Showtime at the U.S. Open!

Has this U.S. Open been spectacular enough for everyone?

We have already had several five-set thrillers on the men's side. We have seen some young guns making noise in the first week. We have witnessed (and still witnessing) some older guys raising eyebrows. We have seen Justine Henin come out on top of another clash with Serena Williams. We have laughed watching the hilarious American Express commercial featuring John McEnroe with the 1985 U.S. Open umpire who says the former player's name with such bitterness that even though they aired the commercial over a hundred times, it's worth seeing it again just to see the umpire's disgusted face and hear him spit out "McEnroe."

Yet, it seems that we are just getting started with the show. One look at both draws and you can't help but get excited about some of the upcoming matches and some of the possible semifinals and finals matches.

At the time of the article, Justine Henin is the only one in the semifinals. She will play the winner of Jelena Jankovic vs. Venus Williams. Unless it takes place at Wimbledon or U.S. Open, it would be a pick. But at the U.S. Open, the edge goes to Venus. Again, many will root for Venus not necessarily because they want to see her beat Jankovic, but rather for the potential thrill of seeing Henin and Venus step on the Arthur Ashe stadium. My pick: Venus Williams defeats Jelena Jankovic.

At the bottom of the draw, the only player with any "big-time" experience is the 2004 U.S. Open winner Svetlana Kuznetsova. She is facing a virtual unknown for most casual tennis fans, the Hungarian Agnes Szavay. Those of us who follow the game closely will know that the 18-year old Szavay is one of the fastest rising stars in the WTA arena. What started as a year during which Szavay was having to play qualifying rounds to get into tournaments, has turned into a season in which Szavay won her first title, and just reached the finals of New Haven tournament prior to the U.S. Open.

I am not praising Szavay just because of her results. I have watched Szavay live in Palermo on her way to winning her first title, and I can tell you that she has one of the best down-the-line backhands on the tour. Despite Kuznetsova's direct win over Szavay 10 days ago in new Haven finals, I will use my upset pick here and predict Szavay to get her revenge against Kuznetsova.

Last quarterfinal match is between Anna Chakvetadze and Shahar Peer. Your pick is as good as mine. Chakvetadze is more athletic, Peer is a more fierce fighter. Barring any emotional crisis, my pick is Chakvetadze

On the men's side, I dare anyone to pick Andy Roddick against Roger Federer. While Roddick seems to have the better serve, somehow Federer ends up with more aces when they play, and Federer seems to pick Roddick's serve so well that he magically appears ready to return it no matter where in the service box Roddick places his big boom. Why am I focusing so much on the serve for analysis? As one commercial would say, for everything else, there is Federer! If Roddick cannot profit from his serve, expect Federer to win his 10th in a row against Roddick.

The hardest match to pick is the encounter between Nikolay Davydenko and Tommy Haas. They only played three times, surprisingly all of them in Slams. The two most recent ones went five sets. The 2006 U.S. Open clash went to Davydenko, the 2007 Australian Open thriller went to Haas. They have similar game plans, they are both having a good season, and they will both fight until the bitter end. Tommy Haas is the veteran, three years older than Davydenko at 29. Only because he had already had tough five-set matches against Sebastien Grosjean and James Blake, I am going to pick Davydenko, especially if the match goes to the distance.

The "under-the-radar" award of the tournament must go to Carlos Moya. I realize that some of you will point out Juan Ignacio Chela. Chela is indeed the bigger surprise, but for someone who has won two Slams, who has experienced several top-10 finishes over the years and who is having another fine season, Carlos Moya seems to attract the attention of nobody except his quarterfinal opponent, Novak Djokovic. Did I mention that Moya already beat Djokovic twice this year? I know Djokovic is now considered the only worthy opponent against the top two heavyweights in the ATP tour. Nevertheless, I am using my upset pick on the men's side right here: Carlos Moya over Novak Djokovic.

Get ready for another baseline duel between David Ferrer and Juan Ignacio Chela. Who would have guessed that one of these two players would be in the semis? Just when you thought nothing could top the thrilling matches on the men's side until Tuesday, Ferrer came through against Nadal with the most impressive baseline display of this year's U.S. Open. He basically ran the best counterpuncher in the game off the court.

The question of the day in this quarterfinal match is how much mileage do these guys have left in them. They both have had exhausting wins. Furthermore, will whoever wins have any gas left in the tank for the semis? I am expecting a let-down from Ferrer. My pick is Chela, especially if he wins the first set. I am sure the tournament organizers would prefer Ferrer, who has won many fans with his soldier-like effort against Nadal.

Let's hear your thoughts and predictions in the comments section below. I am ready to take it on the chin on my erroneous picks, and I will post my picks later for the next rounds, as well as respond to your comments. Of course, you could choose to "walk the walk" and post your picks along with mine. On with the show!