Must-See Tennis

Apparently I missed a showcase of exciting tennis the other day when I played badminton instead of watching Roger Federer defeat Fabrice Santoro in the second round of the US Open. Yes, it was a foregone conclusion, but it would have been something to see the best player in the world be tested to his limits and raise his level to win. Federer won in straight sets, but the way people are describing the match, it seems to have been as exciting as the match Federer played against Takao Suzuki at the Australian Open in January.

From The Observer:
"Federer seemed to enjoy it as much as the crowd. 'I had a blast out there,' he said. 'I knew it would be interesting; the way he plays, the way I play. He just has so many options. You think he's going to stay back, he comes in. You think he's going to come in, he stays back. We've played many times, but this, maybe, was the best.'"

Federer is now facing his third round opponent Olivier Rochus. One would think that the small but terrible 5'5" Rochus would be outmatched by the 6'1" Federer. Not if Rochus has anything to say about it. Both players have one-handed backhands, all-court styles, and flashy shotmaking on the basis of flawless footwork. Federer leads their career head-to-head 2-0, but with the way Rochus is playing right now, he's not going to let Federer roll over him easily.

This Federer-Rochus match has the crowd cheering for both players, as did the Santoro match. Of course, the crowd couldn't help being partisan during wild card James Blake's stunning upset of #2 seed Rafael Nadal in four sets. Blake, after all, is American. That match I missed, too, much to my regret.

From the LA Times:
"Blake was a worthy adversary, armed not with kryptonite but with a potent serve and an explosive ground game. He hit 53 winners, including 10 aces, and was six for eight on break-point opportunities.

"By the end, Nadal did not look like a Grand Slam champion but a frustrated 19-year-old. The French Open winner sounded like one in the interview room.

"'I just lost one of the best tournaments in the world, so I am not very happy now,' said Nadal, who has won nine titles this year."

This US Open has not been short on drama, and it's only just entering the second week of play. I hope I'll be able to watch more strongly contested matches like these as the rest of the tournament unfolds.

posted by Noelle De Guzman @ 9:20 AM