GUSSIE’S PICKS: The FHM Hot 100 Girls list isn’t the only pinup compilation to include sexy sports stars. In fact, the tradition goes back a long way. In the September 1957 issue of Sport, Gorgeous Guss
ie Moran (she of the risqué undies) handpicked “Baseball’s 10 Handsomest Men.” Moran’s picks? Jerry Coleman, Bob Friend, Eddie Mathews (“the Tyrone Power of baseball”), Jimmy Piersall (“great depth in his face”), Gino Cimoli, Gus Bell, Bobby Avila (“he makes you think of moonlit nights south of the border”), Wilmer Mizell, Ray Boone and Robin Roberts.
YA GOTTA BELIEVE: Dave Solomon called Melanie Oudin‘s run to the ’09 U.S. Open quarters “a Cinderella story, replete with Barbie doll tennis shoes of bright pink and yellow, bearing the inscription that America embraced: Believe.”
COFFEY BREAK: Of the likelihood that Oudin will make another run deep into the second week at the USO, the Daily News’ Wayne Coffey asserted, “There is as much chance of that happening as there is of Roger Clemens and Brian McNamee sharing a hug.”
BOOK OF JAMES: James Blake‘s mom, Betty, has authored a book titled “Mix it Up, Make it Nice: Secrets of a Tennis Mom.”
THE NUMBERS
35 minutes, 36 seconds: Time it took James Blake to dispatch Spain’s Pere Riba 6-0, 6-1 in the first round in New Haven — the fastest win of Blake’s career.
5: Successive victories for the resurgent Mardy Fish against top-10 opponents until the 28-year-old fell to Roger Federer in the Cincinnati final.
QUOTEBOOK
“Everybody only has one Cinderella story, and last year was mine.” — Melanie Oudin
“I’m surprised I could get a blister from sitting on my ass for two days.” — Semifinalist Victoria Azarenka, who fought back tears after withdrawing from the rain-delayed Rogers Cup due to injury
“I’ve wanted to play in Grand Slams since I was little. I wanted to wear tennis dresses that Serena and Venus wore.” — 15-year-old American Madison Keys, ranked No. 657 in the world
“Something changed because people come to me [and] say, ‘Thanks, you give me beautiful emotions.’ This is part I like more than they could understand.” — Italy’s Francesca Schiavone reflecting on life after her Roland Garros triumph
“The greatest of all time.” — Mardy Fish on Roger Federer
