Inside the Open – Last Of The American Men Go Down and More

Written by: Staff on 10th September 2011

Inside the Open - Last Of The American Men Go Down and More

Andy Roddick of the US hits a return to Rafael Nadal of Spain during their Quarterfinals round match on the twelfth day of the 2011 US Open Tennis Championship at the USTA National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, New York, USA 09 September 2011. The US Open has been extended due to weather for the fourth year in a row and the men's final will now be played on 12 September 2011. EPA/JOHN G. MABANGLO |

Inside the Open

LAST OF THE AMERICAN MEN GO DOWN: Seeded in the 20s, Americans Andy Roddick (No. 21) and John Isner (No. 28) finally met their match Friday in the quarterfinals at the Open against the No. 2 and 4 seeds Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray, respectively.

And for the second time this year, the top four seeded men have advanced to the semifinals at a Grand Slam event.

Nadal was downright nasty in his 6-2, 6-1, 6-3 win against the 2003 Open champion Roddick, the last American male to win here. The Spaniard played the part of the dominating defending champion yet once again and is the only man left in the tournament to have not dropped a set in five matches.

“They’re pretty firmly the best players in the world right now,” Roddick said. “They certainly deserve the numbers next to their names. They’re playing great.”

The amazing stat of the day was this: Roddick had zero forehand winners.

Roddick, who has battled injuries all summer and thus match time, said he felt “nothingness” on his serve.

In the other quarter, Murray took out Isner, who continues to form a solid all-court game not only dependent on his serve. The North Carolina resident fell, 7-5, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (2).

“I was a little bit nervous,” Isner said. “I think that comes with the fact that, again, I wasn’t swinging out like I felt like I should have early on in the match. I was just guiding the ball.”

SEMI PREVIEW I NADAL VS. MURRAY: Nadal will definitely have his hands full here as Murray has played solidly, won Cincinnati right before coming here and is on a roll on his best surface. Murray is also ready for a Grand Slam breakthrough having been to the semis of all four Slams this year.

While Nadal beat Murray in the semis at the last two majors, the French and Wimbledon, Murray made the most astute observation of the day when he said … “when I’ve won against him, it’s always been on hard courts. It’s a good surface for me to play him on.”

So, we’ll see. The pick here is Nadal in four but if Murray does find a way to get past Nadal the tournament is his for the taking, no matter who looms in the final. Nadal is the defending champ and the man to beat at this point.

SEMI PREVIEW II DJOKOVIC VS. RODDICK: Don’t expect Roger Federer to be looking forward to the final during his match with Djokovic, the top seed. Count R-Fed as one who loves the day off between semis.

“It’s better for sure for my match now for Novak, for both of us, for that matter, just to be able go out there and play that match instead of thinking of something else,” he said. “It is true that I did think of the Rafa final and the prospect, you know, trying to get there without maybe losing too much energy. Maybe that was one of the reasons I was not able to stay tougher in two of the sets I lost, actually.

“Still should have won the match maybe, but it’s just a tough prospect. You never have it that we have to play back to back best of five set matches, and only here before the final at the US Open. It just somehow doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to me.”

The best thing about this matchup is the players have a history (they’ve met 23 times with Federer winning 14 of the matches), especially here as this is the fifth straight time they’ve faced off in New York. Federer won the first three and Djokovic was victorious last year, despite the match point he was faced with.

The call here is Djokovic in four. The man is on a serious roll, winning his 62^nd match of the year. He’s even on a serious high after winning nine straight games in his quarterfinal match after his opponent was forced to retire after Djokovic won the third set 6-0 and was leading 3-0 before the default.

INTRIGUING OBSERVATION: The Wall Street Journal has provided some excellent coverage of this year’s Open, who many have described as having its share of hiccups and unwanted drama. They wrote:

“…. Saturday has the potential to be a tournament saver. Not only should it deliver a few riveting matches, it will give us a stark view of the fundamental battle between offense and defense in modern tennis. And—if we’re lucky—some indication about which way the game is headed. Do predominantly offensive players stand a chance in years to come, or is the game about to enter a new phase where defense and counterpunching become far more important than attacking? The answer may be coming soon.”

DOUBLES UPDATE: Vania King and Yaroslava Shvedova will defend their US Open women’s doubles title against No. 4 seeded Lisa Raymond and Liezel Huber. King and Shvedova beat No. 5 seeds Nadia Petrova and Maria Kirilenko, pulling out a 7-6(7), 2-6, 6-3 win for the right to play in the final.

American teens Melanie Oudin and Jack Sock became the 12th unseeded team to win the US Open mixed doubles title, beating No. 8 Gisela Dulko and Eduardo Schwank, 7-6, 4-6 (10-8).

JUNIORS PDATE: It’s the top seed and three Brits remaining in the US Open boys’ tournament as No. 1 Jiri Vesely of the Czech Republic joins England’s Kyle Edmund, Oliver Golding and George Morgan in the semifinals.

In the girls’ event, France’s Caroline Garcia is the top seed and will play Ashleigh Barty, the No. 3 seed from Australia. It’s two Americans who will battle for the right to play for the title as Stanford’s Nicole Gibbs takes on Grace Min, both unseeded.

WHEELCHAIR UPDATE: Quite possibly the world’s best female wheelchair player ever – certainly the most dominating – will play for the US Open title as Dutch player and 10sBalls friend Esther Vergeer meets countrywoman Aniek Van Koot in the final.

Now 30, Vergeer has won five gold medals at the Paralympic Games and 18 grand-slam singles titles, and is on a 426-match win streak that dates to 2003. Vergeer lost the use of her legs after spinal cord surgery when she was 8.

In the men’s final, Shingo Kunieda of Japan is the top seed and will face unseeded Stephane Houdet of France in the final.

SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE:

Arthur Ashe Stadium, Starting at Noon

1. Men’s Singles – Semifinals

Novak Djokovic (SRB)[1] v. Roger Federer (SUI)[3]

Not Before: 2:45 p.m.

2. Men’s Singles – Semifinals

Andy Murray (GBR)[4] v. Rafael Nadal

Arthur Ashe Stadium 7 p.m.

1. Women’s Singles – Semifinals

Caroline Wozniacki (DEN)[1] v. Serena Williams (USA)[28]

2. Men’s Doubles – Finals