New York

Osaka, Sabalenka Into Third Round of @USOpen; Kasatkina Upset by Sasnovich

Posted by Admin on August 30, 2018
Posted in: New York, US Open, WTA. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment


Early play at the US Open in New York on Thursday found one upset, as Aliaksandra Sasnovich, a perennial qualifier in Premier tournaments and slams, upset the Russian, 6-2, 7-6. For Sasnovich, whose high water mark was this year’s fourth round at Wimbledon, she will try to keep her US Open magic alive when she meets Naomi Osaka on Saturday.

Osaka was efficient in the morning heat, needing just 50 minutes on court to dismantle an injured Julia Glushko. In press, she talked about the fine line of deciding to go aggressive or play it safe with each shot.

“You win more if you play safe,” she said. “I would say it’s fun to take the chances when you’re feeling good, like, when you know it’s not 50/50, more like 70/30. So I sort of have to hold myself back on the days I don’t feel good. That’s a little bit hard for me.”

Aryna Sabalenka has been called out for dead–“hit the wall”–by the commentators on US Open Radio in both matches she’s played here. The first time was when she lost the second set to Danielle Collins and today they were at it again in the second set when the Belarusian made a couple of unforced errors. The commies were wrong both times. Sabalenka beat 2010 Flushing Meadows finalist Vera Zvonareva, 6-2, 7-6 to earn a date with Petra Kvitova, and probably her first distinguished court assignment.

It’s funny, because I thought this was going to be a tournament of upsets on the women’s side after Simona Halep went out in the first 90 minutes of the tournament on Monday. Since then, other than Kasatkina today and Muguruza last night, things are shaping up nicely with many marquee players into the weekend. Kerber’s currently in a battle with Johanna Larsson, but there’s plenty of stars left to produce a great second week of women’s tennis.

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NY/FL/Japan’s @Naomi_Osaka_ Sizzles in @USOpen First Round

Posted by Admin on August 28, 2018
Posted in: New York, US Open, WTA. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment
Naomi Osaka

Naomi Osaka

NY/FL/Japan’s @Naomi_Osaka_ Sizzles in @USOpen First Round
Steve Fogleman, Tennis Atlantic

Long Island-born Naomi Osaka had an easy time in scorching conditions in her opening round match on Grandstand at the US Open today, beating German Laura Siegemund 6-3, 6-2. Osaka jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the first set and though Siegemund looked more composed to start the second set, Osaka quickly broke her again and held on to serve out the match in just one hour and eighteen minutes.

For Osaka, she’s now 3-0 in first round matches in New York. She also keeps her streak alive trying to reach the third round or better in a sixth straight grand slam. Coming into last year’s US Open, the then-unseeded Japanese player made it to the third round where she became a victim of dangerous floater Kaia Kanepi. This year, she’s seeded 20th, and she’s expected to make the third round or better at this year’s event. Today’s win also saw Osaka pass the $2 million earnings mark at the age of 20.

Naomi Osaka, 2018 US Open (Photo: Tennis Atlantic)

Naomi Osaka, 2018 US Open (Photo: Tennis Atlantic)

As to the idea that she plays better in larger tournaments, Osaka said, “I mean, I have sort of already accepted the fact that I probably play better during the big stages. I think that’s just something that I grew up watching, like, people on the bigger stages. And I have always wanted to play on Arthur Ashe and stuff, so when the chance comes, of course I’m going to play my best.”

While happy that she won, she admitted that “I’m a bit of a perfectionist, so I didn’t play as well as I wanted to. But I’m really happy with how I fought. I didn’t let her sort of — like, towards the end of the first set, I think I dropped two games in a row, and I managed to stop her from coming back.”

Osaka will look to reach another third round on Thursday against qualifier Julia Glushko.

Naomi Osaka, 2018 US Open (Photo: Tennis Atlantic)

Naomi Osaka, 2018 US Open (Photo: Tennis Atlantic)

 

 

 

Another Case of the Mondays for @Simona_Halep as @KanepiKaia Sends World #1 Home Early From @USOpen

Posted by Admin on August 27, 2018
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Another Case of the Mondays for @Simona_Halep as @KanepiKaia Sends World #1 Home Early From @USOpen
Steve Fogleman from New York

I hate Mondays. But not as much as Simona Halep hates Mondays in New York. On Monday, August 28, 2017 she was sent packing from the US Open after an opening-round loss to Maria Sharapova. Today, on Monday, August 27, 2018, the now-World #1 got an even bigger shocker, being dominated by world #44 Kaia Kanepi, a player who had to qualify for this main draw just a year ago. Halep became infamous today as the first top female player in the world to lose a first round match at the US Open.

The Estonian came out early and dominated Halep in every statistic, breaking the favorite five times en route to the victory. After she was down two breaks and a set, it was clear that Simona was trying to surge, but Kanepi kept playing aggressively and pusing Halep behind the baseline. The crowd was in Halep’s favor all the way down to 4-4 all in the second set, but when Kanepi broke her to set up the final game of the match, she got a standing ovation from the crowd. Kanepi becomes the first player, man or woman, to win a match on the newly-constructed Louis Armstrong Stadium.

“I love playing here in New York,” she said after the match.  “I have always loved it. So maybe the court also suits my game.” She wasn’t thrilled about the fact that the fans seemed to be cheering for Halep until the end  ” Yeah, I was thinking about that, why they cheer for the underdog. Now they cheer for her. It was a bit annoying for some time, but I got over it.”

Kanepi can advance to the third round on Wednesday when she faces qualifier Jil Teichmann.

2010 @USOpen Finalist @VeraZvonareva Qualifies for Main Draw

Posted by Admin on August 24, 2018
Posted in: New York, US Open, US Open Qualifying, WTA. Tagged: , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

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It was the best of times. It was the worst times. Maybe it was a little of both, depending on how qualifying at the US Open turned out for you or your favorite player. But for me, it was a great time watching 2010 finalist Vera Zvonareva face sudden death a couple of times today to pull herself through a tough three set match against Lin Zhu to qualify for the main draw, 6-2, 4-6, 7-5 win in 2 hours and 43 minutes. It wasn’t the prettiest tennis Zvonareva has played, saving 5 of 9 break point opportunities, but it was enough to get back to the main draw.

After the match and right before trotting off to the Tennis Channel, I asked her how special it was to do it the hard way.

“Well of course it’s very important,” she told me. “I’ve been playing on the big stages before, but now I had to go through the qualifying. You know, when I started last year, I won in the first round but lost in the second round of qualifying. So I was happy to come back here again and thought ‘well, I’ll give it another try’ and of course, I’m very happy to be in the main draw now.”

If the fans on Court 4 today were any indication, there’s a lot people very happy she’s in the main draw.

Armstrong Stadium Returns to Competition Today @USOpen

Posted by Admin on August 23, 2018
Posted in: ATP, New York, US Open, WTA. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment
Ernesto Escobedo, 2018 US Open (Photo: Tennis Atlantic.com)
Fanny Stollar, 2018 US Open (Photo: Steve Fogleman for Tennis Atlantic.com)
Nao Hibino, 2018 US Open (Photo: Tennis Atlantic.com)
Anastasia Potapova 2018 US Open (Photo: Tennis Atlantic.com)
Katie Swann, 2018 US Open (Photo: Tennis Atlantic.com)
Mitch Krueger, 2018 US Open (Photo: Tennis Atlantic.com)

Many eyes will be on Louis Armstrong Stadium at the US Open in New York this morning for the first ever competitive matches since the stadium’s impressive rebuild. The building was dedicated yesterday and christened with an exhibition match and a concert, but today is where the shoes hit the hardcourts.

Young American Sebastian Korda takes on Argentina’s Facundo Bagnis in the opener on Armstrong. Three other Americans will have a chance to win on Armstrong today, as Kristie Ahn faces Ons Jabeur, Chicago’s Evan King plays Stefano Travaglia and Ernesto Escobedo finishes up the day against Marc Polmans of Austria. Yesterday, Escobedo had the support of a jam-packed Court 11 crowd cheering the American all the way to a frenetic 2-6, 6-3, 7-6(4) victory over top qualifying seed Jozef Kozalik that left Escobedo nearly speechless. After the match, I asked him what were the keys to his victory, and he replied with “I have absolutely no idea right now,” and then with a smile on his face, proclaiming that “it’s such a special place to play.”

Ernesto Escobedo, 2018 US Open (Photo: Tennis Atlantic.com)

Ernesto Escobedo, 2018 US Open (Photo: Tennis Atlantic.com)

 

Kevin Anderson is Champion of New York (for at least 6 more months) #NYOpen

Posted by Admin on February 18, 2018
Posted in: ATP, New York, New York Open. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

Kevin Anderson is Champion of New York (for at least 6 more months)
Steve Fogleman, Tennis Atlantic

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With 106 aces between them in the tournament already, you knew Sunday’s New York Open final between top seed Kevin Anderson and 2 seed Sam Querrey was going to be a big serving affair. It delivered, but not in the way that Querrey hit 21 aces on Saturday afternoon. In the end, it was Anderson with the edge on aces 16-9 and Anderson is the Champion of New York—well, at least until that tournament in Flushing in a little more than six months. The memories of a loss to Rafael Nadal vanished in an instant. The final score of the first final in New York Open history was 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(1).

Anderson was the cardiac kid to get to the final—outlasting qualifier Ernesto Escobedo in a third set tiebreak, beating Frances Tiafoe in three sets and surviving Kei Nishikori in a another third set tiebreak on Saturday.

Kevin Anderson, 2018 New York Open (Photo: Tennis Atlantic)

Querrey arrived at the New York final by beating Mikhail Youzhny in straight sets, followed by a straight tiebreaks win against Ivo Karlovic and a comeback win in three sets against Adrian Mannarino in the semifinals.

Kevin Anderson, 2018 New York Open, (Photo: Tennis Atlantic)

With the win, Anderson grabs a check for $119,250.00 and 250 ATP rankings points. Querrey will receive $62,805.00 and 150 ATP points.

The tournament’s venue, NYCB Live, was a surprisingly good choice as an indoor tournament host. The two courts, separated by a VIP section, provided for enough separation of them to make it feel like there were two separate tennis stadia under the same roof. For players, coaches and many others, the Marriott hotel across the parking lot gave the New York Open a campus feel. Like its predecessor, the Memphis Open, there were plenty of empty seats during the early rounds before attendance picked up in the semifinals (and every time Kei Nishikori stepped on court). The ATP’s Greg Sharko was on the scene. He’s a treasure trove of all things ATP and is one of the most helpful people you’ll ever meet on the tour. It was such a good experience that I’ve re-thought my general aversion to indoor tennis. There’s nothing better for fans and bloggers to be able to know that a match will start at a specified time with no chance for a weather delay or cancellation. It’s hard enough to buy tickets to a match before the day’s schedule of play has been printed, so it’s a comfort to know that a match will go off at 7:30 p.m. on a Tuesday, even if your favorite player isn’t in it. Other than making for bad photos, indoor tennis is a blessing.

I don’t get a chance to watch a lot of doubles except when I’m at the end of a tournament. Max Mirnyi made his 100th appearance at an ATP final on Sunday when he and Philipp Oswald won the New York doubles crown. Mirnyi had some great things to say about the New York Open:

“Being an inaugural event, I know it takes a lot to get New Yorker’s attention and the fact that today we have a reigning U.S. Open singles finalist in the singles final, I’m sure it’s going to get a lot of attention. I’m sure those of us who have been here, among singles and doubles players, we’re going to spread the word as much as we can. I have no doubt that this is going to be a popular destination on the ATP World Tour and yeah, this tournament will continue to excel.”  —Max Mirnyi

And one more thing: No-ad scoring is a great help as it moves the matches along for everyone’s sake. At one time, I would have threatened to boycott tennis had they toyed with no-ad scoring in singles, but now I think it would be a welcome change. As the Open era prepares for its 50th anniversary, the sport must evolve. We certainly have and tennis is no different than us.

Will Mannarino Man Up and Win First ATP Tour Level Title?

Posted by Admin on February 17, 2018
Posted in: ATP, New York, New York Open. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment
Adrian Mannarino

Adrian Mannarino

UNIONDALE, N.Y—Adrian Mannarino is a curious case. At 29, he’s playing some of his best tennis yet and he’s achieved a career high ranking at #25. But somehow, he’s earned less than $5 million on the pro tour and is the only player in the New York Open semifinals who has never hoisted a champions trophy at an ATP Tour level event.

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He can take care of both of those things here in New York in two matches. A title would vault Mannarino into the top 20 and the $119,000 winner’s check will put him just over $5,000,000 in career earnings. He’ll face Sam Querrey this afternoon, and although Querrey is ranked higher than Mannarino, the Frenchman has owned the American in their three prior meetings, including straight sets in Cincinnati last summer.

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It’s impressive enough to make the fourth round at Wimbledon, but I’m sure Mannarino would like some tour level hardware and I can’t imagine him not being motivated today in the semis.

Mannarino in 3.