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The Reuters global sports blog
Looking back at the Shanghai Masters
The Shanghai Masters Series is the first big event to take place after the US Open. The top four players in the world were all there; Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Andy Murray. Going into the tournament, Nadal had won in Tokyo and Djokovic won in Beijing the week before. Federer on the other hand chose to practice in Dubai for two weeks with British Junior, Ashley Hewitt, which came about because Roger Federer’s coach, Paul Annacone, used to be in charge of men’s tennis in Britain and previously worked with Ashley. What an amazing experience for him. The work with Paul is starting to pay off for Federer, his forehand is looking better and he is willing to come forward more which is a good sign.
The first major shock of the week was Rafael Nadal losing to Jurgen Melzer in the 3rd round. Melzer played the match of his life and won 6-3 in the third set. This has been a breakthrough year for Melzer, the Austrian Number 1; he reached his first Grand Slam semi-final in Paris, won the Wimbledon men’s doubles title, and is currently number 11 in the race for London. Unfortunately for Melzer he lost in the next round to Juan Monaco. Sometimes after a great win you have a dip in form and lose the next match, and that’s what happened to Melzer in the quarter-finals.
Murray, who was in the same half of the draw as Nadal had been impressive all week, especially in his quarter-final match against Jo-Wilfred Tsonga. He won 6–2 6-2 and did not drop a set going into the semi-finals. Murray continued his great form and beat Monaco easily to make the finals. It is great to see him playing good tennis again after the disappointment of the US Open.
Novak Djokovic continued his brilliant form from the US Open and is looking like the real deal again. He looks like the player who won the Australian Open in 2008. People in the tennis world are starting to talk about Djokovic possibly being a World Number 1 again.
Winds of change at the Davis Cup
The 2010 US Open was a very challenging tournament for all the players this year because of the weather conditions. Players had to deal with a heat wave for the first three days with temperatures well over 100 degrees. Then the mercury dropped into the mid 80s and during the final week dropped to the mid 70’s. With the weather being so hot for the first three days, the players needed to make sure they took shade, ice towels, electrolyte drinks and consumed bananas on court to get potassium into their body. There was a real threat of players cramping with such temperatures. Hydration and prevention were key.
Extremely hot weather favors the more aggressive players and the ones who are in phenomenal shape. Points are quicker as the ball travels through the air faster due to the extreme temperatures. The more the temperature dropped the more it helped baseline players. But for all the players it becomes less physically demanding. There were also heavy winds in these championships which made it very difficult. The top players hate it because it is more of an equalizer for the lesser player because of the unpredictability of the ball moving through the air.
U.S. Open final: Nadal beats Djokovic – how it happened
Rafa Nadal beat Novak Djokovic in four sets to win the U.S. Open title for the first time and complete the career grand slam, only the seventh man to do it. Here’s how it happened.
U.S. Open: Day Five
By Helen Cook
What a week! And now the players are facing a long rally with Mother Nature in the shape of Hurricane Earl - which was the size of a small country earlier this week.
Aside from the smashing tennis, the weather – come rain or shine – has had everyone chatting and the umbrellas are now out for the lashings of rain about to come crashing down on Flushing Meadows.
U.S. Open: Day Three
By Helen Cook and Josh Hargreaves
Earlier in the day tournament talk swirled around the moment Victoria Azarenka collapsed in a heap on court under the searing sun at just 11:30 a.m., but the heat took a back seat in the evening matches when the best American hopeful in the men’s draw Andy Roddick stumbled to a bad-tempered second round exit.
Roddick, who was called for a foot-fault in the third set, went off on both the lineswomen and the chair umpire, with his best line being, “What is this, call 1-800-RENT-A-REF?”
U.S. Open: Day Two
By Helen Cook and Josh Hargreaves
It was a battle of the sweat on court during day two – even the fans gave up and went in search of shade.
There was a lot of tired screams and exhausted slumps in chairs as the 95 degree heat hit the courts hard. The baking got so intense at Flushing Meadows the tournament referee had to invoke the Extreme Weather Policy for the women’s matches. Even Jelena Jankovic resorted to an ice pack on top of her head during one break.
From the baseline: Tricky shot
Trick shots are nothing new for five-time U.S. Open champ Roger Federer.
With five former champs seeing action on day one, it was a spectacular between the legs shot during the second set of his victory over Argentine baseliner Brian Dabul that will dominate talk around the water cooler this morning.
Rusedski predicts an unpredictable US Open
The 2010 US Open is going to be very interesting and unpredictable! This summer on the hard courts Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Mardy Fish, David Nalbandian and Sam Querrey have all won titles. Rafael Nadal is seeded number 1 at the tournament but has not adjusted well enough to the hard courts and unfortunately I don’t believe he will win the title. My prediction is that he will have a run but will still miss out on the one slam that eludes him. Federer goes in as favorite after his victory in Cincinnati and wants to prove to everyone that he is still a major force and can still win slams. Murray will be second favorite because in Toronto he was superb and if he can play attacking and aggressive tennis throughout the fortnight, he has a real chance to win his first grand slam title.
Fish has had a great summer winning in Newport and Atlanta and reaching the finals of Cincinnati. I see him getting to the quarters if the draw works out well. He just doesn’t have enough against the big guys in a three out of five set match. Nalbandian will be a dark horse and I’m guessing no one will want to play him. He is one of the best strikers of the ball and has a brilliant return of serve; he could cause a major upset at this US Open. Querrey won in LA this year and saved a match point against Murray in the finals. With his serve and aggressive baseline game he has a chance to have his best grand slam finish but in my opinion, he will not win.
Rusedski reflects on Cincinnati results
The Cincinnati Masters Series was the last big event before the US Open begins. It is closer to conditions in New York than those in Toronto, but slightly hotter than New York. The ball traveled even faster through the air because of the climate.
Andy Roddick was back in action after having complained about being lethargic in Washington. Having withdrawn from the Toronto tournament, Roddick was out of the Top 10. However, if he got to the semi-finals or better he would make his way back in the top 10. It is the first time since the rankings have started that an American has not been in the Top 10. There were quite a few interesting stories this week: Could Roger Federer defend his title? Would Nadal’s form improve from Toronto? Could Murray keep the aggressive play up and continue the role? Would there be any big shocks?
Rusedski makes his US Open picks
The Toronto Masters Series has been very interesting this year for so many reasons. David Nalbandian will be a dark horse for the US open and none of the top men will want to play him. Andy Murray looked impressive all week serving well and taking the ball early using the width on the court and hitting his forehand well. He looks in the form that took him to the Australian Open final at the beginning of the year. Murray was sensational in the quarter-final against Nalbandian and even better against Rafael Nadal in the semis.
Roger Federer, on the other hand, was building up his form nicely this week. His first big match was against Tomas Berdych in the quarters, it was a rematch of the Wimbledon quarter-final. Federer won, 7-6 in the third. This is a very important time for Federer, he needs to get back to his winning ways and this surface probably is best as the court gives him a little extra zip, because of the heat and the speed of the ball. He is also making a fashion statement this week, wearing pink and so is Nadal. Not sure on the pink?!
