alex corretja

Karolina Pliskova, Lucas Pouille Wins Give Reason To Celebrate US Open’s Ultimate-Set Tiebreakers

September 6, 2016 by Admin

by Randy Walker

@TennisPublisher

Ultimate-set tiebreakers have been the talk of the U.S. Open with Lucas Pouille defeating Rafael Nadal 6-1, 2-6, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (6) in the fourth round of men’s singles and Karolina Pliskova beating Venus Williams 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (3) in the fourth round of women’s singles. I have been tweeting that the ultimate set-tiebreaker is the most exciting 10 minutes in tennis.

Pliskova’s win came on the 20-year anniversary of one of the all-time great ultimate-set tiebreakers, Pete Sampras defeating Alex Corretja in the quarterfinals of the 1996 U.S. Open.

The U.S. Open is, of course, the only of the four major championships to have a fifth-set tiebreaker, the other three majors electing to play out ultimate sets. This can lead to all sorts of insanity, as witnessed by John Isner’s 70-68 fifth-set win over Nicolas Mahut in 2012. I’ve ranted about ultimate-set tiebreakers and how they are needed across the board in tennis, as you can watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtVQNUWoXxs

Olympic tennis has caught on as the International Tennis Federation has dictated that ultimate sets will now feature tiebreakers, as witnessed at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

So, in celebration of ultimate-set tiebreakers at the U.S. Open, here are a list of some of the best of all-time, mostly picked from my book, ebook, audio book and mobile app “This Day In Tennis History” (available at www.TennisHistoryApp.com)

1991 Women’s Semifinals – Monica Seles over Jennifer Capriati: Seventeen-year-old Monica Seles and 15-year-old Jennifer Capriati slug it out in the dramatic women’s semifinal at the U.S. Open with Seles hanging on to advance into the U.S. Open final for the first time with a nail-biting 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 (4) victory. Capriati serves for the match on two occasions – at 5-4 and 6-5 in the final set, but is unable to convert. Says Capriati, “I guess it just wasn’t meant to be.” Says Seles, “We both didn’t want to give up unitl the last ball…There was a lot of pressure on me because she was running every ball down.”

2003 Women’s Semifinals – Justin Henin-Hardenne over Jennifer Capriati: In the wee-hours of the morning the night before, Justine Henin-Hardenne finally defeats Jennifer Capriati 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (4) in the women’s semifinal in a match that concludes at 12:27 a.m. The Capriati-Henin-Hardenne match lasts 3 hours, 3 minutes with Capriati serving for the match in both in the second and third sets. She is two points from winning the match 11 times, but is unable to break through. Curiously, both Capriati and Henin-Hardenne win 127 points in the match.

1981 Women’s Final – Tracy Austin over Martina Navratilova: A tie-breaker determines the winner of a major singles title for the first time as 18-year-old Tracy Austin wins her second U.S. Open singles title edging first-time finalist and newly-minted American citizen Martina Navratilova in the final 1-6, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (1). “This means more to me than the last one,” says Austin. “At 16, it all came so fast. It was kind of like the stepping stone. I had come onto the women’s tour and gradually had gotten better and better. I was too young to realize how important it was.”

1984 Men’s Semifinal – Ivan Lendl over Pat Cash: Perhaps the single greatest day in tennis history, as Ivan Lendl defeats Pat Cash 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (4) in the first men’s semifinal, winning the final-set tie-breaker 7-4. Lendl famously saving a match point at 5-6, ad in with a forehand top-spin lob over Cash’s head.

2005 Men’s Quarterfinal – Andre Agassi over James Blake: Andre Agassi and James Blake compete in one of the most exciting U.S. Open matches of all time, Agassi finishing off a two-sets-to-love comeback win at 1:15 am winning an 8-6 fifth-set tiebreaker to advance into the men’s semifinals with a 3-6, 3-6, 6-3, 6-3, 7-6 (6) victory. “It couldn’t have been more fun to lose,” Blake tells Agassi as the two Americans embrace at the net after the two-hour, 51-minute match. “At 1:15 in the morning for 20,000 people to still be here, I wasn’t the winner, tennis was,” Agassi tells the crowd. “I don’t know if I’ve ever felt this good here before.” Blake serves for the match at 5-4 in the fifth but is denied by Agassi. Blake also leads by 5-4, serving, in the fifth-set tiebreaker but Agassi rallies to win four of the last five points.

1991 Men’s Fourth Round – Jimmy Connors over Aaron Krickstein: In one of the most famous matches in the history of the U.S. Open, Jimmy Connors turns 39-years-old and comes back from a two-sets-to-one and a 2-5 fifth-set deficit to defeat 27-year-old Aaron Krickstein 3-6, 7-6, 1-6, 6-3, 7-6 in a rousing fourth round match in the late afternoon of Labor Day Monday, “This is what I live for, to win a match 7-6 in the fifth,” says Connors, who pulls a similar escape in the first round against Patrick McEnroe, trailing two sets to love and 3-0 in the third set. “For me to pull out another stunt like this, how can you not laugh about it? What the hell is going on here?” Connors struts, fist-pumps and grinds around the court in the 4 hour, 42-minute encounter, calling chair umpire David Littlefield “an abortion” after questioning a call and telling TV viewers before the fifth-set tie-break, “This is what they paid for. This is what they want.” Writes Tommy Bonk in the Los Angeles Times, “Connors came from a break down in the fifth set, got it back even as Krickstein served for the match at 5-3, climbed into the deciding tiebreaker with a windmill overhead on which his feet cleared the court by a good two inches and knocked a backhand volley into the open court to end it on the first match point. Along the way, Connors carried on in what has become his time-honored tradition, alternating somewhere between reform school and charm school.”

1985 Women’s Final – Hana Mandlikova over Martina Navratilova: Hana Mandlikova wins her only U.S. Open singles crown defeating Martina Navratilova in the final 7-6 (3), 1-6, 7-6 (2). The 23-year-old Czech becomes the first non-American woman to win the U.S. singles title since Margaret Court of Australia in 1970. Mandlikova, who beat Chris Evert in the semifinals, bursts out to a 5-0 lead in the first set and hangs on to win the first set in a tie-breaker. Mandlikova, seeded No. 3, wins the last six points of the decisive, third-set tie-breaker. Says Mandlikova, “I just think that finally everything fell into place and I showed I can play.”

1986 Women’s Semifinal – Martina Navratilova over Steffi Graf: Martina Navratilova and Steffi Graf complete one of the greatest U.S. Open women’s semifinal matches ever as Navratilova comes back from three match points down to claim a 1-6, 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (10-8) semifinal victory over the 17-year-old West German. Navratilova, who displays fist-shaking and finger-waving emotion, leads 4-1 in the first set before the match is delayed a day due to rain and completes the inspired victory in a total match-playing time of 2 hours, 19 minutes. Writes Roy Johnson of the New York Times, “It took more than 24 hours to complete, with emotions that ranged from exultation to disappointment. In between, two players tested and stretched one another and provided a sellout crowd at the National Tennis Center with the most dramatic match of the tournament.”

1996 Men’s Quarterfinal – Pete Sampras over Alex Corretja: Defending champion and No. 1 seeded Pete Sampras, fighting off fatigue and becoming ill on court, outlasts Alex Corretja 7-6 (5), 5-7, 5-7, 6-4, 7-6 (7) in the quarterfinals in one of the most dramatic matches ever at the U.S. Open. Sampras vomits on the court after the second point of the final-set tie-break and fights off a match point at 6-7 in the tiebreaker with a stab volley. At 7-7, Sampras, struggling with his strength, serves a second-serve ace to take an 8-7 lead. Sampras appears barely able to play another point – and doesn’t need to – as Corretja double-faults the match away on the next point. Says Corretja following the match, “It was probably the best match of my career – the best one and the worst one.”

1985 Women’s Quarterfinal – Steffi Graf over Pam Shriver: In the first U.S. Open match where every set is determined by tiebreakers, sixteen-year-old advances into the semifinals at major championship for the first time in her career by upsetting No. 4 seed Pam Shriver 7-6 (4), 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4) on the Grandstand court at the USTA National Tennis Center. Shriver leads 4-1 in the final set, serves for the match at 5-3, and leads 4-3 in the final-set tiebreaker, losing the last four points in the match. “It was one of the most unbelievable matches that I’ve been a part of,” Shriver says following the two-hour, 46-minute match. “My effort couldn’t have been more–and it was just about two points too less.” Said Graf, “I don’t think I’ve ever played such a close match.”

1980 Men’s Semifinal – John McEnroe over Jimmy Connors: In a struggle between the last two men to win the U.S. Open men’s singles titles, defending champion John McEnroe beats 1978 champion Jimmy Connors 6-4, 5-7, 0-6, 6-3, 7-6 (3). The tie-breaker was mostly bereft of drama as McEnroe won six of the first seven points, before holding on for the win.

1987 Men’s First Round – Ken Flach over Darren Cahill: Ken Flach defeats qualifier Darren Cahill 1-6, 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 7-6 (15), in 3 hours 18 minutes in the xx round. The 17-15 tie-breaker score is the longest at the U.S. Open in men’s singles competition since the tiebreaker is introduced in 1970.

1998 Men’s Quarterfinal – Mark Philippoussis over Thomas Johansson: Mark Philippoussis advances to his first major semifinal with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-7 (3-7), 6-3, 7-6 (12-10) win over Thomas Johansson, saving three match points in the final-set tiebreaker.

2013 Men’s First Round – Rogerio Dutra Da Silva over Vasek Pospisil: Rogerio Dutra of Brazil saves seven match points and beats Vasek Pospisil 4-6, 3-6, 7-6 (9), 6-2, 7-6 (10) in the first round.

1985 Men’s First Round – John McEnroe over Shlomo Glickstein: Top-seed and world No. 1 John McEnroe survives a monumental first-round scare and defeats world No. 137 Shlomo Glickstein of Israel 6-1, 6-7, 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7). McEnroe trails by a service break twice in the fifth set, but rallies to force the final-set tiebreaker. He leads 6-3 in the ultimate tie-breaker, but is wrecked with nerves and finally converts on his fifth match point of the match. “It was an amazing struggle,” says McEnroe after the win. “I was in shock. By the time I realized I was in for a tough match, I had to fight my bleep off to win it. I’ve never been so happy to win a first-round match.”

1990 Women’s Third Round – Linda Ferrando over Monica Seles: Unheralded and No. 82-ranked Linda Ferrando of Italy upsets No. 3 seed and 16-year-old Monica Seles 1-6, 6-1, 7-6 (3) in the third round of the US Open. Says Seles, “I’ve never seen play before so I didn’t know what to expect from her. After the first set, I knew she was going to be a bigger problem to finish off.”

Do you have any other U.S. Open ultimate set-tiebreakers that you would like to share? Share with me on Twitter at @TennisPublisher or email me at Rwalker@NewChapterMedia.com

Pete Sampras during 1996 Fifth-Set Tiebreaker with Alex Corretja

What’s wrong with Andy Murray?

March 31, 2011 by WTM

By Mike McIntyre

After losing his third consecutive opening round match this past week in Miami, Andy Murray appears to be pushing the panic button. In an announcement confirmed earlier this week, the fifth ranked player in the world has parted ways with part-time coach Alex Corretja after a three year partnership.

While Murray is certainly in need of a shake-up, splitting with the former two-time French Open finalist as the clay-court swing approaches might not be the best move. Murray’s game transitions well enough on all surfaces, but clay is certainly his least favorite.

One rumor that surfaced shortly after the coaching split with Correjta was that former world No. 1 Ivan Lendl has made a pitch to become Murray’s next mentor. I cannot begin to describe what a terrible pairing that would turn out to be.

Aside from having absolutely no coaching experience, Lendl had been away from the tennis scene almost entirely since he retired. Back issues and a keen interest in golf have kept him off the court and we have not see him stay associated with the game in the same way guys like John McEnroe and Pete Sampras have. Simply put, Lendl is not in touch with the evolution the game has seen since he hung-up his raquet in 1994 nor does he have any input on today’s crop of current players on the ATP World Tour.

Furthermore, Lendl’s game itself is in total shambles as evidenced by his drubbing at the hands of an injured McEnroe at the end of February at the BNP Paribas Showdown at Madison Square Garden. After spraining his ankle in a pre-match warm-up, McEnroe was noticeably hobbling around the court and yet still managed to soundly defeat the out of form Lendl 6-3. A former eight time Grand Slam champion, Lendl could barely keep the ball in play.

While Murray is undoubtedly looking to discover the secret formula that would allow him to win his first major, he needs someone who can bring more to the table than an impressive resume from twenty-plus years ago on the tour. He needs someone with insight into the nuances that exist in today’s hard-hitting game. He needs someone who can offer sound scouting reports on all players within the top 150 in the rankings and someone who can put together tactical advice that can be practically implemented. Lendl, for all he accomplished during his career, is not that man.

Andy Murray can change coaches and bring in every former Slam winner who is still alive at the moment and it won’t make a bit of difference until he takes a long, hard look at himself in the mirror. It is time for a pulse-check in order to figure out if he has the drive to fight through these current obstacles and find a way to persevere against his biggest problem – himself.

Routed in three Grand Slam finals has undoubtedly taken it’s mental toll on Murray as he has been a total basket-case on the court since losing to Novak Djokovic in Melbourne in January. Always known as a monotonous bore during his press conferences, Murray is now starting to show the same lack of interest in his play on the court as well.

The three first round losses in-a-row to average players is inexcusable. Marcos Baghdatis defeated him in Rotterdam in early February 6-4, 6-1. Baghdatis had his best moment on the circuit five years ago when he made the Aussie Open final and has struggled with consistency and physical fitness ever since.

Murray was then beat 7-6, 6-3 by American phenom-in-stasis, Donald Young. It was arguably the victory of Young’s career as he has been nothing but unattainable hype ever since he broke onto the pro-tour a few years back.

The worst loss of all occurred this past week in Miami as Murray was knocked off by Alex Bogomolov Jr. by a score of 6-1, 7-5. Bogomolov is a 27 year-old journeyman who often finds himself playing on the challenger tour and should likely not even defeat Andy’s younger brother Jamie.

Murray can now move towards the clay-court season and hope that the change of scenery can kick-start a new chapter in his disappointing season. His record on the red-dirt was 7-4 a year ago, but he failed to advance past the quarter-finals of any of the four tournament’s he entered on the surface.

Unfortunately I predict another two months of misery for Murray before he can head home in June to face his critics in the United Kingdom prior to a Wimbledon that will likely bestow upon him the most challenging and bitter criticism he has had to face in his career thus far.

Will Murray be able to dig deep and and turn things around to silence his growing list of detractors or are we in for what could be a slow and painful collapse from a player who just doesn’t have the mental fortitude to make his stamp on the men’s game? Stay tuned, as not even Murray himself can give us an answer to that question at present time.

Jana Novotna: “Pour some olive oil on me” – On this day in Sony Ericsson Open history

March 27, 2011 by Admin

The Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Fla., is the biggest, most prestigious tennis tournament in the United States next to the US Open. Its history dates back to 1985 and is documented in pages in my book ON THIS DAY IN TENNIS HISTORY ($19.95, New Chapter Press, www.TennisHistoryBook.com). The following are events that happened in the history of the tournament – also previously called the Lipton Championships, the NASDAQ-100 Open and the Ericsson Open – as excerpted from the book from March 27.

March 27

1988 – Twenty-three-year-old Mats Wilander outlasts 35-year-old Jimmy Connors 6-4, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 in 3 hours, 39 minutes to win the Lipton Championships in Key Biscayne, Fla.

1999 – Richard Krajicek of the Netherlands wins the biggest title of his career besides his 1996 Wimbledon crown, defeating No. 74-ranked Sebastien Grosjean of France 4-6, 6-1, 6-2, 7-5 in the men’s singles final at the Lipton Championships in Key Biscayne, Fla. Grosjean becomes the lowest-ranked player to reach the final in Key Biscayne.

1997 – With on-court temperatures hovering around 110 degrees, sixteen-year-old Martina Hingis outlasts Jana Novotna 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 in the semifinals of the Lipton Championships. Says Novotna of the hot conditions of the match, “Occasionally I looked in the corner – 105 and it’s like ‘Nice frying, let’s pour some olive oil on me.” Jim Courier, seeded No. 22, defeats No. 4 seed Goran Ivanisevic 6-2, 7-6 (2) in the men’s quarterfinals. Says Goran following the match, “I gave him everything – nice presents.”

1998 – Marcelo Rios allows Tim Henman only five points in the final set in his 6-2, 4-6, 6-0 semifinal victory at the Lipton Championships in Key Biscayne. Andre Agassi, ranked No. 31 in the world, also advances into the men’s singles final, defeating Alex Corretja 6-4, 6-2. Says Agassi of the talk of the race for the world No. 1 ranking between Pete Sampras and Marcelo Rios following his victory, “I don’t know why they are all talking about Rios and Sampras, at the end of the year, I’m going to be No. 1.” Agassi goes on to finish No. 6, while Sampras finishes No. 1 and Rios No. 2.

2007 – For the second time in a month, Roger Federer loses to Guillermo Canas of Argentina, falling by a 7-6 (2), 2-6, 7-6 (5) margin in the fourth round of the Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Fla. Canas ends Federer’s 41-match win streak in the first round of the Indian Wells two weeks earlier and in Key Biscayne, ends the Swiss maestro’s chance at winning his third straight title in the island paradise. Says Federer. “It’s one of those matches I never should have lost.” Says Canas, “I’m surprised because I beat two times the No. 1 in the world. Really, I don’t know what is my secret I’m just trying to enjoy the moment. For me it’s like a dream.” Fellow No. 1 seed Maria Sharapova is also eliminated from the event but in a much more convincing fashion, losing 6-1, 6-1 to Serena Williams.