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by Christopher Gerby Arthurs/Zimonjic vs. Braasch/Burgsmuller Men's Doubles: First Round Court 9 Two days after his headline-making upset victory over Gustavo Kuerten, Wayne Arthurs returned to action in doubles. If you wanted to see big serves, Court 9 was the place to be on Thursday morning. You probably know by now that Arthurs has a very nasty lefty serve, but his partner Nenad Zimonjic can bring just as much heat from the right side. Faced with the unenviable task of returning these serves: German qualifiers Karsten Braasch and Lars Burgsmuller. Braasch is one of the oldest players on the Tour and possibly the most unique. His beard, glasses, deep voice, fondess for cigarettes, bizarre service motion, and unofficial singles wins over the Williams sisters make "Danger Man" stand out. It's also worth noting that Burgsmuller pulled off the feat of qualifying in both singles and doubles last week. Arthurs opened the match with a service winner and held at love -- a sign of things to come. Braasch quickly found himself down double break point in Game 2 and netted a low forehand volley, swearing under his breath as the Australian/Yugoslavian team took a 2-0 lead. Zimonjic blasted an ace in a love hold for 3-0. Burgsmuller got his team on the scoreboard, holding for 1-3, but Arthurs immediately held at love for 4-1. As if the Germans weren't having enough problems, Braasch faced another break point and Arthurs won it with a winning lob return. Arthurs raised his racquet apologetically, admitting it was a lucky shot. Braasch put away a forehand volley to open Game 7, but Zimonjic answered with two aces and a service winner to close out the 6-1 set. Arthurs/Zimonjic had played seven games in 20 minutes, losing a total of just one point on serve! Braasch/Burgsmuller finally got into a better rhythm in the second set. Winning some return points and doing a better job protecting their own serves, they hung in to 3-3. Braasch then showed how dangerous his serve can still be, lauching two aces and a third unreturnable serve in a love hold for 4-3. Undaunted, the 29-year-old Aussie stepped up and answered with an ace of his own, holding at love for 4-4. Burgsmuller got to 40-30 in Game 9, but his opponents battled their way to break point and Zimonjic converted it, deftly putting away a high backhand volley. The match was only about 50 minutes old, but was surely just about over. Zimonjic made it official, jumping out to 40-0 and smacking a service winner on match point. Recording three aces a piece and looking virtually unbreakable, Wayne Arthurs and Nenad Zimonjic advanced to the second round by a 6-1, 6-4 count. Odds and Ends: I caught the end of a wild match on Court 7 between Elena Dementieva and Sylvia Plischke. The promising young Russian led 6-3, 5-4 and earned double match point against Plischke's serve. The very fit Austrian came up big when the chips were down, though. She fought back to hold for 5-5 and then ran out a love break for 6-5. The momentum swung again as Dementieva broke serve to force a second set tiebreak. Some untimely errors from Dementieva gave Plischke triple set point at 6-3 in the 'breaker. A third set was certain to follow, right? Wrong. Hard-hitting Dementieva tenaciously won five points in a row to take the tiebreak 8-6 and the match 6-3, 7-6. A great effort from both players, who were completely drenched with sweat by the end. Plischke probably needed someone to pry her incredibly sticky clothes off her when she got back to the locker room! Over by Court 18, Debbie Graham was chatting with her mother and some friends after a first round doubles win. Playing in the final tournament of her career, Graham got a wild card with Katarina Srebotnik. A massive pulmonary thromboembolism (blood clot of the lungs) nearly ended Debbie's life, not to mention her career, five years ago. She bravely returned to the circuit, but a reoccurrence of the problem earlier this season has convinced her to retire. Debbie appeared to be wearing glitter on her arms Thursday afternoon, but explained it was "the new Lucy.com sunscreen." Meanwhile, I have to wonder what SPF level Amy Frazier needs. After seeing her hanging around the grounds in street clothes and sunglasses, I have but one question. How can a woman who spends every day of her life hitting balls out in the sun have such pale skin? Dominique van Roost vs. Lilia Osterloh Women's Singles: Second Round Grandstand Although clouds would occasionally drift overhead and offer temporary relief, the sun was really beating down by the time Dominique van Roost and Lilia Osterloh took to the Grandstand court for their second round match. It was a groundstroke battle right from the start, with each player pushing the other from side to side across the baseline. The first break point yielded the first break, as a running Van Roost lofted a beautiful backhand lob for a 3-1 lead. Van Roost followed with an impressive love hold for 4-1. She really seems to be stepping into her serve better these days -- not getting a better percentage of them in, but adding a bit to her velocity. However, it was Osterloh tallying a pair of aces in a hold for 2-4 and then breaking for 3-4. A product of the Stanford tennis factory (she won the NCAA singles title there in her freshman year), Osterloh was admirably holding her own in the hard-hitting rallies with the 12th seed. Osterloh saved a break point in Game 8 with a backhand winner down the line. Van Roost fought right back, thought, getting the ad with a backhand winner and breaking for 5-3 by whipping a forehand winner on the dead run. The Belgian's attempt to then serve out the set was a struggle. She twice fought off break point, but eventually sent a forehand wide for 5-4. A displeased Van Roost purposefully walked up to the chair and asked the umpire to admonish a couple courtside photographers for shooting between her first and second serves. Between the humidity, those clicking cameras, and Osterloh's very solid return game, nothing was easy for Dominique van Roost on Thursday afternoon. An exchange of holds got her to 6-5 and she had a clear edge in the stats (7 more winners and 1 fewer error than Osterloh). However, Lilia held at love to force a tense first set tiebreak...
After 94 minutes of pitched battle in the blazing afternoon heat, Dominique van Roost left the court. I assumed it was a bathroom or shirt change break, but the chair umpire finally announced that Van Roost had called for the trainer and was having an off-court evaluation. "They're treating her inside now," she told a confused Osterloh. The Ohio native waited restlessly. She did some stretching and slowly walked over to her coach, who just shrugged his shoulders. After six minutes had elapsed, the umpire announced that a doctor had been called. Shortly after that, another announcement followed: "Due to illness, Miss Van Roost can not continue. Game, set, match Osterloh." In a real tennis rarity, a heat-striken Dominique won the final point but lost the match, deciding she could not last through a third set. Osterloh looked genuinely disappointed when she got the news -- this was not the way she wanted to end one of the biggest wins of her career. However, a round of applause and some kind words from autograph-seekers cheered her up. One boy asked if he could have one of Lilia's racquets, to which she smiled and said, "I need those." She'll try to put them to good use in the third round, where she'll be favored over Japan's Shinobu Asagoe. Carlsson/Jeyaseelan vs. Maleeva/Nagyova Women's Doubles: First Round Court 17 After refilling my water bottle (gotta stay hydrated on a day like this) and checking out the practice court scene (a heavily perspiring Sabine Appelmans was hitting with doubles partner Linda Wild), I made my way to Court 17. Qualifiers Magdalena Maleeva and Henrieta Nagyova -- better known for their singles prowess -- had a 5-4 lead over the entertaining tandem of Asa Carlsson and Sonya Jeyaseelan. All four players were gone from singles competition, but at least they'd been felled by the best. Maleeva lost a couple hours earlier to Mary Pierce. Nagyova was ousted by Jennifer Capriati on Wednesday. Carlsson went down to Chanda Rubin on Day One. Jeyaseelan was defeated by Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario in the second round. When Jeyaseelan hit a two-handed forehand over the baseline for 30-40, the qualifiers had a set point. However, scrappy Sonya answered with a big forehand winner down the middle for deuce. A few points later, Maleeva netted a swing volley to finish Jeyaseelan's hold for 5-5. Nagyova double faulted in Game 11, which Jeyaseelan eventually won with an enthusiastically-struck backhand volley. Not long after her team was staring down a set point, Carlsson had a chance to serve it out. At 30-30, she thumped an ace, which prompted Jeyaseelan to shout, "Yes!" On set point, Maleeva pushed a backhand volley over the baseline. First set to the Swedish-Canadian pairing, 7-5. Maleeva and Jeyaseelan held to open the second set. Facing a break point at 1-1, Nagyova committed an unforced forehand error. The Slovakian slouched down in her chair on the changeover, looking quite dispirited. Maleeva wasn't much happier -- she let out a piercing shriek after netting a backhand in Game 4. Also in that game, Jeyaseelan somehow hit a winning overhead off the frame of her racquet. Sonya covered her mouth with her hand, looking embarr-amused (to coin a phrase). A Nagyova backhand -- ruled out on a late call -- then took the score to 7-5, 3-1. Maleeva saved a break point with an ace in Game 5, but missed a backhand to surrender another break. She and Nagyova didn't appear to be playing with much purpose or strategy now. Jeyaseelan held for 5-1. Intense as ever, the Canadian screamed after netting a volley in Nagyova's love hold for 2-5. Once again, it was Carlsson's job to serve out the set. She opened Game 8 with a very questionable ace. Henrieta dropped her racquet and held her hands about five inches apart, indicating how much she thought the serve had missed by. At 30-0, Jeyaseelan made a pair of leaping gets off overhead smashes, but Maleeva finally put one away for 30-15. Carlsson blasted another ace for 40-15, setting up double match point. "Great serve!", Jeyaseelan enthused. Nagyova then went out meekly, sending a forehand return well long to close it out 7-5, 6-2. Justine Henin vs. Alicia Molik Women's Singles: Second Round Court 13 Mega-talented (if not mega-sized) Justine Henin was crusing in her second round match. I arrived to find her leading 6-2, 4-1. Not having a good time at all was Alicia Molik, who spent the entire changeover badgering the chair umpire about some line calls. Molik is a big, leggy blonde with a powerful serve and a slice backhand. The fact that such a challenging player is ranked outside the Top 100 is either a testament to the increasing depth of the women's tour or a sign that Molik is seriously underachieving. Either way, it wasn't terribly surprising to see Henin with such a big lead. The young Belgian is powerful from both sides (her one-handed backhand may be second to only Amelie Mauresmo in the WTA ranks), is comfortable at the net, and plays with an abundance of competitive fire. Still taking this match very seriously, Henin screamed at herself following an error in Game 6. It was a good two-deuce contest, but Henin finally drilled a forehand pass to hold for 5-1. Showcasing her own skills, Molik scored two aces on her way to 2-5. The big serve which ended Game 7 looked like a fault to Henin. "Open your eyes," she hissed at the umpire before taking a seat. Aussie photographers snapped away at Molik throughout the ensuing changeover, perhaps realizing she wasn't going to be on court much longer. Justine saw to that -- she closed out a love hold with a service winner and an ace. 18-year-old Justine Henin looked up to the stands and pumped her fist, having impressively finished up a 6-2, 6-2 rout. It's been an easy tournament thus far for Anna Kournikova, but she may need her A game to handle Henin on Saturday. Sugiyama/Bhupathi vs. Habsudova/Rikl Mixed Doubles: First Round Court 18 1999 U.S. Open mixed doubles champions Mahesh Bhupathi and Ai Sugiyama weren't exactly starting their title defense in grand style. Relegated to the most remote of the National Tennis Center's outer courts, they dropped a 6-3 opening set to Czech lefty David Rikl and Slovakian slugger Karina Habsudova. (Yes, another Czech-Slovak combination, following in the footsteps of Wednesday evening's entertaining Novak/Husarova performance.) Bhupathi held to open the second set, but Habsudova played very well in Rikl's hold to 1-1 and hammered home an overhead to finish a break of Sugiyama for 2-1. Rikl knocked off a winning backhand volley to end Habsudova's hold for 3-1. The upset bid then really picked up momentum at 30-40 in Game 5, as Bhupathi double faulted to give away a second break. The Asian combination just looked flat right now, while a very cheerful Habsudova and Rikl were bounding around the court and firing on all cylinders. Sugiyama and Bhupathi weren't even communicating well -- they went after the same ball at 40-15 in Game 6, losing the point when their racquets collided. At 15-15 in the following game, Bhupathi hit a smash at Habsudova, who showed incredible reflexes in blocking back a volley winner. Karina raised her arms and flashed a smile as bright as the mid-afternoon sun. Two points later, Ai Sugiyama double faulted, bringing the 6-3, 6-1 contest to an abrupt conclusion. Bhupathi and Sugiyama lingered in their chairs for quite a while afterward, maybe trying to figure out what on earth had just happened to them. Karina Habsudova and David Rikl left quickly, happily heading to the second round of the mixed doubles event, where Sandrine Testud and Diego Nargiso await. Schett/Eagle vs. Raymond/Paes Mixed Doubles: First Round Court 6 After taking in the end of Arnaud Clement's win over Andre Agassi on the very cool new jumbo screen atop Louis Armstrong Stadium, I headed to Court 6 to see the other half of the Indian Express. A year ago at this time, Mahesh Bhupathi/Leander Paes was the # 1 doubles team on the planet. Unfortunately, a personality conflict between their respective entourages broke up the partnership. Having found very limited success apart, Bhupathi and Paes are (temporarily?) back together, preparing to represent their country in the Sydney Olympics. However, they didn't exactly pick up right where they left off. Jaime Oncins and Daniel Orsanic rudely escorted the Indians out of the men's doubles event, beating them in three sets earlier in the day. With Bhupathi then losing badly in mixed doubles, the pair's last hope was the mixed partnership between Paes and Lisa Raymond. Paes and Raymond won Wimbledon together last year and Lisa recently became the # 1 women's doubles player in the world. Alas, Leander's faltering doubles results have taken him out of the men's Top 50, so this talented team wasn't even seeded. Rather, Barbara Schett and Joshua Eagle were the 6th-seeded favorites (at least on paper) in this first round match. Eagle -- a hefty, jovial bloke from Down Under -- held serve to open the match. Paes, who recently shaved his head, notched an ace in holding for 1-1. The games continued with serve to 4-4. High points along the way included Leander nearly succeeding on a flashy "Sabatweenie" attempt and Barbara serving an ace past him. An ace from Eagle completed a love hold for 5-4. That was well received by the Aussie-Austrian combo's little cheering section, who referred to them as "Superman" and "Babsi." Schett scored a winning backhand volley to earn double set point against the Paes serve. However, Leander saved them both, catching the baseline with a forehand and recording a service winner. Raymond knocked off a backhand volley to win the game and even the set at 5 games apiece. Schett held for 6-5 and Raymond overcame a double fault to do likewise for 6-6. You guessed it -- time for a point-by-point synopsis of the first set tiebreak...
Paes/Raymond were finally getting on track. They earned a break point against Eagle and converted it when he missed a backhand volley. Schett/Eagle struck right back, though, and put Lisa Raymond through her paces in a 14-point seventh game. Lisa, who recently lost her appeal to be added to the U.S. Olympic team, finally netted a low backhand volley to surrender the break for 3-4. Game 8 was also close (and featured lovely touch from Paes on a sharply angled backhand winner), but Schett held for 5-3. Paes held at love for 4-5, but his team was still down a break. Keeping up his high first serve percentage, Eagle took a 40-0 lead, good for triple match point. Paes lined up what looked certain to be a winning, match-extending overhead, but it landed just wide. An 0-for-3 day for the Indian Express ended with this 7-6, 6-4 loss. As they met at the net, the women got kisses on the cheek from the men...and yes, the little girl did get her Joshua Eagle autograph. Schett and Eagle move on to meet Janette Husarova and Jiri Novak in the second round. If you ever get a chance, go watch a mixed doubles match in person. They're usually played in a nice spirit of fun and feature some great rallies. Schett/Eagle vs. Paes/Raymond was an entertaining way to finish my four days at the 2000 US Open and Husarova/Novak vs. McNeil/Blake was probably my favorite match of the week. Other memories: seeing youngsters Justine Henin and Meghann Shaughnessy really come into their own... witnessing a breakthrough win for the contagiously enthusiastic Bryan twins...getting my first looks at Daja Bedanova, Petra Mandula, and a very impressive Hyung-Taik Lee... taking in the high quality and high drama of Osterloh-Van Roost from a front row seat on the Grandstand... and bidding likely farewells to Sabine Appelmans and Goran Ivanisevic. |