Nice little warm up video with Samantha Stosur before her second round match at the US Open 2011.
Sam hasnt performed her best at Grand Slams this year, but Im sure she will be looking to change that at the US Open.
It is always a shame to see players retire in a tournament, let alone a Grand Slam event. Kei Nishikori is a very popular player who has had to pull out of the US Open 2011 with a lower back injury.
Flavio Cipolla was leading 6-4, 6-2 on Monday when Nishikori retired.
Im sure Nishikori will be back at the US Open and hopefully next time he can improve his preparation for the tournament and make sure he doesnt get injured.
Samantha Stosur had a great first round win yesterday against Sofia Arvidsson 6-2 6-3. Here is what Sam had to say before the match about Sofia and how she was preparing for this years US Open.
Here is an interview with Jelena Dokic ahead of her first round match against Olga Govortsova at the 2011 US Open.
Here are the thoughts of the press about the US Open 2011 chances of Serena Williams.
Petra Kvitova hasnt had a great lead up to the US Open 2011 and she has been bundled out in the first round. Petra was knocked out by Alexandra Dulgheru 7-6 6-3.
It seems as though she has been struggling to regain her form after her amazing Wimbledon 2011 run. Petra! Keep doing the basics right and the rest will come!
After enduring a shoulder injury against Andy Murray in the final of the Cincinnati Masters and having to retire at 6-4 3-0 down, Novak Djokovic used a method of healing that is highly unorthodox for most athletes.
He has stated in the WSJ that he is using a a machine called the hyperbaric chamber in which, a person stays inside in order to compress the muscles at rhythmic intervals. The machine does this by simulating an environment that has high altitude.
The machine in question is called the CVAC Pod which is made by CVAC Systems. It costs $75,000 and the company which makes it, claims that a mere 20 minutes in the pod three times a week can boost athletic performance by drastically improving circulation, boosting red-blood cells, removing lactic acid and maybe aid in stem-cell production.
CVAC Systems CEO Allen Ruszkowski also claims that the technology may be twice as effective at helping the body absorb oxygen as blood doping, which we all know is banned as a performance enhancement. Strangely enough, other athletes are said to use the pod. Ruszkowski said they do so “because they feel it’s a competitive advantage.”
During the current US Open tourney in New York held for the next two weeks, Novak is said to be staying at the New Jersey home of former pro Gordon Uehling, who apparently houses this futuristically innovative machine. Some current clients of another former touring pro Geoff Grant, who have tried the machine “say it’s like a drug. It’s weird—it’s definitely something from the future.”
Current number one in the world Novak Djokovic had this to say about the new miracle-working gadget. ”I think it really helps—not with muscle but more with recovery after an exhausting set,” Djokovic said. “It’s like a spaceship. It’s very interesting technology.”
Whether or not this thing really works, which will be quite interesting to examine especially with Novak’s US Open campaign getting started this week, it is a very interesting concept of another step being taken in medicinal technological advances and only time will tell whether or not the “pod” is going to be a more favorable method of healing injuries and recovering from strenuous hours of work on the playing field for other top athletes.
What do you think about this revelation from Novak? Will it become the new go-to trend for athletic therapy? Comment below.
The 2011 US Open will commence several hours from now in the Big Apple. Coming into the final major of the year, the focus on the men’s side is clearly around Novak Djokovic, who at 57-2 on the year will be looking to capture his third slam of the year. Also, look for this year to be one of the best showings for American males in the last several years . With this being said, here are my predictions for 2011…
Dark Horse: I was going to put Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in this position, but I simply do not believe that he is a dark horse. At this point, Tsonga is a certified threat and will not be taken lightly by anyone. To state it simply, if Tsonga were to advance to the Semifinals it would not come as a huge shock thus he is not a dark horse in my book. A dark horse is defined as someone essentially wins against expectation. My dark horse in this tournament is without a doubt John Isner. I fully expect Isner to get past Baghdatis seeing that he has not only beaten him two out of the last three weeks in Montreal and Winston Salem but Isner also has the American crowd to rally behind. In the second round Isner would get through Robby Ginepri with ease. The third round would likely be a matchup against Robin Soderling. The Swede has been out of the game since Wimbledon and will definitely come into the Open with rust. I fully believe that Isner has the game and more crucially the confidence to take out Soderling on such a big stage. Isner would likely play Del Potro or Simon in the fourth round. Both of these are winnable matches for Isner as Simon lacks the firepower necessary to defeat the top guys in a best of five match and Del Potro has clearly been playing below his top level. If Isner does end up reaching the QFs and playing Andy Murray he would definitely be the overwhelming underdog, but crazier things have happened.
Early Exit: Plainly put, Robin Soderling has been out since Wimbledon and with the lack of hard court play, I find it very hard to see him progressing past the first week in Flushing Meadows.
Best first round matchups (Ranked):
1. Monfils v. Dimitrov
2. Harrison v. Cilic
3. Baghdatis v. Isner
4. Kohlschreiber v. Stepanek
5. Youzhny v. Gulbis
I am not going to go to in depth right now with predictions as there will be time for that later on in the tournament but here are what I see as the most probable matchups:
QF Matchups:
Djokovic v. Monfils
Federer v. Fish
Murray v. Isner
Nadal V. Ferrer
Semis: Djokovic v. Federer; Murray v. Nadal
Finals: Murray v. Djokovic
Winner of 2011 US Open: Djokovic
There were a lot of upsets on the first day of the US Open 2011. Heather Watson from the UK came very close to the upset of her career and the tournament with a brilliant match. Heather played Maria Sharapova (who is my favourite for the title) and lost 3-6 7-5 6-3.
“I had a lot of fun today. It’s what I want to do. I want to be out there on the big courts playing the top players. It was a really great match, very competitive. We played some really great tennis.
“I had my chances in the second set. You have to create the opportunity but also execute, and I was probably a bit too defensive on those important points.
“But I always believed I could win. There’s no point in my going out there if I don’t believe that I can win.
“I just wanted to make every ball, make her play every ball, and just fight. Because Maria’s a fighter. She’s never going to give up. That’s what makes her a champion. That’s why she’s won this tournament before.
“I absolutely loved the atmosphere. I thought everyone was going to be supporting Maria. She’s won here before. She’s been number one in the world.
“I had a lot of support. I heard some people calling me Cinderella, all sorts of stuff. And just when they were chanting my name, I kind of got the goosebumps. I thought, ‘Stay calm, focus on the match’.”
Heather should be very happy with her performance and this is promising for British tennis!
There was a very interesting article in the New York Times about Taylor Townsend. Taylor is only 15 and competing in the US Open 2011 qualifying. Taylor didnt make it through the qualifying event, but she did manage to impress a lot of people.
Richard Williams:
I think she’s better than my daughters at that time.
That is very high praise! It will be interesting to see Taylor progress in the rest of her tennis career.
Mardy Fish v. Tobias Kamke- Enjoying by far the best year of his career, Mardy Fish will be looking to make a deep run in the 2011 US Open. In the first round he will be facing Tobias Kamke from Germany. Kamke will be no light task as the speedy Germany possesses an all around game with no overwhelming weaknesses. Kamke generates a ton of racket speed off both sides and will be looking to dictate play from the baseline by taking the ball early when given the opportunity. With this being said, Fish will undoubtedly have to work but should be able to make it through unscathed.
Prediction:Fish in 3
Roger Federer v. Santiago Giraldo- This first round match is about as lopsided as it gets. Giraldo is a defensive baseliner from Colombia who does not have any weapons to threaten Federer and really prefers the Clay courts to which his style of play is much better suited. Federer should be able to use this match to build form for the rest of the tournament. I don’t see any possible way for Federer to lose this match barring an injury.
Prediction: Federer in 3
Ryan Harrison v. Marin Cilic- This is an extremely intriguing matchup. You have the young American upstart in Ryan Harrison looking to breakthrough in a major for the first time and accelerate his already inclining career path. In contrast, Marin Cilic is attempting to regain the form that cemented his spot in the top 10 and spurred him to an Australian Open semifinal in 2010. Cilic has not won a grand slam match this season and this match very well could lead to his completion of a “grand slam”- losing in the first round of all four majors. Look for Harrison to relentlessly attack the Cilic forehand as it contains a lot of wrist action and is prone to breaking down. Overall, I think Harrison plays a more reliable, gutsy, confidence driven game and at this moment is in a better spot in his career despite being ranked lower.
Prediction: Harrison in 4
Gael Monfils v. Grigor Dimitrov- This is an absolutely fantastic first round match between quite possibly the future of men’s tennis in Dimitrov and arguably the most electrifying player on tour in Monfils. Dimitrov is surely going to give Monfils everything he can handle and really make him work hard to earn his passage through to the 2nd round. This match will really be predicated on whether the passive or aggressive Monfils shows up. If Monfils chooses to camp back 2 miles behind the baseline and retrieve with his exceptional defensive abilities, he really is not setting himself up with the best chance to win. Dimitrov has incredible shot making ability and if he is on, playing defensive is simply not going to work out for Monfils. If Monfils chooses to play more offensively, this could be a slugfest. I expect Monfils will draw substantial confidence from his performance against Novak Djokovic in Cincinnati and in the end find a suitable balance between offense and defense that will be too much for Dimitrov to counter.
Prediction: Monfils in 4
Ivo Karlovic v. Fernando Gonzalez- Many people might be surprised to find out that Fernando Gonzalez in fact still does play tennis being he has only played 6 tour level matches this season. Plagued by a knee injury in the first half of 2011, Gonzo faces a formidable challenge in the big serving Croatian. I really see this match as one that is going to be very difficult for Gonzalez to win. Only having played one hard court match this summer, Gonzo is lacking match play and there is no worse player to try to develop rhythm against than Karlovic.
Prediction: Karlovic in 4 (expect a few tiebreakers)
Kohlschreiber v. Stepanek- Stepanek has enjoyed greater success on the American hard courts than Kohlschreiber this summer and leads their head to head 4-1. Kohlschreiber is a personal favorite of mine but unfortunately the craft and finesse of Stepanek will prove too much for the German.
Prediction: Stepanek in 4 tight sets
Other Matches:
Malisse v. Granollers- Toss up match. Neither player has won a hard court match this summer and Granollers has not even played in a hard court tournament. This is a tough call, but I am going to say the X-man in five unentertaining sets.
Prediction: Malisse in 5
Monaco v. Seppi- This could be a long, drawn out match as both of these guys prefer to grind it out from the baseline. Monaco definitely has a greater ability to turn defense into offense and pull the trigger.
Prediction: Monaco in 5
Rounding off Day 1…
Montanes over Kukushkin in 5, Ferrero over Andujar in 3, Dolgpolov over Gil in 3, Petzschner over Ramos in 3, Fognini over Zeballos in 5, Llodra over Hanescu in 3, Tipsarevic over Gensse in 3, Nishikori over Cipolla in 3, Gasquet over Stakhovsky in 3, Haas over Dasnieres De Veigy in 5, Troicki over Falla in 4, Berdych of Jouan in 3, Anderson over Soeda in 3
Upsets: Sela over Bellucci in 4, Jaziri over De Bakker in 5
World No.1 and reigning Australian Open and Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic was confirmed as top seed in the men’s singles at the US Open which starts on Monday. Here is a list of all the US Open 2011 seeds for the Mens Singles.
US Open Mens Seeds:
Here are a few images of what World No. 1 Novak Djokovic’s outfits could be for the 2011 US Open:
The white outfit is for the day sessions, and the navy blue outfit is for the night sessions.
And just in case of rain or harsh weather, some pants will be used as well!
Tomas Berdych has decided to head to Niketown and customize his own Zoom Breathe 2k11 shoes for the US Open 2011.
Berdych decided to have his national colours on the shoes to make it a bit more fun.
Anyone can build their own shoes at NikeID.com.
The US Open will be offering their own live streaming of the US Open 2011. If you head over to their official streaming page you will see all live action from six different courts over the course of the tournament.
During Labor Day weekend (September 3-5) and Finals weekend (September 9-11), enjoy live streaming from your mobile device as well, and for the men’s and women’s singles finals log on for special 3D streaming.
The Tennis Channel in the USA is going to offer amazing tv coverage of the US Open 2011. Here is the schedule for The Tennis Channel.
Tennis Channel’s Live 2011 US Open Match Schedule
Date Time (ET) Event
Monday, Aug. 29 11 a.m.-7 p.m. First-Round Action
Tuesday, Aug. 30 11 a.m.-7 p.m. First-Round Action
Wednesday, Aug. 31 11 a.m.-7 p.m. First-Round, Second-Round Action
Thursday, Sept. 1 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Second-Round Action
Friday, Sept. 2 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Second-Round, Third-Round Action
Saturday, Sept. 3 7 p.m.-11 p.m. Third-Round Action
Sunday, Sept. 4 7 p.m.-11 p.m. Third-Round, Fourth-Round Action
Tuesday, Sept. 6 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Fourth-Round Action, Doubles
Wednesday, Sept. 7 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Doubles Quarterfinals
Thursday, Sept. 8 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Doubles, Juniors, Wheelchair
Tennis Channel’s US Open Tonight, Breakfast at the Open Schedule
Highlight and interview show US Open Tonight will premiere at 11 p.m. ET every night of the US Open, Monday, Aug. 29-Sunday, Sept. 11. After its debut Tuesday, Aug. 30, sister-show Breakfast at the Open will run through the end of the tournament on Sunday, Sept. 11. The program will appear every morning at 6 a.m. ET, with the exception of an 11 a.m. ET start on Saturday, Sept. 10. The schedule is generally as follows (all times ET):
11 p.m.-12 a.m. – US Open Tonight
12 a.m.-1 a.m. – US Open Tonight
1 a.m.-3 a.m. – Encore Match
3 a.m.-4 a.m. – US Open Tonight
4 a.m.-6 a.m. – Encore Match
6 a.m.-7 a.m. – Breakfast at the Open
7 a.m.-8 a.m. – Breakfast at the Open
8 a.m.-10 a.m. – Encore Match
10 a.m.-11 a.m. – Breakfast at the Open
The US Open has released the draws for their qualifying tournament.
The draws can be found here:
Here is Lleyton Hewitt’s press conference after his 6-4 7-6(3) first-round loss to Blaz Kavcic at the Winston-Salem Open.
After this press conference Lleyton made the tough decision to pull out of the US Open 2011.
The injury list for the US Open is growing by the day, so it is going to be a very interesting tournament. The only top male player not on the list is Roger Federer.
Womens injuries so far:
Maria Sharapova has taken the Cincinnati title. Maria Sharapova defeated Jelena Jankovic in the final 4-6 7-6 6-3. The match had 20 double faults and 16 service breaks, so wasnt the best match from either player, but still a very interesting and close final.
This is good preparation for both players leading into the US Open. With Kim Clijsters out of the US Open I will be placing my money on Sharapova for the title.
