That bites. Although I do sometimes like watching matches later after I can stop being tense about who won and just enjoy the play.

I really think that the ATP, WTA and various tournaments really need to do more to promote doubles. It can be so entertaining to watch but yet people rarely go unless Martina or maybe the Bryan Brothers are playing. But they don’t even really show the Bryan Brothers on tv, which is a shame because they seem to be really good guys who care so much about it. Do have to say that I like how The Tennis Channel will show some doubles.

The only time I think where doubles really gets a good number of spectators and also equal tv coverage is during the Davis Cup. The mixed doubles of the Hopman Cup in Australia also seem to get good spectators.

I saw that Mirnyi is listed as one of the top ace-makers- so I guess they are counting doubles play for that count as well.

heh, I only tivo'ed until 1:30 pm so Max and Jonas only have 3 minutes to win this last game. (Oh boy, I just jinxed them completely). eta: YEE HAW!!!

Distant Sun, not sure if this is official but I just read an article in my local about PMac's choices.

James Blake and Ginepri will join Roddick and the Bryan brothers for the Sept 23-25 match in Leuven, Belgium. Agassi declined saying that he doesn't want to risk re-injuring himself on the clay.

ETA: Official Davis Cup blurb. blackwing, don't follow it that much either, but Distant Sun's comment made me curious. Btw, I think you're right. One of the singles players will end up being an alternate when they narrow their choices down when they make the official nominations.

I don't follow Davis Cup all that much, but I thought that there are two singles players and one doubles team. The two singles players play the one of the opposing singles players, and then they switch and play the other one (reverse singles). So there are five matches.

So why are there three singles players named for the U.S.? Is one of them the alternate? Or can you just put in whoever you want depending on what you feel like that day?

Ah, there's the rub! You should read the transcript that Watts posted a few pages back where PMac talks about it.

No, he can only play 4 players but he will wait until before the matches begin to pick. Why? Because he will now not have to deal with the press regarding his decisions. Bring 'em all! No one can complain!

Thanks, LT. Totally missed it. Bad poster! *slaps hand*

He flat out said he's playing Roddick. (Kudos to the interviewer for asking about that.) So, while he's bringing Blake and Ginepri, one of them will only be an alternate.

While I don't approve of PMac's constant fawning over Roddick, I can't say I disagree with his decision. Sure, Andy left this tournament early but he has been far more consistent for a longer period of time than either Ginepri or Blake.

It's not that I disagree per se, I just think he should consider it. Clay is going to blunt Roddick's serve. Without it, he usually seems lost with no discernible Plan B(see every match against Federer and Hewitt as well as the Muller loss). Besides experience, that serve is his only real advantage over the other two. They're both faster and neither has a liability like Andy's backhand. We wouldn't be having this discussion if it were going to be on another surface or Robby and James weren't red hot. If I were the coach, I'm not saying I'd sit Andy, but I'd certainly consider it long and hard.

I don't disagree with you. I just think that the length and breadth of PMAc's answers in the transcript indicate that he has thought about this a great deal.

LT
I am dead tired and trying to prop my eyes open at work today. I was in bed with the flu for the prior two days and a friend told me she had an extra corporate ticket. I couldn't pass up the chance to see the match in person, so I dragged myself out to the Tennis Center. An added bonus was free limo service home. I live on the border of Long Island and Queens (2 trains and a bus) so it was a welcome treat that time of the morning. To further feed my tennis obsession when I got home I watched the CBS Late night coverage I had tivoed. Needless to say I am glad I couldn't hear Ian and P-Mac when I was watching the match in real-time.

I'm in San Diego and we saw the whole match here. I have Cox cable (like the O.C.'er from upthread) so maybe that's part of it?

Gah. Hewitt is looking a little shaky. I'm really hoping he can pull it out, because I don't want to see a Federer-Niemenen semi. Bitter beer face would just roll over this lanky guy.

Niemenen's serve looks strange. He brings his racket up almost halfway before he even tosses the ball. That's pretty much how I learned to serve when I was ten years old. He doesn't have that fluid motion that most pros do.

No response from USA network about why they didn't show last night's match in Los Angeles. I'm still pissed.

Point taken. This is a relegation match, so you have to think he's considered it a great deal. I just hope his judgment isn't clouded by his undying love for Roddick or, more importantly, I hope his final decision works out for the best.


I just can't get over how bad they were. I kind of feel like my enjoyment of that great match was dampened by that change in commentators. Ian was just so unbelievably awful I'm still stunned.

LOL at that Niemenen fan for saying it's only the QFs so they have time to come up with a cheer. They really are confident, huh?

I'll take a Neminen win over Hewitt. It's not like Hewitt would actually have a chance against Federer -- it would be bagel city. Sometimes ya gotta take the hot hand. Of course he's had an easy quarter due to the Safin withdrawl but still... I hate Hewitt. He's such a little punk. I'd probably watch College Football or the Yanks/Sox over a Hewitt/Federer semifinal.

BTW, I saw Neminen play in Miami... IIRC it was against Blake and Blake won, and I noticed pretty much nothing remarkable about Neminen (although the match was alright).

ETA: Ian Eagle was atrocious last night. Like I said, the only other commentators I've ever muted were the awful team of Buck/McCarver. Even the Michael Kay/David Justice tandem never emitted so much ugh.

The only reason I'd want Hewitt to win today's match is so I can watch Federer humiliate him with a bunch of bagels.

I think if Hewitt wins and then Nalbandian (I don't think he will) wins we could be in for a very interesting match.

Nalby is not too keen about Hewitt They are not as acrimonious as Coria/Hewitt or Chela/Hewitt but there does seem to be no love lost between Hewitt and the Argentines. (Hewitt is the only player I have ever read Nalbandain having any problem with. ) I've read somewhere that some of this dislike stems from some of Hewitt's actions during junior days where he was not to nice to South Americans. That's just a rumor so don't know if it is for sure. But David really brought his a-game against Hewitt during the Davis Cup so hew knows he can beat Lleyton.

So I think both would be pretty fired up to win which could produce some good tennis.

As I have said, I am not a big Agassi fan at all but I would like to give him huge kudos for really rallying and pulling through yesterday. And for being really cool after the win. He will never be a favorite of mine in the future (I actually used to like him a lot a few years ago but that faded for reasons that I will not go into again here) but he is good for the sport and truly is a tennis legend. I really do hope he makes it into the final- no offense to Robby - but it would be great to see a 35-year old tennis legend in the final. That will be exciting to see and would make for great sports television. (Still want Nalby or Roger to take the title though.)

The thought of a Nieminen/Ginepri final makes me giggle. Not that I think it's going to happen but how absurd would that be? The fact that it's a possibility is amazing. Who'da thunk it?

zod, you speak the truth.

During Hewitt's match, it was mentioned that Blake was mocking Lleyton's "Come on" during a match earlier this year. Honestly, I had forgotten about the Hewitt/Blake run-ins until now - as in the reason I first disliked Hewitt.

I didn't tune into the Agassi/Blake match until the fourth set. I'm a Blake supporter but when it got to 5-3, I found I just couldn't root for Blake any longer. I have liked Agassi for so long and it feels more and more like this will be Andre's last stand. When it got to the tiebreak, I found myself just hoping it would be well-played (which it was).

I would have been happy to go through the whole US Open without seeing a female player wearing those short shorts that barely stay on the waist. Although I am sure it existed, I just never caught one until now. Damn you, Hantuchova - though she was awesome in the mixed doubles final, especially getting the male player's serve.

Yay, Lleyton!

I echo somebody's opinion a couple of pages back that they want a Hewitt v. Agassi final, except I'm torn in who I'd want to win.

I missed what JMac and Courier were saying about Lleyton's racket - they had a question the wanted to ask him or something like that. Did anybody catch that?

Woo. The mixed doubles final! I don't think anyone's mentioned it, so i'll spoiler in case.

Daniela Hantuchova and Mahesh Bhupathi won. They beat Katarina Srebotnik and Nenad Zimonjic in 4 and 2. Hantuchova's only the 5th woman to complete a career grand slam in the mixed.

I missed the match while napping. Damn this late night tennis :)

Was listening to US Open radio and found it very interesting when one of the commentators suggested that maybe James was too deferential to Andre last night. He listed some examples of things that James said after the match that maybe showed that he had too much respect for Andre. One example was James' statement that it was fun losing to Andre. Another was that in talking about the Agassi/Ginepri match, James said that Robby doesn't care who's on the other side of the net whether it be Federer, Agassi, or Sampras, that Robby's just going to rip the ball. The commentator impled that James might benefit from havng a similar attitude and being mentally tougher. Not sure that I buy it but I thought it was an interesting theory.

Agreed. I would have been happy if James had won, but hes young, and yeah 25 is a little old for this sport to win your first slam, but he seems to finally be unleashing his potential, and I expect great things from him. This is probably going to be Agassi's last open and damn it, it wont happen, but I wont to win one more.

[OT] I still like Kwan. Shes only what? 24/25, and I suspect she'll go till the Olympics and then turn Pro[/OT]

I tend to agree with that. That's part of what makes me think this was Blake's best chance. Look at Davenport's response to her loss to Venus. She was gracious, but you could see that she was really disappointed. She later said that it took some time to appreciate that she was part of such a classic match. That's the response of someone who wants to win more than anything else.

IMO, James weathering the storm of Agassi's comeback and turning things around in the fifth is more impressive than the comeback itself. He also made some bonehead plays (at net at 6-6 in the tiebreak you have to cover the line), but it was the heat of the moment.

Thank God they showed us that 5-5 point! I feel better knowing it really was out.

Well, I love reading what both of you have to say, Castallack, so just know that some people find this highly entertaining. ;-)

His exact words were: "Well, look at him," as if it should be immediately apparent that a black linesman would favour a black player, and what would else would you expect. And he spat the words out with such derision. God, I hate that guy...

Like I said... :-)

I agree. James dismissed it as "the heat of the moment." Personally, I'd have liked to see Hewitt called to account for his ignorant remark. I thought he got off way too easy.

I'd like to believe that you're right. Because I'm starting to feel a tad guilty for switching my allegiance back to Andre at the end of that match.

I heard that on the radio too and one of my tennis-nut co-workers and I just discussed that.

I think there could be a kernel of truth to that theory. The commentator said that he thought that maybe when James was up a break in the third set the fact that who was across the net really shot home to him. And there did seem to be a change in James during the third. He was in a zone in the first 2.5 sets and then something went off. There have been murmerings throughout his career that James is too nice to have the killer instinct that is necessary sometimes to pull out the big wins. He has shown over the past few weeks that he is getting to be a great fighter, but there may still be blips imo. But I think he will learn from this loss and that will help boost his inner Rocky.

Roger talked about the phenomenon of focusing too much on who the person is on the opposite side of the net after his win against Lil’ Adorable (my new name for Oli Rochus), who he is very good friends with. Roger said that when he was younger he had a hard time playing Oli, in large part because he thought of him as a friend but he has since realized that you need to play friends, etc. as you would anyone, because at the end of the match you will still be able to have a laugh in the locker room.

Some players have run into the reverence with Federer even. But a lot of the 18 or 19 year olds (and 22 year olds in the case of Robby) are going out there with the idea that they will fight hard against anybody, regardless of who they are. And I think that is one thing that makes this crew of 1986 and 1987 babies so exciting (along with the scads of talent.) To me, there is nothing wrong with playing hard against/beating a legend or the number one- that does not mean that you do not respect them. In fact- I think it shows respect because you know that you have to fight hard to beat them. And I think such attitudes will help them in their career.

You can still be a nice sweet fellow in life even if you are a tough fighter on court.

Dorkgirl, Very cool to see Hottie-chova complete the slam. Not someone I would've thought had a career grand slam, even in mixed

There is an explanation Rainmaker! Universal Tv and CBS are in a pissing contest as it relates to fees for satellite rights. Ergo, those of us who shelled out to get decent service (namely satellite via Direct or Dish) are now being sacrificed at the altar of commerce. Direct and Dish both carry the Eastern USA Network feed to their Left Coasters, which is why we get stuff 3 hours earlier. Cable companies carry a later West Coast Feed which continues late into the evening. The East Coast Feed is supposed to end about 12:35 am so CBS can carry their highlight show, late night version.

What it means is, if you have satellite service on the Left Coast, you lose the feed at 9:35 pm, invariably crunch time at the US Open.

That really sucks for y'all over there. I'm sorry.

After last night's debacle with the CBS crew, I can't help but love Ted and J-Mac calling this match.

Thanks, shrunken violet! I love y'all, too.

What a pair of clucking hens these two are. Johnny Mac and whatshisname going on and on about Hrbaty's shirt and how Nalbandian's shoes like a pair of yentas surveying the clothing people wear on the high holy days at my synagogue.

Nothing more interesting in the arsenals, gentlemen? I think I'd almost rather hear Johnny Mac talking about hitting with juniors player a bit longer than to hear your opinions, for the umpteenth time, about the cut outs on the shirt. Thanks.

Oh and Johnny Mac? Your ST wear from back in the day isn't exactly fashion-forward, either.

JeanPoole, thanks for the information! How did you find this out? I was scouring websites today to see if I could find an explanation, but none could be found. And the bastards at USA haven't responded to me via email either. I'm not expecting to. That really sucks for us. Cuz we can't even pay to get CBS East coast feeds either.

Wasn't able to watch the rest of the Hewitt match, but I'm happy he pulled it out. I know he's not that popular on here, but I actually don't mind the guy. Hope he can stun Federer.

Ted mentioned at the top of the show about getting a lot of calls from CA. I think he apologized to you viewers who got the shaft.

This match is going well! Federer is turning it on in spots, but I see now why he couldn't beat Nalby back in the day. He usually gets the return back in play and, while that works against most players, he should be more aggressive on David's second serve.

Wow- it looks like sucky David turned up tonight. He can be one of the most frustrating players to be a fan of- you never know which David will turn up.

This massacre will give Federer a great vibe going into the semis. I wonder if another bagel will be in Lleyton's future? I actually hope it will be competative - with a Roger win.

But as Johnny Mac said- now they will be able to show Blake/Agassi for those in CA. I imagine that Blake/Agassi will be the new Connors/Krickstein that they pull out during rain delays in the future.

Yep. Ted even said earlier that the happiest person other than Agassi is Krickstein. Heh.

That was impressive. How nice of Rog to wrap it up so I can watch football. I was hoping he'd serve up a bagel at the end as an appetizer for Saturday's feast, but you can't have everything. I love those moments when he speaks awkward english.

I was glad that John clarifed that what Roger meant to be complimentary when he said that it is not everyday that you have two Americans in the semifinals. I was sad to hear some of the crowd booing him as if he was bashing Americans. And Michael Vartan annoyed the heck out of me when he went "Whoooaaaa" as if Roger said something disparaging or cocky. No- what he meant was that it was a special thing to have two Americans in the semis and he hoped that people would enjoy it. He was being sweet.

Sometimes there can be such a knee-jerk reaction to think that something stated is anti-Americanism.

Variety, Hollywood Reporter, and L.A. Times all had the info. L.A. Times had the most info and reaction from a few tennis aficionados. Internet had nuttin' much.
Now that I know, the tourney's almost over. I'll have to remember to tivo USA and CBS latenight.

Hee! I think you meant Michael Barkann Kiss my Grits.

While it's too bad for the doubles players to not get on the broadcast, I too, am looking forward to hearing Johnny Mac' and Ted Robinson's call of the last set. No name and Patrick weren't cutting it this morning. Did they think that people would just stumble onto a late night broadcast 4 sets in and not have heard Blake's story already? They and CBS really messed with the viewing flow with regular length commercial breaks, etc.

I'm still tripping on the fact that Robby Ginepri used to date Minnie Driver, that is what I call an odd match.

How so? Personally, I'm still tripping on Gil Reyes = Tony Orlando. Hee! And I still can't believe Davenport is now 91-18 in tiebreaks. She loses less than 2 tiebreaks a year!

Unpopular opinion, but the Agassi/Blake match really wasn't all that great. Blake stomped Agassi the first two sets, Agassi pretty much stumped Blake the third and fourth set. The only great thing about that much was that Blake lost, he totally choked, if you ask me. But I will admit that the fifth set tiebreak was damn good.

Post way after the fact: I swear the guys on Sportscenter this morning referred to Agassi's massive forehand winner at 4-5 as a match point. Which sent me into a tailspin, since I don't play or watch too much tennis but was sure seven points win a tiebreak, which was confirmed online, had to check because how could ESPN screw that up? I mean, that was a tremendous shot and all, but had he erred he wouldn't have lost the match.

The truly impressive thing about that match was what JMac (here in Phoenix with Cox cable I did get full coverage) mentioned: that both players got better (or at least played to the same high level) at the end. I don't recall the points immediately prior, but the final four were won by well-hit winners; shades of 1992 Duke-Kentucky come to mind, due to the high level of play and success on the offensive end down the stretch.

Did anyone notice last night during the Agassi/Blake match that while Agassi was changing his shirt during the change over there were two somewhat... portly... women behind him who kept pointing at him and laughing? I'd kill to know what they were laughing at. And what was he drinking? It was pink and slimy. It looked like a pepto-garorade cocktail.

I know when it will happen. Whenever I choose to watch a match. And then I'll think, how does he get so far into slams? Why do I like this surly, boring awful guy?

I think Johnny Mac hates David. Every time he's commentating on a Nalbandian match it's one snide remark after another. Even more than with other players. He can't even talk about the tennis that is going on for all the bashing.

I was very happy for Hantuchova. She's so adorable.

Hi everyone. Big tennis fan here, and first of all I just wanted to add that as much as I like Blake, I couldn't help but support Agassi for nostalgia's sake. I've been watching Tennis since 1983 (the first match I ever watched was the McEnroe - Lendl french Open final that went five sets), and I just can't help but root for the old guard.

I was wondering if anyone caught the CBS highlight show on Wednesday night. They showed the Agassi-Blake highlights in that one (at least here on the west coast), and then later on the show, they had a singer on. And I wanted to look up more about the singer, but for the life of me I can't remember her name.

He had some nice things to say about David (and I guess we finally have confirmation that it's Day-vid and not Da-veed) at first. I came away thinking he likes him but wished he'd put up more of a fight.


He choked serving at 4-2 in the third, but he was simply outplayed serving for the match at 5-4 in the fifth. Not to sound like P-Mac or anything, but Agassi pummeled every return he could (first and second serve). Even James's errors were good, aggressive shots that just missed. From that game forward, they were both playing extremely well.

It's really Da-veed. That's how he pronounces it in Spanish.

I have to say, there's no one on the planet who can return Roger's serve better than Da-veed. A pity that he couldn't hold his own serve. It's a liability. And Roger again proved that he has improved a lot more than his opponents.

Did anyone have the chance to read Roger's interview? I really liked this part:

I love having fun at Hewitt's expense. Hee.

Are you sure? I wasn't really paying attention to his player profile, but Ted and John both seemed to think he pronounced it Day-vid. I know for sure that Roger called him Day-vid after the match.


Oh, that's funny! Federer's become Mack the Knife.

Fun at Hewitt's expense. Always a good time.


I don't agree with this. Blake has always stated that the betch match of his career was in DC when he beat Agassi. He knows how, and he loves the feeling. That said, I think he might have lost his momentum in the 3rd when he realized what he was about to do. But, in the end, Andre stepped it up. (I can always tell when Andre isn't playing well because tennis looks hard to play when he does. When he plays well, tennis looks easy to play.)

I am sad to report that I fell asleep before the Federer/Nalbandian match even started. I would wake up out of my doze to see the score but couldn't stay awake. Damn.