Bill Simons
ANDY MURRAY – TIDY AND TERRIFIC: Before that imposing troika, the Big Three, ruled tennis, there were the Big Four. Three or four years ago, Andy Murray was mentioned in the same breath as Roger, Rafa and Nole. After all, he’d won three Slams, a record two Olympic medals, and twice led Britain to Davis Cup titles.
Then disaster struck. The newly minted knight endured not one but two hip surgeries and assorted other setbacks. Britain’s greatest modern athlete could have walked away. In 2016 he was No. 1, both in the rankings and in the hearts of his sometimes crusty countrymen. Even a storied hill, Wimbledon’s Murray Mount, bore his name.
But Murray’s love of his sport is as deep as one of the storied lochs in his homeland.
Once seen as a skinny Scottish lad who was best known for his weepy and poignant 2012 Wimbledon runner-up speech, he’s recently been heralded as a braveheart who’s fashioned one of the most relentless comebacks in tennis history. Last week, tennis’ other great Andy, Mr. Roddick, voiced a conventional wisdom: “Murray takes you into a gutter with him and rolls you around for a little bit. I never in my life have thought I would see him move the way he was moving today…He doesn’t need the titles, he doesn’t need the money, he’s here alone…He’s just out here grinding, anticipating, showing his tennis IQ. I like seeing him back in full flight…I love the grittiness, I love the IQ. He never once had the biggest shot on court…It’s really fun to see him back.”
But Andy’s matches are rarely fun. He grumbles, he mutters, he stretches. Often off-balance, he digs and lumbers – his matches are far from pretty. They resemble a Marine boot camp. He barks, but he never gives up. Like a couple of other famous fighters, Jimmy Connors and Rafa Nadal, Andy uses will, intensity and determination as weapons more than almost any other ATP warrior.
Today, at the beginning of his first-round match against No. 49 Yoshihito Nishioka, he lurched and wavered. He grimaced, he snarled, he overhit and was out of sorts. The great Scot went down two sets and a break to Japan’s swift, efficient 24-year-old veteran. He faced a match point in the fourth set.
“Oh well,” thought sympathetic observers, “Even in defeat, we’ll still honor this noble fellow. He gave us so much.”
While American fans say, “Never count out a Williams,” stiff-upper-lip Brits know well not to give up on Sir Andy. Their hero stormed back. He explained that he was pacing himself, but then he had to “put the afterburners on…I had to start striking the ball a little better.”
Today Murray prevailed in a 4:39 marathon, 4-6, 4-6, 7-6, 7-6, 6-4 in his longest five-set US Open win since he beat Novak Djokovic to claim the 2012 title. Drained and limping, he threw his wristband to the ground and stared to the sky in exhaustion. Although in desperate need of an ice bath and a massage, the often thoughtful Murray carefully tidied up the courtside mess he’d made. Rennae Stubbs quipped, “Your mum would be proud of you. You cleaned up after yourself.”
Then again, not only is Judy Murray proud of her son, so is Scotland, Britain and much of the known tennis universe, including Andy’s former doubles partner, Serena Williams, who told Inside Tennis, “When he was down in the third set, I was just rooting for him so hard…I love his grit. I’ve always loved that. I always said he reminds me a lot of myself…I know what it’s like to be down, I know what it’s like to be injured, I know what it’s like to be counted out.”
Murray said in his press conference he’d been playing in pain for four years, but “I am not sitting here with my hip throbbing and aching. I’ll be able to sleep fine tonight…When I got back to the locker room, I looked at my phone and saw the messages from family and friends…They’re the people that have seen me go through everything…I don’t know how many of us actually believed I’d be back.”
NAGAL WINS (THIS IS NOT A TYPO): Rafa Nadal may be resting in Spain but India’s Sumit Nagal downed American Bradley Klahn today.
PLAYERS JUST WANT TO BE HEARD: Vasek Pospisil said the new Professional Tennis Players Association he heads with Novak Djokovic is “not that big a deal.” He asserted that the group wants to give the ATP management a chance and doesn’t want to be disruptive. But he contended that in the current structure, “The players are completely powerless…We just want to have a voice.”
Vasek added that the controversial Justin Gimelstob was not involved and, even though women were not included in the PTPA, it was not a male vs. female situation.
The Canadian said the group’s intentions have been widely misunderstood by the media. He added that the PTPA had not been in touch with Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal, who opposed the initiative. The Canadian veteran and activist added that Rafa and Roger “must have the wrong idea. It’s unfortunate they’re not here. It’s not easy to get them on the phone…They have a lot of power.” Pospisil added that the PTPA and the ATP can coexist.
A GREAT PLAYER BUT NOT A GREAT HISTORIAN: After her two-set win today over Kristie Ahn, Serena Williams joked that she hadn’t won a straight-set victory since the 1990s. Actually, it’s only been 223 days.
NO RESPECT FOR MOTHER: Kim Clijsters, who’s won four Slams and has three children, was put out on Court 11. Some might shout, “What an insult!” Then again, Kim rarely complains, and, come to think of it, what difference does it really make, in a tournament without fans? Sadly for many, Kim and another vastly popular icon, Venus Williams, fell in their opening matches.
SERENA’S RECORD: Arguably the biggest story in tennis is whether Serena will break Margaret Court’s record of 24 Slams, but today, when she scored her 20th consecutive US Open first-round win, she broke Chris Evert’s record of 101 Open wins. Williams wasn’t flawless – she had to come back in both sets. She later confided that she told herself, “Okay, Serena, I just have to get my Serena focus back.” BTW: Serena is one of an incredible nine mothers who entered the Open, including Clijsters, Vika Azarenka and Vera Zvonareva.
QUOTEBOOK:
“I’ve been definitely proudly stuck here, [a] party of one.” – Serena Williams, the winner of 23 Slams, on failing to win any of the last eight Grand Slams she’s played
“When he sees tennis courts or tennis on TV, he says, ‘Mama, Mama.’” – Vika Azarenka, on her son Leo realizing his mom is a big deal
FRESH SOCK: Few have had more up-and-down careers than Jack Sock, who won the Paris Masters in 2017 and joined Mike Bryan to win the 2018 Wimbledon and US Open doubles titles. But, in large part due to injuries, his singles play faltered and he completely lost his ranking. A wildcard in this year’s Open, he almost lost Monday night to Pablo Cuevas. The Uruguayan was serving for the match before Sock came back to win his first Slam match since the 2018 US Open.
TAYLOR’S THE NAME: There are already a couple of American Taylors in tennis. Fritz Taylor and Taylor Townsend appeal. Monday night Naomi Osaka brought an altogether different Taylor to the tennis spotlight. She wore a mask featuring the name of Breonna Taylor, the Kentucky health worker who was killed in her bed. She explained, “I just want to spread awareness…Maybe there is someone who doesn’t know Taylor’s story. Maybe they’ll Google it…We’re heading towards a great direction. There are a lot of players who are supporting it.”
OH, CANADA! Canadians have reached the finals of the last two big tournaments in New York. Bianca Andreescu is the defending US Open champ and Milos Raonic reached the finals of this year’s Western and Southern Open. Plus Canada also reached the finals of last year’s Davis Cup. Raonic and young Denis Shapovalov and Felix Auger-Aliassime are through to the second round.
GO FIGURE: Seven American women got wildcards. Three are left, CiCi Bellis, Sachia Vickery and Katrina Scott.
RUUD AWAKENING: NorCal’s Mackie McDonald, who played brilliantly for UCLA and who’s now trying to come back after leg surgery, was cruising, up two sets and a break to Christian Ruud. But the Norwegian showed little Christian mercy. He sprinted back for a 4-6, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 score.
TALL TREE REPORT: Almost 14’ of tennis competitors (that would be 6’10” John Isner and 6’11” Reilly Opelka) fell within an hour Monday night. Other vertically enhanced players such as 6’11” Ivo Karlovic, 6’8” Kevin Anderson and 6’6” Sam Querrey also fell, while 6’6” Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev triumphed.
SERENA’S ROAD TO THE FINAL: To gain the Open title, Williams might not only have to down her next foe, Russian Margarita Gasparyan, but also possibly Sloane Stephens, Maria Sakkari, Madison Keys, Sofia Kenin and Karolina Pliskova.
KONTA’S COVID CONFUSION: Brit Jo Konta joyfully confessed, “I have no idea what day it is anymore. I have no idea what tournament I’m playing. I have no idea what round it is. It’s very much like Groundhog Day. But what I do know is that I get a chance to play another match tomorrow, and I’m really grateful for that.”
A SWEET, KIND WOMAN: Carla Suarez Navarro, 31, announced that she has early stage Hodgkin’s lymphoma and will be having chemotherapy for the next six months. The seven-time Slam quarterfinalist and former No. 6, was a quiet, popular figure on the tour. Her announcement brought to mind the recent cancer battles of Francesca Schiavone and Nicole Gibbs. Garbine Muguruza said, “Carla is such a nice woman. So sweet, so kind, so humble. When these things happen to good people, I feel so sad. I for sure will dedicate this win to her. I want her to know we are behind her. We shared a decade of emotion. It’s a shock to me.”
A CAUTIONARY DIALOGUE: At crunch time during Andy Murray’s marathon with Yoshihito Nishioka, Cliff Drysdale asked Darren Cahill, “If you were coaching Andy Murray and you had the opportunity to say to him ‘Now go for it,’ or ‘Play it safe,’ what would you say?” The tactful Aussie replied, “I’d be too scared to speak to him, quite honestly.”
CICI’S BACK: After four years and four surgeries, CiCi Bellis returned to the US Open and won her first-round match. She said, “It’s super special.” This was in spite of losing a first-set tiebreak 13-15 to Tamara Korpatsch. Then again, CiCi knows a thing or two about comebacks. Rennae Stubbs said, “If ever there is a kid who can inspire, it’s CiCi.” Wednesday she’ll face her friend and fellow American Jen Brady.
AUSTRALIA – HAPPY BUT SAFE: Tennis is already wondering what the Australian Open will be like in January. Their CEO Craig Tiley sent out a message saying, “While we are known as the Happy Slam, in 2021, it’s going to be the very safe and happy Slam. We’ll continue to ensure you have the ‘Wow’ experiences. All the top players will be here, but we may have limited fans.”
