh Barty, AUS (co-winners)
JULY: Victoria Kan, RUS
AUGUST: Victoria Kan, RUS




TOP QUALIFIER: Romina Oprandi/ITA
TOP EARLY ROUND (1r-2r): xx
TOP MIDDLE-ROUND (3r-QF): xx
TOP LATE ROUND (SF-F): xx
TOP QUALIFYING MATCH: Q3: Alexandra Panova/RUS def. #6q Andrea Hlavackova/CZE 3-6/6-2/7-6(7)
TOP EARLY RD. MATCH (1r-2r): xx
TOP MIDDLE-RD. MATCH (3r-QF): xx
TOP LATE RD. MATCH (SF-F/Jr.): xx
TOP NIGHT MATCH: xx
=============================
FIRST WINNER: Monica Niculescu/ROU (def. Patricia Mayr-Achleitner/AUT)
FIRST SEED OUT: #5 Petra Kvitova (lost to Dulgheru/1st Rd.)
UPSET QUEENS: xx
REVELATION LADIES: xx
NATION OF POOR SOULS: xx
LAST QUALIFIER STANDING: xx
LAST WILD CARD STANDING: xx
LAST AMERICAN STANDING: xx
IT: xx
MS. OPPORTUNITY: xx
COMEBACK PLAYER: xx
CRASH & BURN: Nominee: #5 Kvitova (1st Rd./lost to Dulgheru)
ZOMBIE QUEEN: xx
LADY OF THE EVENING: xx
BROADWAY-BOUND: xx
DOUBLES STAR xx
JUNIOR BREAKOUT: xx




All for Day 1. More tomorrow.

Read more...

Wk.34- Bare Bones Backspin

Backspin is bare-boned.

[Editor's Note: First, here's a look at the start of Carl's rough draft -- and we're talking about Carl, so it was probably originally written with sticks and various tree saps, haha -- from this past Tuesday, at about 1:48pm Backspin HQ time.]

Carl mad. Carl always mad when Kim hurt. And Kim hurt all the time. First shoulder and wrist. Then ankle and toe. Then foot. Now stomach. Maybe Todd right about Kim's career not last-

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Todd NEVER RIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!! Carl ALWAYS right!!!!!!!!!!!

Kim win Australia next year. Then Roland Garros. Then Wimbledon. Then Olympics. Carl tell Kim that he take medal and shove up Todd.

AGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!

(stomp, stomp, stomp)

[Editor's Note: So, that 5.8 earthquake that struck the U.S. East coast at about 1:51 BHQT is now explained... just in case you were wondering about that. Anyway, after having his "writing" (yeah, right) interrupted, Carl came back this weekend to finish things up.]

As Carl was saying, Kim no win U.S. this year. No three pete... threepeat.... whatever. Carl hate made-up words almost as much as Carl hate Todd! She no win U.S. now, but Kim come back soon and join forces with Carl to finally take Todd down in 2012. Kim be all right until then. She "mom-up" and spend time with Jada. Carl have to visit sometime. Sure Jada miss him. Ahh, Carl long for Jada blood-curdling shrieks of delight when see Carl. Carl have way with children.

By way, who this "editor?" Carl think he want to kick where hurt. Is editor Todd in hiding? If so, Carl only have one future charge of person-squishing to deal with.

[Editor's Note: Now, now. Some "people"... they just can't get beyond their genes.]

Hey!!!!!!!!!!! Carl get you, editor!!!!!!!!!!

*WEEK 34 CHAMPIONS*
NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT USA (Premier $618K/hard outdoor)
S: Caroline Wozniacki def. Petra Cetkovska 6-4/6-1
D: Chuang/Govortsova d. Errani/Vinci
DALLAS, TEXAS USA (Int'l $220K/hard outdoor)
S: Sabine Lisicki def. Aravane Rezai 6-2/6-1
D: Brianti/Cirstea d. Cornet/Parmentier


PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Caroline Wozniacki/DEN
...I guess Todd right (Carl mad, just on principle) about old Pilot Pen needing to change name to Wozniacki Open instead of New Haven Open at Yale. Caro win fourth straight title there (she 17-0 career!) with wins over Hercog, McHale (after lost to in Cincinnati), Schiavone and Cetkovska. No lose set all week, get WTA-best sixth title of season. Even BF Rory McIlroy (and Piotr, keeping eye on things) there. Carl think Rory there because he worried about Yale football team time with GF. He no fill out jersey quite as well as real players (Carl would!!), but Caroline no seem mind.
=============================
RISER: Sabine Lisicki/GER
...Sabine get good at going into slams on high. Into Wimbledon after Birmingham title, and reach SF. Now win Dallas right before Open. Sabine destroy field like Carl rampaging through Backspin HQ looking for Todd. Never lose more than three games in any of five matches against Mirza, Brianti, K-Bond, Begu and Rezai. Sabine 22-4 since being carried out on stretcher in Paris.
=============================
SURPRISE: Petra Cetkovska/CZE
...Wozniacki win New Haven, but world #40 Cetkovska, 26, big revelation. Wimbledon 4th Round no fluke. Qualify for NH (def. Watson and CSN), then wins over Morita, A-Rad, Bartoli and Li (whew!) to reach first career final. Delays and Caroline affinity for Yale too much in final, but Carl now know next player Todd talk nice about because is Czech. (Carl roll eyes... and wonder when next Cavewoman tennis star is going to hit it big.)
=============================
COMEBACK: Aravane Rezai/FRA
...Rezai troubles off court all year. Carl offer counseling. Aravane no need. She work out by self. Qualify and wins over Rybarikova, Cirstea, Larsson and Kerber to reach first final since Bastad last year. Needed wild card to get into U.S. Open draw. Maybe won't need one for Melbourne.
=============================
VETERAN: Li Na/CHN
...no win New Haven, but play better than in months. Win over Kirilenko and Pavlyuchenkova, but lost SF in 11-9 3rd set tie-break (after saving four MP's) to Cetkovska. Good enough to have hope for U.S. and chance to joke on husband again.
=============================
FRESH FACE: Irina-Camelia Begu/ROU
...ICB another good week. Reach Dallas semi. Beat Parmentier, Dulko and Sevastova. In doubles final, too.
=============================
DOWN: Flavia Pennetta/ITA
...Flavia lose New Haven 1st Round to Klara Zakopalova. She 2-5 in last seven. Carl no like chances in New York. One of few things Carl agree with Todd.
=============================
ITF PLAYER: Victoria Kan/RUS
... 16-year old Russian TAKING OVER Jr/ITF circuit, say Carl. This week, world #816 win $10K Portschach challenger, defeating Diana Sumova in final. Uzbeki-born Kan qualify, then defeat #5, #3 and #1 seeds on way to title. Since July, she 21-1 in ITF play (2 titles) and 8-1 in junior (1 title).
=============================
JUNIOR STAR: Denise Starr/USA
... 16-year old from Brooklyn won USTA International Hardcourt (G4) title. Defeated Chalena Scholl in final. She also doubles runner-up.
=============================


1. NH Final - Wozniacki d. Cetkovska
...6-4/6-1. Carl nothing to do with Hurricane Irene time changes and match delays here. Carl like Caro chances in New York. Hint.
=============================
2. Dallas Final - Lisicki d. Rezai
...6-2/6-1. Carl like Sabine chances in New York. Hint.
=============================
3. NH 1st Rd - Vesnina d. Jankovic
...6-4/2-6/6-4. JJ on court when Carl shake earth with anger. Carl no surprised. Carl know Jelena share Carl pain that day... just different pain. She no like two-hour delay after stadium evacuation, but she get over it. Carl still in pain about Kim. Carl pain bigger than anyone's pain... just like Carl self is. Carl great. Rest just wish to be like Carl. Carl NEVER let that happen.
=============================
4. NH QF - Li d. Pavlyuchenkova
...6-4/3-6/6-2. Anastasia turn ankle here. Now have excuse for poor performance at Open? Carl wonder, what will Todd excuse be?
=============================
5. NH QF - Wozniacki d. McHale
...7-5/6-3. Caroline no let Christina push her around this time.
=============================
HM- NH 1st Rd - McHale d. Kuznetsova
...7-5/6-3. But Christina have big moment earlier in week. She beat Sveta before in season, too. Sveta make Carl mad. She better than this. Carl hate waste. Especially of space... like Todd.
=============================


**2011 FIRST-TIME FINALISTS**
Bogota - Mathilde Johansson, FRA - #98, age 25 (lost to Dominguez-Lino)
Memphis - Rebecca Marino, CAN - #80, age 20 (lost to Rybarikova)
Marbella - Irina-Camelia Begu, ROU - #138, age 20 (lost to Azarenka)
Bad Gastein - Patricia Mayr-Achleitner, AUT - #109, age 24 (lost to Martinez-Sanchez)
Baku - Ksenia Pervak, RUS - #55, age 20 (lost to Zvonareva)
NEW HAVEN - PETRA CETKOVSKA, CZE - #40, age 26 (lost to Wozniacki)

**2011 BEST WIN PCT. IN FINALS - 2+**
100%...SABINE LISICKI, GER (2-0)
100%...Anabel Medina-Garrigues, ESP (2-0)
100%...Serena Williams, USA (2-0)
80%...Petra Kvitova, CZE (4-1)
75%...CAROLINE WOZNIACKI, DEN (6-2)
67%...Victoria Azarenka, BLR (2-1)
67%...Li Na, CHN (2-1)
67%...Vera Zvonareva, RUS (2-1)

**QUALIFIERS IN 2011 FINALS**
Irina-Camelia Begu, ROU - Marbella - lost to Azarenka
PETRA CETKOVSKA, CZE - NEW HAVEN - lost to Wozniacki
ARAVANE REZAI, FRA - DALLAS - lost to Lisicki

**DEFENDED TITLES IN 2011**
[singles]
Monterrey - Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova/RUS, 2010-11 champ
Copenhagen - Caroline Wozniacki/DEN, 2010-11 champ
NEW HAVEN - CAROLINE WOZNIACKI/DEN, 2008-11 champ
[doubles]
Dubai - Maria Jose Martinez-Sanchez/ESP, 2010-11 champ
Bogota - Edina Gallovits-Hall/ROU, 2010-11 champ
Monterrey - Iveta Benesova/Barbora Zahlavova-Strycova/CZE-CZE, 2010-11 champs
Bad Gastein - Lucie Hradecka/CZE, 2007-11 champ
Palermo - Sara Errani/ITA, 2010-11 champ

**LOW-RANKED 2011 FINALISTS**
#169 - Serena Williams / Stanford (W)
#138 - Irina-Camelia Begu / Marbella
#114 - ARAVANE REZAI / DALLAS
#109 - Patricia Mayr-Achleitner / Bad Gastein
#105 - Magdalena Rybarikova / Memphis (W)
#100 - Sabine Lisicki / Birmingham (W)

**MOST 2011 DOUBLES/MIXED TITLES**
6...Katarina Srebotnik, SLO (5/1)
5...Kveta Peschke, CZE (5/0)
4...Barbora Zahlavova-Strycova, CZE (4/0)
4...Iveta Benesova, CZE (3/1)
3...Sara Errani, ITA (3/0)
3...OLGA GOVORTSOVA, BLR (3/0)
3...Andrea Hlavackova, CZE (3/0)
3...Sania Mirza, IND (3/0)
3...Roberta Vinci, ITA (3/0)
3...Galina Voskoboeva, KAZ (3/0)






=QF=
Wozniacki d. Li
Azarenka d. Jankovic
Kvitova d. Sharapova
Lisicki d. Zvonareva
=SF=
Wozniacki d. Azarenka
Lisicki d. Kvitova
=FINAL=
Wozniacki d. Lisicki

...Carl still want pick Kim. Carl pick Caro instead.

=QF=
Djokovic d. Berdych
Federer d. Tsonga
Murray d. Soderling
Ferrer d. Gulbis
=SF=
Federer d. Djokovic
Murray d. Ferrer
=FINAL=
Federer d. Murray

...Carl no be sheep and pick Djokovic. Carl hate sheep. Hunt down in field for meat when hungry. No underestimate Federer. Just like Carl.


Carl must go now. Carl go look for "editor" and squish him. See ya.

Read more...

U.S. Open Preview: Deja Vu All Over Again?

This U.S. Open is already proving to be a wild version of the biggest of all the slams, and the tournament hasn't even started yet.

Two-time defending champion Kim Clijsters' withdrawal from the event due to a stomach injury was soon followed up by the woman considered the odds-on favorite to take the title -- Serena Williams -- being seeded #28. Plus, the 5.8 earthquake the struck the American East coast less than a week before the start of play (really, how stunningly unsurprising was it that Jelena Jankovic, of all people, was on court in New Haven when the earth began to shake?) is now being followed up by Hurricane Irene battering the eastern seaboard in the hours preceding the start of festivities at Flushing Meadows (the storm even caused the cancellation of Arthur Ashe Kids Day, as the entire Billie Jean King USTA National Tennis Center was battened and shut down on the Saturday before the start of play in anticipation of the rain and high winds).

The oddness and randomness extends to the women's competion as a whole. This U.S. Open isn't a "wide-open" slam (especially with Serena Williams possibly back on her game), but it's also not like Wimbledon was two months ago, when only five women seemed capable of winning the title from the outset. At Flushing Meadows, at a cursory glance, I'd say nine or ten women from the following group are capable of lifting the trophy:

Victoria Azarenka
Marion Bartoli
Jelena Jankovic
Svetlana Kuznetsova
Petra Kvitova
Li Na
Sabine Lisicki
Andrea Petkovic
Maria Sharapova
Serena Williams
Caroline Wozniacki
Vera Zvonareva

But even that group contain players who've hardly been on this game this summer, or are so long a shot that they probably shouldn't even be on the list at all. It's more about POTENTIAL than actual reality before Day 1, and another name or two that I leave off here might be essential inclusions at another slam. One thing that seems certain, though, it that this Open won't end with a shock. There won't be a once-in-a-lifetime champion in New York City, but the actual ending IS somewhat up in the air. Well, that is, unless the little taste of herself that Serena gave us in Stanford and Toronto was but a hint of things to come. THAT surely is the biggest question coming into 2011's final slam, and if the answer is in the affirmative we can probably wrap up this championship before the first ball is struck.

In the words of Hall of Fame New York Yankee catcher -- and unintentional "wordsmith" -- Yogi Berra, it might be "deja vu all over again." But will the deja vu involve Serena, or revolve around the case of another player who has been on the fringe of being dubbed a "slam champion" coming through on the final weekend, ala Kvitova at Wimbledon?

"You can observe a lot just by watching." - Yogi Berra

Or can you? As is often the case with Berra's sometimes head-scratching "Yogi-isms," everything seems logical on the surface, but is also a bit "off."

Serena looked great on hard courts this summer, but her last decision of note was to pull out of Cincinnati with a swollen big toe. It's probably nothing, but we've come to learn to never simply brush off the seriousness of injuries to Williams that occur below the ankle. Meanwhile, Sharapova won that event in Cincy, but did so by dragging a bruised-and-battered game through the final against Jankovic, raising questions about her ability to hold things together through seven matches to win her first post-shoulder surgery slam crown. Kvitova showed at Wimbledon what she's capable of, but she's had a few of "one of those days" since, losing in straight sets twice to Petkovic in successive weeks. Petkovic could be set to make a star turn in NYC, but her own knee injury in Cincinnati makes one wonder if she'll be up to it. Elsewhere, Wozniacki is trying to alter her game, experiencing the growing pains this summer that are expected during such an extended period of change. She just won New Haven for a fourth straight time, and enters the Open -- thanks to some uncharacteristic inconsistency -- without having been worn down by having played far too many matches leading into a slam. But will it matter? Her draw is no walk in the park. In Dallas, Wimbledon semifinalist Lisicki ended her hard court tune-up schedule in the same fine form with which she began it in Stanford, walking off with a title in Dallas today. Does it mean that her Wimbledon heroics were just the beginning? Thing is, her draw gives her a potentially VERY big mountain to climb in just the 2nd Round. And then there's the aforementioned Jankovic, who did a good Queen Chaos impression in reaching the final in Ohio. It was QC who reached the U.S. final back in '08, and gave Serena a good match (the most competitive we've seen in NY over the past decade, in fact). But was it all a mirage? We'll soon see.

Here's a quick overview of the draw, quarter-by-quarter:

=WOZNIACKI QUARTER=
...there are a few potential roadblocks, but this draw is probably as good as the world #1 could have hoped for. Of course, most of those "obstacles" have already proved they can beat her this season. Beware the German.
=============================
1. Andrea Petkovic (#10)... before the knee injury, this ranking wouldn't feel as shaky as it does now. Still, the German seems fit to shine -- and dance -- in the New York spotlight. Lisicki reached the semis in London, so why not Petkovic here?
2. Caroline Wozniacki (#1)... the youth uprising at Wimbledon put pressure on her, and she at least seems to be responding to it. Altering certain aspects of one's game isn't something that always goes smoothly, though. That said, thanks to Serena (and Rory McIlroy), she comes to NYC with less slam pressure-to-succeed on her shoulders than at any other recent slam. Maybe that's a good omen.
3. Li Na (#6)... did she gather together her game enough in New Haven to contend? She's been at her best in the slams this season.
4. Daniela Hantuchova (#21)... she defeated Wozniacki at Roland Garros, and could face her again in the Round of 16.
THE BRACKET BUSTER: #15 Svetlana Kuznetsova... one never knows when she's going to show up to play
THE POOR SOUL: Rory McIlroy... assuming he comes to NYC after playing his event in Switzerland next week, AND Wozniacki is still kicking around the draw in Week 2, he'll get loads of face time. That's a good thing, but it'd also lead to several rounds of talk in sporting circles about if his #1 job -- he hasn't done much of note since winning golf's U.S. Open -- is now supporting his girlfriend from the sidelines. Of course, if he wins HIS tournament next weekend, maybe the feel-good aura will spur Caroline on, as well.

=AZARENKA QUARTER=
...well, maybe it should be "S.WILLIAMS QUARTER." Truth be told, not much more needs to be said about the storyline of this section of the draw.
=============================
1. Serena Williams (#28)... in Stanford and Toronto, she sure LOOKED like the future U.S. Open champion.
2. Victoria Azarenka (#4)... so she finally reaches her first slam semifinal at Wimbledon, and her reward is possibly facing Serena in the 3rd Round of her next slam? (See below.)
3. Jelena Jankovic (#11)... with Ricardo Sanchez in tow (again), could JJ re-capture the magic of '08? Talk about "Deja vu all over again." Hmmm. Considering their knacks for beautifully twisting the English language, Berra and Jankovic could probably have a really entertaining conversation... even if neither one really understood anything the other was saying.
4. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (#17)... the ability is there, but a bum ankle (she turned it in New Haven) will only make her movement more of a liability.
THE BRACKET BUSTER: Queen Chaos... if she brought her cape, something interesting COULD happen. Another earthquake, maybe? Or some other quirk of nature? At the very least.
THE POOR SOUL: Victoria Azarenka... once again, she might have gotten the rawest end of a deal.

=SHARAPOVA QUARTER=
...more than any other quater, this one is a two-headed beast. It's hard to imagine anyone seeing anyone other than one of the top two seeded women emerging from this competition.
=============================
1. Maria Sharapova (#3)... Sharapova has always seemed more "at home" at the Open than any other slam. Does it mean she can be "exquisite in the city" again? Maybe. She won in Cincinnati, but nearly gagged down the stretch. If the hoped-for QF meeting takes place, she won't be able to slip through the cracks in the wall like she did against JJ. Well, unless...
2. Petra Kvitova (#5)... the Czech beats her to it.. The thought after Wimbledon was that maybe Kvitova was past her "wandering forehand," post-big result periods. Apparently not, judging from this summer. But a quick rebound in the next slam would surely only prove all the things said about her two months ago to be oh so true. A middlin' result won't be a looming, Ivanovician dark cloud for her career, but a strong showing will surely add to what could quickly become something of a slam "aura."
3. Julia Goerges (#19)... of course, Goerges has in no way resembled in recent months the player who looked so promising back in the spring. Still, she could slip through to the Round of 16, and see Sharapova waiting for her there. Opportunity... meet Julia.
4. Agnieszka Radwanska (#12)... she won in Carlsbad, and once upset Sharapova at the Open. Still, it's hard to see her as a second week threat.
THE BRACKET BUSTER: Aravane Rezai... her ability to create an upset isn't questioned. Her inability to work through her family's off-court issues AND stay competitve within the lines has cursed her '11 season. But she reached the Dallas final this weekend, and could (finally) be ready to raise a little hell again.
THE POOR SOUL: Melanie Oudin... like a double-edged sword, she'll likely forever be known as the girl who became an instant star at the '09 Open. She'll likely never be able to live up to the legend. At least she finally snapped her long losing streak last week in Dallas.

=ZVONAREVA QUARTER=
...this is the most competitive quarter, as well as the one most likely to produce a semifinalist with "dream" potential come the end of two weeks.
=============================
1. Sabine Lisicki (#22)... her assault on the WTA rankings continues, and her body is holding up. The new Dallas champion enters Flushing Meadows on a high. The last time she won a title going into a slam, it was in Birmingham in June before her Wimbledon semifinal run. The German's particular brand of drama and excitement seems a nice fit for New York, and she could get an appropriate stage for her performance skills as early as the 2nd Round.
2. Vera Zvonareva (#2)... she reached the final in '10, and arrives at the Open, as usual, with so little buzz that she could slip into a busy beehive without notice (yeah, I know... that was a bit labored). Still, her draw is (mostly) absent the sort of BIG stars that might cause the Open stage to swallow her up, so maybe Vera will surprise everyone and not exit a slam with at least some small tinge of regret.
3. Marion Bartoli (#8)... she rightfully should be a SF contender, but her results have been so far away from awe-inspiring on hard courts this summer what it's just as easy to see her being the first Top 8 seed in either the women's OR men's draw to be sent packing. Still...
4. Samantha Stosur (#4)... I'm putting La Trufflette above Slingin' Sammy on this list because at least the Pastry often rises to the moment in big occasions. Except for a few moments in Paris, Stosur usually does just the opposite. She had nice tune-up results, but it'll likely mean next to nothing.
5. Nadia Petrova (#24)... just because.
THE BRACKET BUSTER: Venus Williams... who knows if Venus is ready to compete for long? We haven't seen her since she lost to Pironkova at Wimbledon. If she gets past her 1st Round opponent (Vesna Dolonts), we'll learn pretty quickly where Venus is, though. She'd likely face Lisicki, probably under the lights on Ashe.
THE POOR SOUL: Anabel Medina-Garrigues... forever fated to be a double-digit WTA title winner without a slam QF result to her credit, AMG comes to NYC following an injury-related exit in Cincinnati... and probably with another quick slam exit in her future.

But, of course...

"In baseball, you don't know nothing." - Yogi Berra

The same is often the case in tennis.




=QUALIFYING ROUNDS=
TOP PLAYER: Romina Oprandi/ITA
...the Italian notched qualifying wins over Julia Cohen, Kurumi Nara and #4-seed Edina Gallovits-Hall to reach the main draw.
RISERS: Galina Voskoboeva/KAZ & Alexandra Panova/RUS
SURPRISES: Silvia Soler-Espinosa/ESP & Reka-Luca Jani/HUN
VETERANS: Stephanie Foretz-Gacon/FRA & Ekaterina Bychkova/RUS
COMEBACKS: Aleksandra Wozniak/CAN & Marina Erakovic/NZL
FRESH FACES: Noppawan Lertcheewakarn/THA & Vitalia Diatchenko/RUS
DOWN: Caroline Garcia/FRA (1q) & Yaroslava Shvedova/KAZ (1q)
OTHER QUALIFIERS: Chan Yung-Jan/TPE, Laura Robson/GBR, Urszula Radwanska/POL & Michaella Krajicek/NED
WILD CARDS: Jill Craybas/USA, Lauren Davis/USA, Casey Dellacqua/AUS, Jamie Hampton/USA, Madison Keys/USA (won USTA Playoff), Aravane Rezai/FRA, Alison Riske/USA, Sloane Stephens/USA
LUCKY LOSER: none so far

=QUALIFYING MATCHES=
Q1: Ekaterina Bychkova/RUS def. Yaroslava Shvedova/KAZ 7-6/7-6
Q2: Laura Robson/GBR def. (WC) Taylor Townsend/USA 6-3/4-6/7-6
Q3: Alexanda Panova/RUS def. #6 Andrea Hlavackova/CZE 3-6/6-2/7-6

*US OPEN "Q-PLAYER OF THE WEEK" WINNERS*
2006 Chang Yung-Jan, TPE
2007 Alina Jidkova, RUS
2008 Yaroslava Shvedova, KAZ & Barbora Strycova, CZE
2009 Eva Hrdinova, CZE
2010 Michelle Larcher de Brito, POR
2011 Romina Oprandi, ITA

*2011 SLAM QUALIFYING/WILD CARD LEADERS*
[multiple slam qualifying runs]
3...Marina Erakovic, NZL (R/W/U)
3...Aleksandra Wozniak, CAN (R/W/U)
2...Mona Barthel, GER (R/W)
2...Chan Yung-Jan, TPE (R/U)
2...Vitalia Diatchenko, RUS (W/U)
2...Irina Falconi, USA (A/W)
2...Silvia Soler-Espinosa, ESP (R/U)
2...Lesia Tsurenko, UKR (A/W)
[most qualifiers by nation, of 52]
6...Russia
6...United States
4...Germany
4...Italy
3...Canada
3...Great Britain
3...New Zealand
3...Spain
3...Taiwan
2...Netherlands
2...Thailand
2...Ukraine
1...BLR,CRO, CZE,FRA,GRE,HUN,IND,JPN,KAZ,LUX,POL
[multiple slam wild cards]
2...Lauren Davis, USA (A/U)
2...Casey Dellacqua, AUS (R/U)
2...Caroline Garcia, FRA (A/R)
[most qualifying runs + wild cards]
2...Stephanie Foretz-Gacon, FRA (Wimbledon WC, US Open Q)



=POTENTIAL FIRST SEEDS OUT?=
[bottom half]
#26 Flavia Pennetta/ITA vs. (WC) Aravane Rezai/FRA
...Rezai seems to finally have escaped her off-court demons, while Pennetta just hasn't been "right" all season.
#12 Agnieszka Radwanska/POL vs. (Q) Urszula Radwanska/POL
...you always hope for pairings in the draw like this, but they usually don't happen. Well, this time it did. Big sister A-Rad has the advantage, but she'll also feel more of the pressure.
#30 Anabel Medina-Garrigues/ESP vs. (Q) Karin Knapp/ITA
...AMG's lack of slam success is a given, and she's nursing an injury.
#13 Peng Shuai/CHN vs. Varvara Lepchenko/USA
...Peng's hip is a constant issue.
#25 Maria Kirilenko/RUS vs. Ekaterina Makarova/RUS
...when two Russians get together, who never know what'll happen.
#27 Lucie Safarova/CZE vs. Magdalena Rybarikova/SVK
...Safarova is just as likely to knock out the first seed as she is to be the first seed ousted. This time around, she's a seeded player, so...
#20 Yanina Wickmayer/BEL vs. Sorana Cirstea/ROU
..the Belgian's Open lead-up hasn't been great, but she had her best slam result (SF in '09) at this event.
[top half]
#23 Shahar Peer/ISR vs. Sania Mirza/IND
...in some parts of the world, this match-up might cause some external pressure. Here, it'll just be another 1st Round match. Well, unless Peer is the First Seed Out for the third straight slam in 2011, that is. She was the FSO at the '08 Open, as well.
#31 Kaia Kanepi/EST vs. Tamarine Tanasguarn/THA
...the Estonian's season has pretty much been a washout after her season kicked off with the "banana peel" of a fractured elbow.
#16 Ana Ivanovic/SRB vs. Ksenia Pervak/RUS
...who knows what we'll get with AnaIvo at this slam? Pervak is surely capable of an upset... which might not be considered an upset a year or so down the road.
#17 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova/RUS vs. Anna Tatishvili/GEO
...the Russian's turned ankle in New Haven might not bode well for a NYC run.
#15 Svetlana Kuznetsova/RUS vs. Sara Errani/ITA
...you know, Sveta HAS won this tournament before. No, really. She HAS. Seriously.
#18 Roberta Vinci/ITA vs. Irina-Camelia Begu/ROU
...earlier this summer, Begu lost to Vinci in the Budapest final, then beat her a few days later in Palermo. Here's the rubber match, only this time it's on hard court.
#29 Jarmila Gajdosova/AUS vs. Iveta Benesova/CZE
...her Wimbledon Mixed Doubles success notwithstanding, Benesova is rarely at her best in the slams.
#11 Jelena Jankovic/SRB vs. (WC) Alison Riske/USA
...but Riske's season has been a bit of a disappointment, and JJ might have packed her QC cape for her trip to Flushing Meadows. In a perfect storm (no pun intended) situation, things could get sticky... but The Chaotic One should still prevail. And anyway...

=POSSIBLE 2nd Rd. MATCH-UPS TO WATCH=
#11 Jelena Jankovic/SRB vs. Jelena Dokic/AUS
...if JJ doesn't win her 1st Rounder then a certain Friendly Neighborhood Backspinner wouldn't be able to hope for an under-the-lights match between the two Jelenas. Thing is, Dokic holding up her end (1st Rd. vs. Govortsova, after a woeful summer run for JD) is probably even less likely than this potential match getting that evening slot.
#22 Sabine Lisicki/GER vs. Venus Williams/USA
...yikes! So much seems possible for Lisicki at this slam, but there's Venus playing the possible 2nd Round spoiler. You've got to think that this one -- Venus has more nighttime US Open wins than any other woman -- WILL be scheduled for under the lights. Of course, we haven't seen Venus since Wimbledon. She's loathe to skip slams, so her being in this draw doesn't necessarily mean she's fully healthy and ready to go.
#8 Marion Bartoli/FRA vs. Christina McHale/USA
...the American could become a bona fide star -- of course, so was Oudin a couple of years ago, take it with a grain of salt -- with a win here.
#1 Caroline Wozniacki/DEN vs. Arantxa Rus/NED
...the Dutch girl upset Clijsters in Paris, and pushed Sharapova in Madrid.
#9 Samantha Stosur/AUS vs. Coco Vandeweghe/USA
...Coco hasn't faired well in "spotlight" matches, but Stosur isn't a huge fan of the atmosphere at the Open. An electrified crowd could make things interesting.

=LAST QUALIFIER STANDING?=
1. Romina Oprandi/ITA... gets Oudin first, then next up would be Pennetta/Rezai winner.
2. Marina Erakovic/NZL... vs. Lucic in 1st Rd.
3. Karin Knapp/ITA... AMG first, then Robson/Morita
4. Laura Robson/GBR... Morita first, then AMG/Knapp
5. Michaella Krajicek/NED... Daniilidou, then... gulp...Serena.
=LAST WILD CARD STANDING?=
1. Aravane Rezai/FRA... if she can get past Pennetta in the 1st Round, she could become one of the stories of the first week, as she could face Sharapova in Round 3.
2. Jill Craybas/USA or Madison Keys/USA... they face each other in Round 1, so at least one Wild Card will reach the Final 64
3. Casey Dellacqua/AUS... she gets Cornet in the 1st Rd.
4. Sloane Stephens/USA... might Stephens be the latest Bannerette to headline? She faces qualifier Jani in the 1st, then could get the Peer/Mirza survivor.
5. Alison Riske/USA... if JJ is all out of chaos, that is
=LAST AMERICAN STANDING?=
1. Serena Williams... naturally
2. Christina McHale... hydrated, and bringing her best summer yet to a close.
3. Irina Falconi... Zakopalova in the 1st, then Cibulkova/Zhang next
4. Venus Williams... just because she's Venus, and reached the SF in '10, is reason to give her a chance even after her non-existent hard court summer schedule.
5. Bethanie Mattek-Sands... though I figure her recent injury troubles give her little chance to even escape the 1st Round vs. Polona Hercog

*PREVIEW NOTES*
...top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki sits atop the U.S. Open women's draw for the second straight season. She's the first woman seeded #1 there in back-to-back years since Martina Hingis topped the draw from 1997-2001.

...meanwhile, the Dane's Monte Carlo neighbor, world #1 Novak Djokovic, comes to Flushing Meadows as the #1 seed at a slam for the very first time in his career. His ascension ends the thirty-slam lockdown of the men's top seed by Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.

While Nadal and Federer's slam hegemony is well known, having won 22 of the last 26 slams, and 24 of 29, the THREE-headed monster at the top of men's tennis is even more imposing. Add Djokovic into the mix, and the three have won 25 of 26, and 27 of 29. And while the Nadal/Federer combo is legendary, it's the Nadal/Djokovic combo that has now won six straight slams, tied for second all-time behind only the eleven straight won by Nadal and Federer from 2005-07.

Still, the former Big 2 are still on opposite sides of the draw, so another final pairing IS possible. If Nadal and Federer meet in the final, it'd be their 20th meeting in an ATP final, tying the Ivan Lendl/John McEnroe combo for the most on the all-time list. They already combined for the most men's slam final matchups ever, with eight.

Federer, for his part, is appearing in his 49th consecutive slam, just eight behind all-time leader Wayne Ferreira's 56. Also, as he comes into this Open with a career 16-0 record in night matches at Flushing Meadows, Pete Sampras' record unbeaten streak (20-0) might just be within reach (or at least pretty close to it) if Federer were to last deep into the second week. Though, the best he could hope for when it comes to extending his streak is probably 18 or 19.

...at least one Russian woman has reached the semifinals at twenty-seven of the last thirty slams.

...meanwhile, women's wheelchair champ Esther Vergeer is back for more. She chuckles at the winning streak Djokovic put together earlier this year. The Dutch woman has won 422 straight matches, a run that dates back to January 2003.




=ROUND OF 16 PREDICTIONS=
#1 Wozniacki d. #21 Hantuchova
#10 Petkovic d. #6 Li
#28 S.Williams d. Cetkovska
#11 Jankovic d. #7 Schiavone
#5 Kvitova d. #20 Wickmayer
#3 Sharapova d. Doi
#9 Stosur d. McHale
#22 Lisicki d. #2 Zvonareva

=QUARTERFINAL PREDICTIONS=
#10 Petkovic d. #1 Wozniacki
#28 S.Williams d. #11 Jankovic
#3 Sharapova d. #5 Kvitova
#22 Lisicki d. #9 Stosur

=SEMIFINAL PREDICTIONS=
#28 S.Williams d. #10 Petkovic
#3 Sharapova d. #22 Lisicki

=FINAL PREDICTION=
#28 S.Williams d. #3 Sharapova

...earthquakes, hurricanes and Serena. Oh my! I'm locked-in on the Serena side of this equation, but I'm really feeling wishy-washy on the Sharapova half. A large part of me wants to go with a Kvitova-over-Sharapova QF pick, or Lisicki-over-Sharapova SF one. But I just wasn't able to pull the trigger on either one. And then I saw that SI.com's Jon Wertheim's picks for the SF on are exactly the same as mine, which makes me want to change something even more. If I'd looked at his picks before I made mine, I'd have gone with something else. Now, I feel like if I make an alteration it would virtually ASSURE that the original picks would be closer to the eventual reality. So I'm stuck with these picks, I guess. Of course...

"It ain't over 'til it's over." - Yogi Berra

Maybe Carl will have the opportunity to go down one of those other possible paths in Bare Bones Backspin?



...a few summers ago, Roger Federer ruled the Open, winning five straight titles in New York. The dominant reign ended in '09, and he hasn't looked particularly good on hard courts at all this year. Last summer, Rafael Nadal committed himself to completing a Career Grand Slam with a U.S. title, and pulled it off with ease. The Spaniard's game doesn't seem in nearly be in the condition to repeat. A pre-SF loss wouldn't be unexpected from either man, and even an earlier upset would be looked at as having been foreshadowed in recent months.

In their place at the top of the heap is recently-christened new world #1 Novak Djokovic, still in pursuit of the "best" season ever (he's 57-2), and looking for a third slam crown in 2011. But the Serb's shoulder injury in Cincinnati leaves something of a cloud of doubt over this chances here. He's still the favorite, but everyone's eyes will be looking to be very eagle-like when he hits the court, searching for signs that he might not be the odds-on favorite he looked to be two weeks ago. Other than the Big 3, the only other former Open champions in the draw are Andy Roddick (a 21st-seeded afterthought) and Juan Martin del Potro (who, after a strong '11 start to his comeback, has slowed a bit as the season has dragged on). The remaining past finalist in the draw with a chance to compete is Andy Murray.

So, in other words, if Djokovic is hampered in his Open quest, a rare breakthrough into the slam spotlight for a man from outside the dominant Big 3 circle could very well be about to happen.

=ROUND OF 16 PREDICTIONS=
#1 Djokovic d. #22 Dolgopolov
#7 Monfils d. #9 Berdych
#3 Federer d. #23 Stepanek
#11 Tsonga d. #8 Fish
#18 del Potro d. #28 Isner
#4 Murray d. (WC) Young
#5 Ferrer d. (WC) Benneteau
#2 Nadal d. Gulbis

=QUARTERFINAL PREDICTIONS=
#1 Djokovic d. #7 Monfils
#11 Tsonga d. #3 Federer
#4 Murray d. #18 del Potro
#5 Ferrer d. #2 Nadal

=SEMIFINAL PREDICTIONS=
#1 Djokovic d. #11 Tsonga
#4 Murray d. #5 Ferrer

=FINAL PREDICTION=
#1 Djokovic d. #4 Murray

...up until Djokovic's shoulder injury, especially with Nadal and Federer's spotty hard court results this summer, picking the Serb to win the Open seemed a pretty easy pick. It probably STILL is, but at least there's a question now. If the Serb were to not be physically up to things, I might take a stab with the winner of the Tsonga/Federer match being the ultimate champion. I just can't in good conscious pick Murray to win, though he has put up very good results in New York in the past. So, the Sharapova inpersonator it is.



**MOST SLAM #1 SEEDS - ACTIVE PLAYERS**
8...Serena Williams, USA
5...CAROLINE WOZNIACKI, DEN
3...Maria Sharapova, RUS
3...Dinara Safina, RUS
2...Ana Ivanovic, SRB
1...Kim Clijsters, BEL
1...Jelena Jankovic, SRB
1...Venus Williams, USA

**US OPEN TOP SEEDS**
[women]
2000 Martina Hingis, SUI
2001 Martina Hingis, SUI
2002 Serena Williams, USA
2003 Kim Clijsters, BEL
2004 Justine Henin-Hardenne, BEL
2005 Maria Sharapova, RUS
2006 Amelie Mauresmo, FRA
2007 Justine Henin, BEL
2008 Ana Ivanovic, SRB
2009 Dinara Safina, RUS
2010 Caroline Wozniacki, DEN
2011 Caroline Wozniacki, DEN
[men]
2000 Andre Agassi, USA
2001 Gustavo Kuerten, BRA
2002 Lleyton Hewitt, AUS
2003 Andre Agassi, USA
2004 Roger Federer, SUI
2005 Roger Federer, SUI
2006 Roger Federer, SUI
2007 Roger Federer, SUI
2008 Rafael Nadal, ESP
2009 Roger Federer, SUI
2010 Rafael Nadal, ESP
2011 Novak Djokovic, SRB

**US OPEN FINALS - IN 2011 DRAW**
4 - Serena Williams (3-1)
4 - Venus Williams (2-2)
2 - Svetlana Kuznetsova (1-1)
1 - Maria Sharapova (1-0)
1 - Jelena Jankovic (0-1)
1 - Caroline Wozniacki (0-1)
1 - Vera Zvonareva (0-1)

**LOW-SEEDED US OPEN SEMIFINALISTS - since 2000**
Wild Card - Kim Clijsters, 2009 (W)
Unseeded - Elena Dementieva, 2000
Unseeded - Yanina Wickmayer, 2009
#19 - Jelena Jankovic, 2006
#12 - Mary Pierce, 2005 (RU)
#12 - Venus Williams, 2007

**FIRST-TIME SLAM CHAMPS AT US OPEN**
[Open Era]
1968 Virginia Wade, GBR
1979 Tracy Austin, USA
1990 Gabriela Sabatini, ARG
1998 Lindsay Davenport, USA
1999 Serena Williams, USA
2004 Svetlana Kuznetsova, RUS
2005 Kim Clijsters, BEL

**EARLIEST EXITS BY #1 SEED AT US OPEN**
[Open Era]
2008 2nd Rd. - Ana Ivanovic lost to Julie Coin
1973 3rd Rd. - Billie Jean King lost to Julie Heldman
2009 3rd Rd. - Dinara Safina lost to Petra Kvitova

**RECENT US OPEN WOMEN'S SEMIFINALISTS**
2004: Svetlana Kuznetsova (W), Elena Dementieva (RU), Jennifer Capriati, Lindsay Davenport
2005: Kim Clijsters (W), Mary Pierce (RU), Elena Dementieva, Maria Sharapova
2006: Maria Sharapova (W), Justine Henin-Hardenne (RU), Jelena Jankovic, Amelie Mauresmo
2007: Justine Henin (W), Svetlana Kuznetsova (RU), Anna Chakvetadze, Venus Williams
2008: Serena Williams (W), Jelena Jankovic (RU), Elena Dementieva, Dinara Safina
2009: Kim Clijsters (W), Caroline Wozniacki (RU), Yanina Wickmayer, Serena Williams
2010: Kim Clijsters (W), Vera Zvonareva (RU), Venus Williams, Caroline Wozniacki

**U.S. OPEN TITLES - OPEN ERA**
[women]
6...Chris Evert, USA
5...Steffi Graf, GER
4...Martina Navratilova, USA
3...Kim Clijsters, BEL
3...Margaret Smith-Court, AUS
3...Billie Jean King, USA
3...Serena Williams, USA
2...Tracy Austin, USA
2...Justine Henin, BEL
2...Monica Seles, YUG
2...Venus Williams, USA
[men]
5...Jimmy Connors, USA
5...Roger Federer, SUI
5...Pete Sampras, USA
4...John McEnroe, USA
3...Ivan Lendl, CZE
2...Andre Agassi, USA
2...Stefan Edberg, SWE
2...Patrick Rafter, AUS

**RECENT US OPEN GIRLS FINALS**
2005 Victoria Azarenka/BLR def. Alexa Glatch/USA
2006 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova/RUS def. Tamira Paszek/AUT
2007 Kristina Kucova/SVK def. Urszula Radwanska/POL
2008 Coco Vandeweghe/USA def. Gabriela Paz/VEN
2009 Heather Watson/GBR def. Yana Buchina/RUS
2010 Daria Gavrilova/RUS def. Yulia Putintseva/RUS

**LOW-SEEDED U.S. OPEN CHAMPIONS - OPEN ERA**
unseeded/wild card - Kim Clijsters, BEL (2010)
#9 - Svetlana Kuznetsova, RUS (2004)
#7 - Serena Williams, USA (1999)
#6 - Virginia Wade, GBR (1968)

**MOST U.S. OPEN NIGHT SESSION WINS**
[women]
25...Venus Williams *
20...Serena Williams *
16...Martina Navratilova (undefeated)
14...Chris Evert (undefeated)
13...Maria Sharapova (undefeated) *
13...Jennifer Capriati
[men]
28...Andre Agassi
24...Jimmy Connors
20...Pete Sampras (undefeated)
17...Andy Roddick *
16...Roger Federer (undefated) *
16...John McEnroe
--
* - in 2011 draw

*U.S. OPEN SERIES WINNERS*
[WTA]
2004 Lindsay Davenport, USA
2005 Kim Cljisters, BEL *
2006 Ana Ivanovic, SRB
2007 Maria Sharapova, RUS
2008 Dinara Safina, RUS
2009 Elena Dementieva, RUS
2010 Caroline Wozniacki, DEN
2011 Serena Williams, USA
[ATP]
2004 Lleyton Hewitt, AUS
2005 Andy Roddick, USA
2006 Andy Roddick, USA
2007 Roger Federer, SUI *
2008 Rafael Nadal, ESP
2009 Sam Querrey, USA
2010 Andy Murray, GBR
2011 Mardy Fish, USA
--
* - won U.S. Open singles title




All for now. Day 1 awaits.

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