US OPEN 2012
US Open Tuesday Diary: Nice Shirt, Radek!
Nice shirt, Radek! What do you think?
ATPWorldTour.com takes a look at the news and talking points at the US Open on the first Tuesday.
Radek’s Fashion Statement
Czech Radek Stepanek wore a match shirt emblazoned with a drawing of the Statue of Liberty, the 93-metre sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, in his first round match against Spanish No. 11 seed Nicolas Almagro, who won 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-4.
Watch Out Bryan Twins!
There are some new brothers on the block. Ryan Harrison and his 18-year-old brother, Christian Harrison, caused a major upset on day two when they knocked out last year’s doubles finalists, fourth-seeded Poles Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marcin Matkowski, 7-6(3), 2-6, 7-6(7) in two hours and nine minutes.
“Being at these tournaments, and around these environments, it’s partly why I’m so self-motivated,” Christian Harrison told the official tournament website. “Whenever you’re playing in the US, have a crowd like today, and then come through with a win, it pumps me up just thinking about it. I just want to go out and get better to hopefully be back in this situation as often as I can.”
Ryan Harrison admitted, “Having him out here is so much fun and to share these experiences with him is really rare. Hopefully we can keep doing it.”
Djokovic’s Quick Win
Second seed and defending champion Novak Djokovic required just 73 minutes to beat Italian Paolo Lorenzi 6-1, 6-0, 6-1. It was the Serbian’s fastest victory in the first round of a major, bettering his 6-0, 6-0, 6-3 win over No. 71-ranked Robby Ginepri in 78 minutes at 2005 Roland Garros. Djokovic also beat Lorenzi 6-2, 6-0, 6-0 in 98 minutes in this year’s Australian Open first round.
Tsonga Admires Serve-Volleyer Rafter
World No. 6 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga admitted he would like to play a fantasy tennis match against Patrick Rafter, the 1997 and 1998 US Open champion, “to see if it's still possible to play serve and volley on tour or not. I loved him. I loved the way he played. I have a lot of respect for this guy. I want to play sometimes like him a serve and volley, but on the tour it's still difficult to play like this because the ball goes so fast and you don't have time to [rush] the net. Former World No. 1 Rafter won the ATP’s Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award in 1997, 1999-2001.
More American Doubles Success
Americans Steve Johnson and Jack Sock knocked out top seeds Max Mirnyi and Daniel Nestor 1-6, 7-6(4), 6-2 in the first round. It was only the eighth time in 72 Grand Slam doubles championships – and the first time since the 2006 Australian Open (w/Knowles) – that Nestor had lost in the first round. Mirnyi has now lost 16 openers in 62 majors. Mirnyi and Nestor started the US Open with a 1,210 points lead over No. 2-ranked Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan in the ATP Doubles Rankings.
Raonic Praises Federer’s Game
Milos Raonic, the 21-year-old Canadian who is playing at his second US Open, discussed Roger Federer’s game after his 6-3, 4-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 win over Colombia’s Santiago Giraldo. Of Federer, the No 15 seed said, “I think he's one of the most enjoyable players to watch. There's just such an ease to it. I think at the same time, that's why he has been able to come back to [World] No. 1. That's why he has been able to stay healthy. There's a fluidity and an ease that everything he does looks very athletic and none of it really looks forced. I think it's helped his longevity as well. He just gets better and better throughout the tournament.”
Bryans May Clash Early In Mixed Doubles
Mike Bryan could meet Bob Bryan in the mixed doubles second round. Second seeds Mike Bryan and Lisa Raymond, the 2002 US Open and 2012 Wimbledon champions need to beat Ekaterina Makarova and Bruno Soares, while Bob Bryan partners Kim Clijsters against Americans Irina Falconi and Johnson in their first match. The last time the twins met was in the 2008 Wimbledon final, when Bob and Samantha Stosur beat Mike and Katarina Srebotnik 7-5, 6-4.
Tweet Of The Day
@dusanVemic (Dusan Vemic), the 2008 US Open doubles quarter-finalist (w/Soares), posted a great 360-degree photo of Arthur Ashe Stadium court -
http://360.io/q68jnX
Match Of The Day
There were seven matches that went five sets Tuesday. Of those seven, four players - Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, Alexandr Dolgopolov, Philipp Petzschner and Fabio Fognini - rallied from two-sets down to win. Garcia-Lopez claimed the biggest victory when he knocked out 10th-seeded Argentine Juan Monaco 3-6, 1-6, 6-4, 7-6(6), 7-6(3) in four hours and 31 minutes.
G Garcia-Lopez (ESP) d [10] J Monaco (ARG) 36 16 64 76(6) 76(3)
[14] A Dolgopolov (UKR) d J Levine (USA) 36 46 64 61 62
[15] M Raonic (CAN) d S Giraldo (COL) 63 46 36 64 64
P Petzschner (GER) d N Mahut (FRA) 16 46 64 75 76(3)
M Baghdatis (CYP) d M Bachinger (GER) 62 46 64 67(8) 76(5)
F Fognini (ITA) d E Roger-Vasselin (FRA) 36 57 64 64 75
R Dutra Silva (BRA) d T Gabashvili (RUS) 46 64 67(5) 63 75
