Bill Simons
New York
Andy Roddick reduced it to one word.
When I asked him what he thought of the US Open, he simply said, “Lights.”
Here in New York on opening night we see little of the gentle “G’day mate” friendliness of the Aussie Open. There are few hints of the springtime in Paris elegance that the French Open’s Sunday afternoon opener provides. As for class – forget it, buddy. The US Open has none of the refined heritage that Wimbledon’s Monday afternoon opener gives us. But New York – well, it’s New York. Big, brash, bold, bad-ass – and, of course, loud. Broadway, baby, Broadway.
And tonight the Open started where it left off last year. Never before has a single Slam given us such back-to-back blockbusters – the most tumultuous final in Slam history followed by the most anticipated opener ever, a face-off between the WTA’s two greatest show-stoppers, Serena and Sharapova.
Last year it was Williams vs. a young innocent – Naomi Osaka. The experts said the shy, soft-spoken 20-year-old would melt. Tonight we saw Serena vs. the savvy, been-there, done-that Maria Sharapova, who’s far more worldly than your average Euro-baseliner and has five Slams under her belt. During this era, tennis’ two grand divas have created more sparks than just about any other WTA duo.
They have much in common. They are the two toughest mental competitors in the WTA. Both have intense, driven fathers who left their homes for tennis-friendly Florida. Serena’s grandfather was a Louisiana sharecropper and her Dad said she would be No. 1.
Sharapova’s father came to America with $700 and said his daughter “was born to be a champion.” Sharapova’s ‘tudes are clear. She’s as icy as her Siberian heritage. And the tennis universe knows a thing or two about Serena’s volcanic intensity. Both stars seem to be in their twilight and both adore fashion. Serena brings it on the HSN and in fashion spreads that splash across trendy magazines. Sporting imaginative outfits is central to her provocative brand. Sharapova has a penchant for red and black. She favors Audrey Hepburn outfits and sparkling sequins. Long and elegant, at times she seems like a model with a killer backhand. Some have asked, “Did she come from central casting?”
Serena is different – powerful legs and broad shoulders, her physique has led to body shaming barbs. But she’s morphed those criticisms into a kind of crusade. It all seems to be a badge of honor. Maybe Serena’s mother Oracene put it best. She noted, “We’re all made different. We all have different looks. And if you really look at it, everybody’s beautiful. And one size don’t fit all.”
With Sharapova, you get a certain CEO sensibility. She runs a tight ship and during her 15-month drug suspension, she took classes at Harvard’s Business School. And, of course, in 2013 she created her own candy company – Sugarpova. But her relationship with Serena is sour. In her book, Unstoppable: My Life So Far, Sharapova wrote that after she beat Serena in the 2004 Wimbledon final, she was in the locker room and heard from Williams, “Guttural sobs, the sort that make you heave for air, the sort that scares you. It went on and on. I got out as quickly as I could…People often wonder why I have had so much trouble beating Serena; she’s owned me…People talk about Serena’s strength, her serve and confidence, how her particular game matches up to my particular game, and, sure there is truth to all of that; but, to me, the real answer was there, in this locker room, where I was changing and she was bawling. I think Serena hated me for being the skinny kid who beat her, against all odds, at Wimbledon…Not long after the tournament, I heard Serena told a friend ,who then told me, ‘I will never lose to that little bitch again.’”
Serena responded that it would have been “more shocking if I wasn’t in tears” given that it was the Wimbledon final. She added: “What happens [in the locker room] should definitely maybe stay there…I didn’t expect to be reading a book about me, that wasn’t necessarily true.” The two then exchanged dark comments about each other’s personal relationships. I
While it’s true that Maria won the most important match in their rivalry, that 2004 Wimbledon final, and she prevailed in a sense in their last match when Serena pulled out of their 2018 French Open match, their rivalry is one-sided. Serena had a 19-3 going into tonight’s battle.
Tonight the anticipation boiled over. The stadium was packed. There were two kings, Billie Jean and Regina. Two Baldwins, a GOAT contender, Rod Laver, an ironman, Iron Mike Tyson and Spike Lee. A tall ball boy with a yamaka on his head and a polo player on his back bent low. A fan’s T-shirt gave us a reminder of past trauma. It read, “I don’t cheat to win. I’d rather lose.”
Not surprisingly, the stadium was packed with eager fans. But the match was hardly packed with drama. Yes, it was loud, grunts pierced the night air. But we saw none of the fury and fright of Serena’s last match on Ashe. Tonight she was dialed in. Sharapova gets her attention. ESPN whimsically suggested that Serena had been preparing for tonight’s match since 2004.
Maria Sharapova once said that on clay she was “a cow on ice.” Wrong – she won two French Opens. Still, quickness in tennis is critical. Serena not only served with power and accuracy, she turned her most bitter foe into a yo-yo, running Maria corner to corner. Yes, there were hints of a real match. Sharapova’s deep backhand is as great as her serve is flawed. Her slow-twitch movement is apparent. We saw her dash. We saw her lunging, we saw her groundies fly and we saw her go down in 59 merciless minutes.
In the second set Maria did win seven of nine points and in the third game she gained three of the five break points she’d get. Pam Shriver said, “this set is two or three points from being close actually.” But actually the powerful, focused and all-business Serena stepped up and blasted an in-your-face, don’t-tread-on-me forehand winner. Williams gave us her first fist pump. Tonight Serena’s aggression was under control and in clear sight. Ump Carlos Ramos was nowhere to be seen. When asked about him in her post-match press conference she said, “Yeah, I don’t know who that is.”
What we know is that Serena gave a 6-1, 6-1 whipping to her foe. Never mind that just four months ago Sharapova, 32, had a shoulder procedure. Now the former No. 1 will be tumbling out of the top 100 and we were left with a match with lots of foam, but not much beer. The sizzle enticed us, the steak was bland. At times it was more interesting to listen to ESPN’s broadcasters debating which Mike Tyson commentary was more apropos: “How dare these guys insult me with their primitive skills. They are as good as dead” versus “Everyone has a Plan B until they get hit in the mouth.”
Tonight a great player got punched in the mouth. It was lights out for Maria.
