DIAL M FOR MAGNIFICENT
CAROLINA ON HIS MIND: After winning back-to-back titles in Winston-Salem in his native North Carolina, John Isner said he would favor having all of the ATP’s tournaments in Winston-Salem.
IF I DON’T MIND SAYING SO MYSELF: Sloane Stephens told Ben Rothenberg, “I’m really energetic, and I’m fun. And I’m cute, and the U.S. Open is cute, so it all works out.”
WHAT A CHARMER: Sixteen-year-old Victoria Duval may have lost in straight sets to Kim Clijsters, but her bubbly teen joy and innocence won our hearts.
LIKE PLAYING YOUR FIRST PIANO RECITAL AT CARNIEGE HALL: It just seemed unfair that teen Duval – who got into the U.S. Open by winning the Girls 18s National Championships – played her first ever circuit match on Arthur Ashe Stadium on the glitz-heavy opening night against the beloved Kim Clijsters, who has four Slam trophies on her mantle. Freshly minted wannabe vs. exiting veteran: if ever there ever has been a match of two ships going in different directions, this was it.
NOT EXACTLY IN LOVE WITH THE BIG APPLE: Isner didn’t seem bothered by his late arrival in New York due to the title win at Winston-Salem. He confided, “I got here just today … I prefer not to be here that much.”
SIGN THIS DUDE UP FOR AN INTRO TO ART HISTORY CLASS: Isner has struggled in Slams. So when he was asked about the art of putting seven consecutive wins together, he said, “I don’t really know much about that art.”
DIAL M FOR MURDER: Last year, the U.S. Open began with a hurricane and ended with a couple of storms: i.e., another meltdown from Serena, who told an ump she was unattractive inside, and a downpour which forced the men’s final to be played on Monday. This year, things began with some problematic signs. It’s not just that Rafa Nadal won’t be playing, and that after ten days of good weather, rains again delayed play. A 70-year California lineswoman was arrested on the suspicion of beating her husband to death with a coffee mug, and just three days before the start of the Open, there was a fatal mass shooting at the Empire State Building.
THE IMPERFECTION OF ANDY RODDICK AND OTHER SENTIENT BEINGS: Justin Gimelstob told writer Harvey Araton that Roddick hasn’t gotten his full due. “To his peers, Andy has been someone to admire – winning the U.S. Open, a Davis Cup title and being No. 1. For an American kid, that’s pretty much the tennis trifecta. Has Andy always treated people the right way? No, he hasn’t. Is Andy perfect? No, he isn’t. When people see players complain on court, they are usually seeing the worst of us, and it gets real easy from the broadcast booth … to go with the negative. But anyone who says that Andy isn’t a good guy or has been an underachiever doesn’t know him or tennis.”
KIM SAYS SERENA IS THE BEST: For a while now, John McEnroe has said that Serena Williams is the best player of all time. Mary Carillo contends, “When Serena is fit, when she’s committed, when she wants something, nothing and nobody can stop her.” Now Clijsters has joined the bandwagon (never mind Martina Navratilova or Steffi Graf with her 22 Slam titles). The retiring Belgian star said, “To me, Serena is the best ever just because physically she just stands out. When she’s in good shape, she just stands out tremendously. She’s fast, she’s strong, she has a very good eye. The combination of that is, what we have seen over the last few months, [and that] is the best player ever.”
AHH SERENA – WILLIAMS SPICIEST U.S. OPEN ZINGERS: Whether it’s Clijsters saying Serena is the best, or James Blake waxing on about her mental toughness, Williams is for good reason drawing rave reviews these days. She also has delivered some of the spiciest quotes in the history of the U.S. Open. Never mind Jimmy Connors telling the chair umpire, “You are an abortion.” Here are some of Williams’ most unvarnished U.S. Open zingers.
* In 2004, during her controversial match with Jennifer Capriati, Serena hollered, “No, no, no, no, no. That was my point! What are you talking about? What’s going on? Excuse me? That ball was so in. What the heck is this?”
* In her 2009 semi against Clijsters, when she was called for a foot fault, she told the lineswoman, “I swear to God I’m [expletive] going to take this [expletive] ball and shove it down your [expletive] throat, you hear that? I swear to God.”
* After that match, she insisted, “I didn’t threaten [to kill the lineswoman.] I don’t remember anymore, to be honest. I was in the moment.”
* In the 2011 final against Sam Stosur, she was called for hindrance when she called out, “Come on!” She then warned the official, “If you ever see me walking down the hall, look the other way. You’re out of control. You’re a hater and you’re unattractive inside.”
JUST WONDERING: Last year’s Open may be remembered for two memorable shots. Serena Williams came out flat and was getting crushed by Sam Stosur when she blasted what seemed like a monstrous forehand winner. It appeared to perhaps be a game changer. But she was called for “hindrance” and her comeback fizzled. And then there was the fierce forehand return of serve winner Djokovic hit when he was down match point to Federer. So will this year’s Open also produce a couple of memorable shots?
THE POWER OF (NOT SO) POSITIVE THINKING: After winning her morning match, defending Champion Sam Stosur was reminded by a reporter that, “Many players say the first round is always a little bit spooky.” The reporter continued, asking: “Did you ever think, Oh, my gosh, what if I go out there and bomb and I’m out by 1:00 in the afternoon?”
THANKS ANYWAY: Alex Bogomolov Jr. agreed to the USTA’s request that he repay them $75,000 when he changed his nationality from American to Russian for the chance to play Davis Cup. However, he did so reluctantly. “Nobody (fellow players) thought it was right for me to give back any money,” he said.
SAWED OFF: USA Today reported that Vlade Divac, president of the Serbian Olympic Committee president and former NBA player, said he witnessed a distraught Novak Djokovic sawing the racquets he used in losing the two matches that dropped him out of medal contention. But it has been said that the comment was made in jest.
ROOF UPDATE: USTA officials were quoted in the Wall Street Journal saying they are (still) continuing to explore ways to build a stadium at the U.S. Open. Actually, make that two. At Arthur Ashe Stadium, the plan is to replace part of the upper deck with lightweight materials so a roof wouldn’t sink it further into the ash landfill on which it is built. Once that technology is figured out, the USTA plans to add a roof over a redesigned Louis Armstrong Stadium. “Technology has not quite gotten us there, but we are very encouraged by where we’re going, so much so that we do believe that we will get there,” said Gordon Smith, the USTA’s chief operating officer. “We cannot tell you when that will be.”One thing that is certain is that beginning in 2013, men and women will both get a day off between the singles semis and final. This is already the case at the other three Grand Slams.
STOSUR – LIKE LOSING YOUR PERFECT GAME IN THE SEVENTH INNING: In her first-round win over Petra Martic, Sam Stosur was up 4-0, 40-0 and was on her way to a golden set (i.e. winning six games without losing a point.) Stosur said, “It pops into your head and you think, ‘Oh, that would be cool.’” Then the Aussie hit a double-fault.
SAM I AM: Stosur enjoys being called Sam. “I guess over the course of my life, Samantha got shortened to Sam. The one person that always called me Samantha was my grandfather,” she said. “It’s good. You certainly don’t get confused in the locker room. You hear your name and you know it’s about you.”
YOU COULD SAY THAT: Chris Evert asked Sam Stosur, “Does winning the first 19 points clarify it that you got off to a great start?
HEY JACQUES, IS THE OLYMPICS REALLY A SLAM? Jacques Rogge, the head of the IOC, said “It was good to see [Andy] Murray win his first major.”
SAY THAT AGAIN: Serena told Hannah Storm, “I’m just an average individual”
