New Faces

Wow, Juan Martin Del Potro has now won 22 consecutive matches, only Rafa, with a winning streak of 32 is ahead of him in2008. He has passed countryman Guillermo Vilas streak of 19, and is the only player in the last 20 years outside of the top ten to hold a 22 match streak. His ranking in July was 65, and he came into the Open ranked 16.

How long can this last? Is there a chance for him to go all the way here? How crazy would that be?

I spent the late afternoon and most of the evening … actually all of the evening running between Louis Armstrong Stadium, where Kei Nishikori was playing and Grandstand for Del Potro and Simon. Crazy. Felt like I was in the twilight zone and the tennis was just going to go on forever. The Del Potro slug fest went on for three hours and 47 minutes, with a final score of 6-4, 6-7 (4), 6-1, 3-6, 6-3. Nishikori was almost as bad at three hours and 33 minutes. These were both daytime scheduled matches that finished in the 10 to 10:30 time frames. My social life is nil at this point, but I plan to make up for it next week.

Anyway, 19 years old Del Potro will meet Nishikori the 18 year old from Japan who until the start of this Open, had never won a Grand Slam match. Tonight he took out fourth seed David Ferrer in a marathon five setter. It was an amazing match where he out retrieved the “grinder”, a trait that Ferrer is famous for.

Sam Querrey the 6’6” twenty year old from Southern California, also had a big win today, defeating the fourteenth seed, 6’10” Ivo Karlovic. Since this was basically a lesson in big serving, it was not nearly as long and painful as either Del Potro or Nishikori. Karlovic served 24 aces, while Querrey served 20. Now that’s the kind of match I like. Three sets, quick and clean. It’s more challenging to get good photos when the points go so fast, but I’ll take that challenge over sitting on court for three and a half to four hour any day. Truth is, when matches go that long, it also becomes challenging to get interesting images. I mean, how many forehands and backhands can you shoot before going comatose?

Last but not least, is Croatia's raising star, big serving, Marin Cilic. Winning in New Haven the week before the Open brought his ranking to a career high of 24. This meant that this was the first year he entered the tournament as a seeded player. He lost in the first round of qualifying for the last two years, so has made a big jump in 2008. He’ll meet Djokovic tomorrow so I’m predicting that that is the last we’ll see of him this year, but of course you never know. Stranger things have happened.

Okay, that’s it for today. I’m catching the bus late as usual, I’m starving so will probably head for my favorite late nite eatery, the Coffee Shop on Union Square. This place serves really good Caipirinha, a great, but lethal cocktail popular in Brazil and good, but not great food until 4 AM on week days and 5:30 AM on weekends, so it’s an obvious choice after these long nights at the Open. The atmosphere is “downtown” casual but cool, and the crowd is young, hip and attractive. I usually drag in there feeling tired and whipped after a long day, but my spirits lift with the icey lime flavored drink and good vibe. The service can be dicey .. most of the servers are “actors” or “models”, but you can eat at the bar, so this is usually my choice.

NY Bagels

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I’ve been here one week, and have not indulged in a breakfast of bagel and cream cheese yet. Decided that it was time to correct this, so I headed for Ess A Bagel on Third Avenue. First problem was what to order… there are about 12 different kinds of bagels, a huge selection of cream cheeses, plus chicken salad, chopped herring salad, eggplant salad, smoked salmon, and almost any other kind of sandwich filling you could want. Since I was still in breakfast mode, I settled for a sesame bagel with light cream cheese.

The counterman, who had a name tag reading Uncle Bill, asks “want anything else sweetheart?” I was not offended. Uncle Bill can call me sweetheart anytime he wants to. The toasted beauty he handed me was warm and surprisingly heavy. I kept thinking … this is going to be in my stomach, in a few minutes I’m going to be this much heavier. Oh, well, you can’t think about that if you want to enjoy, and yes, I did enjoy. The outside was crispy and a bit chewy, the inside, dense, the cream cheese smooth and flavorful. Eating neatly is a bit of a challenge. I’d advise you to only go with people who you don’t mind seeing you with cream cheese on your chin. The sandwich is large and the cheese sort of squirts out the sides when you bite into it. I solved the problem by opening it, and eating each side open faced. Don’t even want to know how many miles I have to walk to work it off, but trust me it is totally worth it.

From there I continued up Third Ave. to 51^st street. If you turn east, 51^st dead ends at the Peter Detmold Park, this is a quiet, shaded respite from the city. I cross the bridge to the walkway along the river. I love the benches overlooking the river. I wonder who fashioned the decorative arms, the little curved detail on the backs. Someone who cared, someone who wanted to make a beautiful bench for a public space. How many people have sat here watching the river? What stories to they hold? Idea’s like this capture my imagination? I wonder how long they have been here. I’m sure they are quite old.

I’ve enjoyed my morning, and I’d love to linger, but it’s time to go to work. I board the bus to the site, put on my headphones, keep on my sunglasses and hope this sends the message to anyone sitting near that conversation is not welcome. I’d love to catch a little nap on the 30 minute drive out to Flushing Meadow.

As much as I don’t want to shoot Dementieva, I need photos of her for next year’s calendar so I head to Louis Armstrong Stadium. The match is uneventful, but I get a couple of decent snaps, and move on to Haas... much better view thru my long lens. Unfortunately he lost, so I’m glad I got a few images before he packs his bags.

Federer and Alves is next up on Arthur Ashe. Alves is an unseeded Brazilian, and surprisingly gives Federer a bit of a match, Federer won 6-3, 7-5, 6-4.

Gold medalist Aaron Piersol who won the 100 meter backstroke in Beijing is here, and he and Federer meet and exchange a few words about the Olympic experience. They make an announcement in the media center that there will be a photo op with the two of them, but I’m having lunch out in the Plaza and miss it... not a big deal, plus I know that Susan has the photo if it’s needed.

Here we go again. Its 11:20 and Gulbis has just taken the first set from Roddick. Does this mean another REALLY late nite here? I want Arod to win, but I definitely don’t want to get out of here at 1 or 2 AM

Morning Walk to the UN

HMMM going to bed late, getting up early.. how long can I keep this up? Woke at 8AM after going to sleep around 3. Arrived back at the hotel last night at one o’clock to find a call from my friend Kiwi Dave .. he’s a New Zealander..hence the nickname, Kiwi .. (which incidentally refers to a large bird in NZ rather than the small green fruit). “Let’s go out for a cocktail”. Never being one to say no to a little social activity, plus have been working hard so I thought I deserved a little refreshment, and headed to the specified bar.

But now.. back to this morning .. woke at eight, threw on my sweats and trainers, turned left out the door of the hotel, and headed for the East River. It’s a beautiful morning, the air is still refreshing, but it will get hot later. Wandering down First Ave, I come to the United Nations Plaza. Love all the flags, and stop to take a few snaps. I do a photo of myself reflected in the huge round sculpture in the plaza.

Seeing this building, and knowing what it stands for … United Nations .. think about it.. wouldn’t it be wonderful for nations to truly be united. Is it possible? Article two of the Charter states as their purpose, “To develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples.”.

Thinking about this, I can relate it to the tennis tour. Aren’t we a small United Nations? Tennis is the most international sport in the world. Players, writers, photographers, tournament staff, agents, business people, from all nations and cultures, come together in cities from Shanghai to Indianapolis, Indiana, to Buenos Aires. We work, play, dine, drink, and travel the globe together. There can be conflicts, differences and competition, but somehow we work it out and in the end come together.

We’re like family, you may not always agree, but you know if you are in trouble, have a problem with a flight, computer, get sick, whatever, someone will help you out.

We are journalists. We are high profile players. We have a voice. Wouldn’t it be worthwhile to find a way to set an example of how people can forget the color of skin, hair, eyes, the language you speak, the religion you practice, and join together to accomplish a common goal? Shouldn’t we be talking about this, letting the world see how if we try as individuals, person to person, perhaps we can make a difference? Does this sound too idealistic? Does this sound too simple? Well, you know, one small voice can ignite the roar of a crowd.

I’ve always said, the thing I find most fulfilling about my work, is meeting people from all cultures, having friends in cities around the world. The travel has changed and enlarged my world view. I know I’m a very different person from the girl who grew up in a farming community in Illinois. I know that I’m very lucky to have had the opportunity to experience the world, and I hope that I can at least share a bit of the world as I see it through my photos and my writing.

Okay, I’ll step down from my soapbox, and talk a little about the matches today. The big story is Ivanovic going out to 188^th ranked Julie Coin, who is playing in her first grand slam. I notice that Ivanovic has joined the mismatched wristband trend. Wonder if she has been influenced by her friend and countryman Novak Djokovic who has been doing this for the last year or so.

Andy Murray, the favorite son from Great Britian, pulled off a tough four setter against s Michael Llodra. In his post match press conference, he credited his win to mental toughness saying, “I thought that the whole match mentally was tough, and I dealt with it well.”.

I’m tuning out for now, because I want to watch Barack Obama’s speech. This is an historic moment for America, and I want to watch, listen, and pay attention.

More On Fashion

Jelena Jankovic gets the fashion award for today. Love her cute yellow dress, with the pale blue sash and slightly ruffled skirt detail. Very nice, feminine but still sporty. And she’s got it going on with matching yellow soles on her shoes, and even a yellow rubber band holding her pony tail.
Good job Jelena.

Her opponent Sofia Arvidsson gets points for matching the tape on her leg to her hot pink Adidas dress.

On the men’s side, I love the way Tsonga wears his hat... with that cool little tilt, and the diamond stud earrings make a statement, but so far, Donald Young has the earring award sewed up.

Check out the sleeve cut out on the new Nike shirt... gotta have good arms to wear this one... Delcic definitely qualifies.

Spent a little time hanging out at the Red Star Café this afternoon. Heineken, Nachos, TV, this is the onsite sports bar at the Open. They say in New York, that if you stand in Times Square long enough you are sure to see someone you know. Well this is for sure true of the Red Star Café. Located just outside the media center in the main plaza area, if you sit here long enough, you will see a lot of people you know. I actually caught up with three people who I’ve been trying to get together with since I arrived.

The Roddick and Santoro match has just started. I think Roddick will win in straight sets, but the contrast in players should make for an interesting match. Roddick, the hardest server in the history of tennis, who plays like a boxer with a one two punch... big serve followed up with a big forehand. And Santoro who is know as the “Magician” for his slice and spin style, hitting with two hands on both sides. At 36, it’s pretty amazing that he is still playing and winning matches, he’s been in the top 100 for fifteen years, and actually won a tour event this summer.

OH MY WORD!! Andy Roddick has just hit a 47 mile and hour serve! Yes, it was an ace. Santoro couldn’t touch it.

Okay, I’m going to go shoot a little of this match … I’ll be back with you soon.

I’m back its 4-1 Roddick and the magician couldn’t pull off any magic tricks against Arods big serve. Grabbed a few snaps of Roddicks player box. His fiancé Sports Illustrated swimsuit model, Brooklyn Decker was all smiles... posing a bit for the camera’s... very pretty, looks a lot like Pete Sampras actress wife. What’s with all these athletes and the blonds ?

Patrick McEnroe looking serious... the Davis Cup Captain will be taking over the coaching job for Roddick during this Open.

Alright!! The match just ended. It’s only 11:05... Early for the US Open. I might get outta here by midnight!

Foot Faults

Well, you learn something new everyday. In all of my years on the tennis tour, I’ve never seen a sideline foot fault called.

I’m sitting in the photo pit shooting Vince Spadea “I’m not afraid-a-yuh “(one of the lines from his Rap), and the mad Russian, Marat Safin. It’s late in the 4th set... maybe 4 all or 4-5, the score is deuce and it’s second serve so it’s an important point. Safin is at the line ready to serve when we hear a line judge call “foot fault” and Marat starts to go crazy and complain. I turn to the Reuter’s photographer sitting next to me and ask “what is going on?” The official on the opposite end of the court made the call. Everyone was looking around asking what happened … could a linesman make that call from 35 meters away? Apparently yes. The rule is that the server shall stand at rest with both feet behind the baseline and within the imaginary extension of the centre mark and the sideline. I guess I always knew about this, but I’ve never seen it called. The line judge at the opposite end of the court called this foot fault, through the net, saying that Safin went over the center line with his back foot while starting his serve. I have to give Marat credit for not completely loosing it, he argued a bit with the chair umpire, went to his chair, sat down took a drink and continued to argue even though the game wasn’t finished. The score at that point was advantage Spadia. Next we see him get up and walk toward the exit... is he just going to walk off the court? No one can figure this out, but no one would be surprised if he did. Next we see Brian Earley, the Tournament Referee, walk back on the court with Safin. They talk and gesticulate then Earley talks to the Chair Umpire. We are all dying to know what is going down, but the next thing we know, Marat is walking back to his side of the court and finishing the game. Spadia ended up winning that set, but Safin eventually won in 5. Safin’s point made at the post match press conference was the players should receive a warning, “If you are doing a foot fault on a second serve, first of all you need to get a warning. So basically you’re making a foot fault? Just watch out: next time I’m going to call you. This is how it should be.” Frankly I see his point and have to agree. Nice little drama to start my day.

I wanted to catch a bit of the Tommy (Hottie) Haas match, but with all the Safin drama I missed his match... he took out the 12th seed, Richard Gasquet in five sets, so I’ll get another shot at the most gorgeous Haas.

On the Fashion watch, Serena looked good in the red Nike, but I’m not mad about the black knickers underneath, especially with the red and white shoes... would rather see matching red undies. Not my favorite, but way better than a lot of her outfits, but of course she was wearing really nice earrings.


Venus once more got the fashion award for the day in a cool black number with the logo from her own Eleven line in red … only criticism is the shoes … white really doesn’t make it with that outfit… red would be great, but if that seems too much, then something cool in black would be good too.

As for the men, I’m liking Roger’s new taupe colored duds with the orange trim. Pretty racy for the conservative Swiss, but a huge improvement over the Black formal wear with the satin stripe going down the leg of last year.


And speaking of the guys... did you girls get a look at Maximo Gonzalez of Argentina? Wow... another hot Latin on tour. He lost 6-3, 6-0, and 6-3 to Roger in tonight’s match but it was his first pro match on a hard court, and he looked pretty comfortable against the former number one. I’m putting him on my “Player’s to Watch” list.

Well, here it is 11:55 PM, and I’m hoping to catch the 12:30 bus back to the city, so I’m going to wind it up for today.

Party's, Celebtation, Late Night Matches, Welcome to the US Open

The Pre Open Weekend.

The Player Party

The rooftop of the Empire Hotel, glittering lights of NYC below. A sea of blonds, thigh high skirts, pouty glossed lips, Mojito’s, and Heinekin flowing freely, tennis star’s from around the world, this was the setting for the USTA Heinekin Player Party Friday night.

Sorry I couldn’t grab more photos, but I’m a strong believer in not harassing players during their down time. This is one of the reasons I get invited to these parties where no other photographers are allowed. However, nothing is stopping me from sharing a bit of the evening with you. And I do have one photo … Cynthia on the Red Carpet! Check it out!

James Blake, gorgeous as ever, and the Bryan Bros, also looking good, were among the first arrivals. Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco were all smiles spending the evening surrounded by giggling girls. Is it right for any two guys to be that good looking? I’m for sure going to think about moving to Spain. Then there was the Italian contingent... including the handsome Fabio Fognini. Amer Delic, flashing that oh so charming smile. Donald Young caught exchanging phone numbers with one of the tall blonds… hmm have to keep my eye on him… will let you know if she shows up in the player box for his match tonight.

Saturday morning was able to get up at a decent hour even though I arrived back at the apartment in the small hours of the morning. Walked 5 of the 6.9 miles on Park Avenue while it was closed to traffic from 7AM to 1PM. Very cool, thousands of people walking, running, riding bicycles, skating, and enjoying the day.

Sunday, my last day of freedom before play starts tomorrow. Started the day at the street fair on 3^rd. Walked ALL THE WAY downtown to Soho. Checked out the shops and street vendors. Bought an Obama shirt that I love, from an artist who designs and silk-screens the shirts himself…B&W photos of Obama above the NY skyline … “make art not war”. I’m wearing it at this very moment.

So here we are... Monday. I’m going to go shoot some Rafa, and let you know what’s going down on opening day at the Open.

Well, no big surprises .. Rafa did struggle a bit, winning 7-6, 6-3, 7-6 over a qualifier, but I’m sure he’s still a little jet lagged having just arrived in NY after winning the gold in Beijing. I never really thought he was in jeopardy of loosing the match.

Maria Kirilenko seeded 22 was the first seed to leave, loosing to an unseeded Austrian who I’ve never heard of.

The Opening Ceremony tonight featured forty yes... forty past champions, and although it was nice to see them all together, the introductions and the high fiving took forever.

James and Donald Young are still playing.. I left after James won the first set 6-1, but they are now in the fourth with Donald Young leading 3-2.. This is not making me happy. Its 11:30, it’s freezing cold in the media workroom, and I wanna get out of here, but looks like I should stay awhile longer. James is up 2 sets to 1, but if Young takes the fourth I will really have to stay for the fifth.

Twelve midnight .. Young has just taken the 4^th set .. looks like it’s going to be a late night, I’m drinking horrible strong coffee to try to warm up, and stay awake. Welcome to the US Open. Whatever made me think I might get out of here at a reasonable hour?

Okay, it’s 12:45 AM .. Blake finally won in five, I’m going to post this blog and get outta here!