I'm still in shock. I'm not exactly sure what I just saw yesterday. For the first time in my writing years, the U.S. Open blew up on one day. I probably could have predicted one or two of the upsets, but I don't think anyone would have expected the men's and women's draw to have a day and night like Saturday.
If you are an Andy Roddick fan, you may as well stay in bed. I'm sure he is. The current reigning American men's player fell in an epic battle to the rising star John Isner. Not exactly like watching Andy and Roger Federer in the Wimbledon final this year, but darn close.
Statistically, Roddick was the better player, winning more points, having a higher first serve percentage, winning more points on first serve, winning more receiving points, and even converting more break points. Looking at the match stats, you would have thought that Roddick was the winner. What it all came down to was that Isner played better hard court tennis when it counted. The telling statistic is that Isner won nearly double the net approaches.
Isner winning net approaches is definitely not a surprise, at just under seven feet tall, he makes Roddick look like an average human instead of the tennis giant he is. Isner matched Roddick stroke for stroke, and if anything, it seemed like he knew this was his day. Isner pounded 38 aces and dominated the net, as a tall man with the wingspan of a 747 should. Roddick said it best after the match last night when he said, "You can't teach 6-9."
So Roddick's run ends. Isner continues on into the second week. Can he now be the first U.S. men's player to win the title since Roddick in 2003? Maybe.
James Blake fell in three sets to Tommy Robredo. Not quite the exciting shocker of Isner, but maybe more profound. Blake is always the sentimental favorite here in NYC, being home-grown, and falling to Robredo handily in three sets doesn't sit well. Blake was understatedly out-classed all match, being dominated on his home hard court by a clay court specialist. Blake had a terrible service day. With only 49% of his first serves going in, you knew it wasn't going to be easy or pretty. And it wasn't.
Tommy Haas fell to Spaniard Fernando Verdasco Saturday, as well. While Verdasco is the higher seed, hard courts favor Haas and he has had quite a good year coming into the Open. Haas played valiantly for five sets, but ultimately it wasn't in the cards for him, either. Verdasco and Haas were nearly even in every category in the match except one. Verdasco won.
Haas has been a continuing story on the ATP men's tour, having been injured a few years back, then on the verge of coming back, his parents were in a serious accident. Haas took time off the tour to nurse them back to health, showing that he is an amazing person and quite selfless. He has not quite hit the top form he showed earlier in his career, but of late, he has become the one player on the men's tour you cannot count out. Of course, he is out of here now.
Roger Federer didn't look too good, either. No one expected him to lose, and he didn't. I'm not sure that they expected the four sets of tennis, though. Lleyton Hewitt is still the scrappy shot maker he was when he won here in Flushing Meadows in 2001 and it looked like he could be champion again, at least for a couple of sets. Roger has looked human lately, which may provide for some more interesting results as we reach the second week.
Not surprisingly, the season's most predictable player is again running strong. Swede Robin Soderling continues to have a season to remember, making it easily into the second week of the Open gliding past the other U.S. future star, Sam Querrey in four workmen-like sets. While not exactly Bjorn Borg, Soderling has shown that Swedish tennis did not begin and end with Borg. Soderling next will get a shot at Nikolay Davydenko and is a good bet to get to the quarterfinals.
This week, I said goodbye to Marat Safin. Yesterday, I said goodbye to sister Dinara Safina. Safina came in as the number one seed and this was her tournament to lose. And she did. Having struggled through all of her matches to get to Saturday, Safina fell to unknown Petra Kvitova of Czechoslovakia. Wasn't nearly as close as the scores would show. Kvitova hit five times more winners, played the clutch points better, and handled the pressure like a tour champion. Dinara faded into the cloud that has surrounded her tennis family.
Dinara's loss opens the top half of the women's draw up for the tournament's biggest surprise, American teen sensation Melanie Oudin. Oudin survived her match with Maria Sharapova, playing consistent tennis that enabled her to take the three-set stunner over Maria in what looked like to be her full return to form and top-tier tennis. Sharapova has not yet fully regained the form she had prior to her shoulder injury. Oudin managed to stay in the match and wound up the benefactor of Sharapova's spotty play. With that, Oudin sits in a top half of the round of 16 with only her next opponent, Nadia Petrova, as her clearest challenger to the semis.
So now I have to go take a rest. I'll be spending most of the day in Arthur Ashe Stadium, waiting to see what happens next. I'm rooting for you, Kim Clijsters. Heck, after what has happened so far, nothing would surprise me.
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