Halfway through the U.S. Open of tennis, some very interesting stories have developed. Here are the top 5:
5. Venus Williams: I don’t often discuss women’s tennis, because the seedings seem to mean absolutely nothing, and any attempt at predictions is a crapshoot. Still, at the end of the U.S Open, we expect to see the Williams sisters battling it out, so Venus’s fourth round loss to Kim Clijsters is big news.
4. Kim Clijsters: She had a child in February 2008 and only returned to tennis 2 months ago at Wimbledon. In Sunday’s matchup against Venus Williams, it was clear why she was once the number 1 player in the world, and past U.S. Open champion. She did to Venus what Venus does to so many others, dominating her with power and aggressiveness, and in the end it was Venus who had no response. Comeback stories are always fan favourites, and she will be the Cinderella story of this tournament if she keeps it going.
3. Novak Djokovic: The 4th seed found it much too difficult to eliminate American Jesse Witten, who is ranked 276th in the world. The real negative for Djokovic, though, is that instead of embracing the fans in New York, and celebrating his success with them, he continues to act like he is against all of them. Upon winning a point, instead of smiling and allowing them to rejoice with him, he looks only to his box of supporters, acting like they are the only people encouraging him. Unfortunately, with an attitude like that, no one else wants to cheer for him, and his unpopularity at the U.S. Open continues.
2. Rafael Nadal: He has been hitting and moving very well so far in the tournament, but against Nicolas Almagro, he reaggravated an abdominal strain that first occurred in Cincinnati earlier this summer. If the injury is bad it could hamper him even more than his knee problems, because the core muscles are essential in generating the powerful strokes that Nadal has built his success on.
1. Andy Roddick: In a stunning third round upset, 5th seed Andy Roddick lost to fellow American John Isner on Saturday, ending his 2009 quest to win a second major championship. After nearly winning Wimbledon earlier this summer, much more was expected from Roddick on his favourite surface, but he will have to wait until next season for another shot at a Grand Slam.
5. Venus Williams: I don’t often discuss women’s tennis, because the seedings seem to mean absolutely nothing, and any attempt at predictions is a crapshoot. Still, at the end of the U.S Open, we expect to see the Williams sisters battling it out, so Venus’s fourth round loss to Kim Clijsters is big news.
4. Kim Clijsters: She had a child in February 2008 and only returned to tennis 2 months ago at Wimbledon. In Sunday’s matchup against Venus Williams, it was clear why she was once the number 1 player in the world, and past U.S. Open champion. She did to Venus what Venus does to so many others, dominating her with power and aggressiveness, and in the end it was Venus who had no response. Comeback stories are always fan favourites, and she will be the Cinderella story of this tournament if she keeps it going.
3. Novak Djokovic: The 4th seed found it much too difficult to eliminate American Jesse Witten, who is ranked 276th in the world. The real negative for Djokovic, though, is that instead of embracing the fans in New York, and celebrating his success with them, he continues to act like he is against all of them. Upon winning a point, instead of smiling and allowing them to rejoice with him, he looks only to his box of supporters, acting like they are the only people encouraging him. Unfortunately, with an attitude like that, no one else wants to cheer for him, and his unpopularity at the U.S. Open continues.
2. Rafael Nadal: He has been hitting and moving very well so far in the tournament, but against Nicolas Almagro, he reaggravated an abdominal strain that first occurred in Cincinnati earlier this summer. If the injury is bad it could hamper him even more than his knee problems, because the core muscles are essential in generating the powerful strokes that Nadal has built his success on.
1. Andy Roddick: In a stunning third round upset, 5th seed Andy Roddick lost to fellow American John Isner on Saturday, ending his 2009 quest to win a second major championship. After nearly winning Wimbledon earlier this summer, much more was expected from Roddick on his favourite surface, but he will have to wait until next season for another shot at a Grand Slam.
photo: courtesy AP
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