World Tennis Magazine

Unique Tennis Perspectives

james blake

An American Movement Fueled by the Masses

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By Erwin Ong

The fourth day of play at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif., produced some notable results for American tennis players, no doubt buoyed by playing in front of a home crowd.

Most significant of these is the straight set victory by qualifier Donald Young over fifth seed Andy Murray. His 7-6 (4), 6-3 defeat of the 2011 Australian Open finalist is a welcome development for the American, who has languished ever since succumbing to the pressure to be the Next Great American; he’s currently ranked 143 in the world.

Ryan Sweeting

Another qualifier, Ryan Sweeting, spent some time this afternoon on the practice court, his coach reminding him to be aggressive during his match against Juan Monaco of Argentina. Sweeting successfully upset the 27th seed 6-1, 0-6, 6-1. The frustrated Monaco forced points with drop shots and outright winners – most unsuccessful – ultimately leading to his defeat in this up-and-down match.

The pro-American fans surely boosted these players to victory. The stadium seats made their preferences and enthusiasm known clearly, frazzling even the most seasoned of the opponents. “The crowd were for him,” Murray said of playing Young. “He started playing better. I didn’t find my way back into the match.”

And Ryan Sweeting, during his on-court interview, described the fan support as “electric,” giving him goosebumps every time they cheered.

That intensity also played into Christina McHale’s marathon over Svetlana Kuznetsova. The 7-6 (4), 7-6 (7) win, which took over 2 hours, was egged on by the crowd who chanted her name, did the wave during changeovers, and kept a motivating atmosphere for McHale. “I just told myself to keep fighting,” McHale shared. Every point I had been playing well, so I just tried not to think about the score.”

The Bryan Brothers – not that they need fan support to win – also benefited from being one of Saturday’s late matches, which left ticketholders with no choice but to pack the stands as they played against Feli Lopez and Canadian upstart Milos Raonic . Their 6-4, 7-5 gets them closer to a trophy they have yet to win. Meanwhile, other seeded teams lost early: The second-seeded team of Nestor and Mirnyi only won three games against Federer and Wawrinka; fourth seed Matkowski and Fyrstenberg lost two tiebreak sets to defending champs Nadal and Lopez; and the team of Llodra and Zimonjic, seeded sixth, lost in the super-tiebreak to the Americans John Isner and Sam Querrey.

And the American presence could be short-lived; Sweeting next faces Nadal; Andy Roddick and James Blake square off; wildcard Ryan Harrison will play 22nd seed Guillermo Garcia Lopez; and McHale will take on Nadia Petrova. But while they are at this tournament, they can bank on having fans on American soil cheer them on. Whether they can convert that support and energy into a “W” on the scoreboard is up to them.

Blake and Safina highlight Sony Ericsson Open wildcards

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The 2011 Sony Ericsson Open announced its wildcard entries and this year it features former World No. 4 James Blake and former World No. 1 Dinara Safina. A total of five wildcard slots were granted to the men’s draw and also include Jack Sock, Ryan Harrison, Milos Raonic, and Bernard Tomic. While six were given on the women’s side which feature Heather Watson, Sorana Cirstea, Sabine Lisicki, Madison Keys, and Coco Vandeweghe.

Dinara Safina

Women’s main draw begins on Tuesday, March 22, while the men’s main draw kicks off the following day on Wednesday, March 23. The qualifying rounds will be held Monday and Tuesday, March 21 and 22.

Tickets to the 2011 Sony Ericsson Open are on sale now and can be purchased by phone (305-442-3367) or via internet at www.sonyericssonopen.com. An electrifying two weeks of tennis conclude with the women’s final on Saturday, April 2 and the men’s final on Sunday, April 3.

Blake will make his return to Miami, hoping to improve on his career-best quarterfinal showings in 2006 and 2008. Safina made her last appearance on the purple courts in 2009 as the No. 2 seeded player advancing to the third round. She recorded her career-best finish in 2008 when she advanced to the quarterfinals.

Blake, always a fan favorite, earned his first ATP win in 2002 becoming the fourth African American to win an ATP title in the Open Era. In 2005, Blake grabbed the national spotlight at the U.S. Open when he played a thrilling five-set match in the quarter finals against his idol, Andre Agassi. From there, Blake’s career blossomed tremendously as he reached his career-high of No. 4 in the world in 2006 becoming the first African American to crack the top-10 since his role model, Arthur Ashe.

Safina made her professional debut in 2002. The Russian star recorded a breakout season in 2008 winning a career-best four singles titles. In 2008, she was awarded the WTA Most Improved Player, and was the first player in history to defeat three reigning World No. 1s in the same season (Justine Henin, Maria Sharapova, and Jelena Jankovic). Safina reached a career-high rank of No. 1 in the world in 2009, and joined her brother Marat Safin as the first brother-sister combo to both achieve World No. 1 rankings.

In addition to Blake and Safina the tournament wildcards include many of the Tour’s next generation of tennis stars.

Other men’s highlights include, Ryan Harrison who is a promising 18-year-old American who last year became the first American teenager to beat a top 20 opponent in a Grand Slam since Andy Roddick. At the 2010 U.S. Open, Harrison defeated the 15th seed Ivan Ljubicic in three sets in the first round for his first win in a Grand Slam tournament.

Young Canadian tennis star, Milos Raonic, captured his first ATP World Tour title earlier this year inSan Jose becoming the first from his nation to win an ATP World Tour title in 16 years. Afterwards, Raonic rose to a career-high No. 37.

On the women’s side Romanian Sorana Cirstea reached a career-high rank of No. 23 in 2009 after recording a quarterfinal appearance at the French Open and advancing to the third round at bothWimbledon and the U.S. Open. Cirstea won her first WTA Tour singles title in 2008 at Tashkent.

German Sabine Lisicki has one career WTA Tour singles title to her credit having won in Charlestonin 2009. That year she recorded a career-high singles ranking of 22 in the world. Lisicki will look to better her career-best fourth round finish in Miami in 2008.

The addition of the wildcard entries adds to what is already a Grand Slam quality player field including defending Sony Ericsson Open champ Andy Roddick; 16-time Grand Slam Champion and three-time Sony Ericsson Open winner Roger Federer; reigning Australian Open winner Novak Djokovic; and 2009 Sony Ericsson Open champion Andy Murray.

The women’s field is also loaded with the world’s best players including defending Sony Ericsson Open champion Kim Clijsters; three-time Sony Ericsson Open champion Venus Williams, current World No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki; and three-time Grand Slam champion Maria Sharapova.

South African Tennis Open Fights to Stay on ATP World Tour Schedule: This Week in Tennis Business with Justin Cohen

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South African Tennis Open in Johannesburg fighting to remain on ATP World Tour schedule

The recently completed South African Tennis Open, which was won last weekend by hometown hero Kevin Anderson, is currently fighting an uphill battle as the tournaments hopes to remain on the ATP World Tour schedule next year or in subsequent years. With the Olympics happening next year in London, the ATP World Tour had to make some changes to the 2012 tournament schedule and the South African Tennis Open was ultimately removed from its spot on the calendar. “We’ve got about eight months to persuade the ATP to find an alternative date,” said Ian Smith, Tournament Director. “They are sympathetic. But a great deal of bartering and bargaining will have to take place in the process…hopefully we can come to an arrangement to keep the tournament alive.”

Dinara Safina hires new coach

Babolat signs five-year deal to supply official ball at French Open

On Thursday, Babolat announced that they had signed a five-year deal to supply the official ball at the French Open, as well as provide stringing services for all players in the tournament and offer tennis fans a complete line of Babolat-Roland Garros products. The Babolat-Roland Garros line will be available starting in May at stores and the Roland Garros boutique. “Part of our history is written on the clay courts of Roland-Garros through our team of players who have often distinguished themselves in this tournament. In the past, we have also provided stringing service here,” said Eric Babolat, President and CEO of Babolat. “Now, a new chapter in French tennis history is opening. All the players in the tournament, without exception, will play with a ball developed by Babolat and will benefit from our stringing service. For tennis fans, we will offer our first collection of Babolat and Roland-Garros products. This collaboration perfectly illustrates the positioning of Babolat: an expert brand offering tennis equipment for all types of players.”

Safina hires former ATP player Sanguinetti as new coach

Former World No. 1 Dinara Safina has hired Italian Davide Sanguinetti as her new coach after splitting with former coach Gaston Etlis following her 6-0, 6-0 loss to Kim Clijsters in the first round at the Australian Open last month. Sanguinetti is a former ATP World Tour Top 50 player with wins over Roger Federer and Andy Roddick. Sanguinetti, who reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon in 1998, previously coached Vince Spadea and Go Soeda.

Djokovic agrees to play ATP AEGON Championships at The Queen’s Club in London in June

Fresh off his title in Melbourne at the 2011 Australian Open, world No. 3 Novak Djokovic has committed to playing the grass-court AEGON Championships which takes place at The Queen’s Club in London from June 6-12. Djokovic, who won the doubles title at the AEGON Championships in 2010 with Israel’s Jonathan Erlich, joins world No. 1 Rafael Nadal who has already agreed to participate in the warm-up event for Wimbledon. “The AEGON Championships is one of the nicest tournaments around,” said Djokovic. “The Queen’s Club has got great grass courts, it’s a great atmosphere with always a packed house of spectators, and you just feel good there. Rafa and I had an incredible match in the Queen’s final in 2008 and it was the closest I ever got to a grass court title. Wimbledon is the most important tournament (of the year) for me, and I really want to do well both at Queen’s and at Wimbledon this year.”

Zvonareva commits to Russian Fed Cup tie vs. Italy in April

Russian Fed Cup Captain Shamil Tarpishchev announced that WTA world No. 3 Vera Zvonareva has committed to play Russia’s semifinal Fed Cup match against Italy in Russia. Tarpishchev also said that Svetlana Kuznetsova might be available to play, which would allow her to get a rematch against Francesca Schiavone, who beat her in a Grand Slam record four hours and 44 minutes at the Australian Open in Melbourne last month.

Wilander joins Junior Tennis Champions Center as Senior Advisor

Former world No. 1 Mats Wilander has joined the Junior Tennis Champions Center in College Park, Md., as a Staff Advisor. Wilander joins renowned tennis author and instructor Vic Braden and strength and conditioning legend Pat Etcheberry as JTCC Senior Advisors. As Senior Advisor, Wilander provides additional guidance and mentoring to JTCC’s staff and youth that emphasizes mental toughness and commitment to high performance training on a quarterly basis. He also provides top JTCC youth with intense tournament preparation, training sessions and coaching at major tournaments, like the Easter Bowl. Top JTCC players, Denis Kudla and Frank Mitchell, will train at Wilander’s private residence in Sun Valley.

Blake no longer traveling to tournaments with full-time coach

At this week’s ATP SAP Open in San Jose, 31-year-old James Blake announced that he will no longer be traveling on tour with a full-time coach. Blake, who achieved a career-best ranking of No. 4 in 2006, had been traveling with Kelly Jones last year and Brian Barker for many years before that. Blake’s physio, Rory Cordial, will continue to travel full-time with the American. “I really don’t need someone to put me through the same drills that I already know and to tell me things that I’ve already seen and heard,” said Blake. “I may have Kelly, Brian or my brother (Thomas) come around here and there because someone on the outside can always pick up things that you can’t, but I knew that by this age I would know the game well enough to coach myself.” Blake, who is currently ranked No. 170 in the world, beat fellow American Jesse Levine in the first round in San Jose to earn his first tour-level victory since October 2010.

Australian doubles legend retires from WTA Tour

Following Australia’s Fed Cup loss to Italy last weekend, doubles specialist Rennae Stubbs has officially called it quits from the WTA Tour, ending a career that spanned two decades and included four Grand Slam women’s doubles titles and two mixed doubles titles. The 39-year-old from Sydney amassed an impressive 788-343 record in women’s doubles matches while winning 60 doubles titles throughout her career. Stubbs, who has a second home in Tampa, reached No. 1 in the world in doubles in 2000 and won more than $5 million in tournament prize money throughout her career. “I’ll miss the competitive spirit and feel when I am on the court but overall I’ll miss the people and the memories of my moments.”

Santangelo officially retires from WTA Tour due to foot injuries

Italian Mara Santangelo, who was once ranked as high as No. 27 in singles and No. 9 in doubles, has officially announced her retirement from the WTA Tour due to foot injuries that prevented her from playing since Wimbledon in 2009. “Unfortunately, for my whole career, my foot was hurting me. I was born with a deformity and from a young age doctors told me I wouldn’t be able to play tennis at a high level. The fact I succeeded and realized my dream is fantastic,” she said at her retirement announcement. “I tried to start playing tennis again after some operations, but since I was still feeling pain, I’ve decided to stop.” The 29-year-old won one singles title during her career in Bangalore in 2006 and was a finalist at the same event the following year. Santangelo, who made it past the third round in singles at all four Grand Slams, had her biggest career victories over Jelena Jankovic and Nadia Petrova. Santangelo, who won 286 career singles matches in her career, won the 2007 French Open doubles title with Australian Alicia Molik. Santangelo is currently managing Prince Le Restaurant, a new and trendy eatery located in Porto Cervo, on Sardegna Island in Italy. It opened last summer and is part of Piazza Principe, a commercial complex owned by the Santangelo’s and managed by Mara herself. For more information on the restaurant, visit its official website at www.piazzadelprincipeportocervo.com/eng/lerestaurant.asp.

Tomic announces upcoming playing schedule

Up-and-coming Australian tennis star Bernard Tomic, who reached the third round at the 2011 Australian Open, just released his upcoming playing schedule. The 18-year-old will play in the qualifying tournament at the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships followed by the main draw at the Dallas Challenger, and the qualifiers at the Masters 1000 events in Indian Wells and Miami. Tomic is currently ranked No. 208 in the South African Airways ATP Rankings.

Book signing and public appearance on February 22 in Vero Beach for former U.S. No. 1 Cliff Richey

Former U.S. No. 1 Cliff Richey, who was the hero of the 1970 championship-winning U.S. Davis Cup team, will host a talk about tennis and, the most difficult opponent of his life, depression, at a special open-to-the-public appearance and book signing on Tuesday, Feb. 22 at 4:30 pm at the Sea Oaks Tennis Club in Vero Beach, Fla. In his book ACING DEPRESSION: A Tennis Champions Toughest Match ($19.95, New Chapter Press,www.CliffRicheyBook.com) Richey calls depression among adult males as “the silent tragedy in our culture today” and details his life-long battle with the disease that afflicts approximately 121 million people around the world. Co-written with his oldest daughter Hilaire Richey Kallendorf, is a first-hand account of the life and tennis career of Richey, providing readers with his real-life drama – on and off the tennis court. Richey was known as the original “Bad Boy” of tennis before there was John McEnroe and Ilie Nastase. His 26-year career was highlighted by a 1970 season where he led the United States to the Davis Cup title, finished as the first-ever Grand Prix world points champion and won one of the most exciting matches in American tennis history that clinched the year-end No. 1 American ranking. He won both of his singles matches in the 5-0 U.S. victory over West Germany in the 1970 Davis Cup final, while he beat out rivals Rod Laver, Ken Rosewall, Arthur Ashe and Stan Smith to win the first-ever Grand Prix world points title the precursor to the modern day ATP rankings. At the 1970 Pacific Coast Championships at the Berkeley Tennis Club in Berkeley, Calif., he earned the No. 1 U.S. ranking when he beat Smith in a fifth-set tie-breaker, where both players had simultaneous match point in a sudden-death nine-point tie-breaker at 4-4. He also reached the semifinals of both the 1970 French and U.S. Opens, losing a famous match to Zeljko Franulovic of Yugoslavia in the French semifinals, despite holding match points and leading by two-sets-to-one and 5-1 in the fourth set.

An Assessment of American Men’s Tennis

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Andy Roddick will, presumably, begin the 2011 season in sharp physical condition after his year of maladies in 2010, and good buddy Mardy Fish, now at a career best No. 16, is expecting to remain in high form, too, when the ATP Tour begins again in January.

But for those who have a watchful eye on the future of U.S. tennis, Ryan Harrison should be getting most of the scrutiny.

Harrison won’t be 19 years old until just before the French Open, but in his first full year on tour this season he’s jacked his ranking up 185 points to No. 173 and, though he’s still playing with the usual fits and bursts one expects from a teenager, he’s exhibited enough of a flash to suggest there are a lot of good things ahead.

If you’re judging U.S. tennis on the basis of Grand Slam results, this wasn’t a successful year. No one, including Roddick, reached a semifinal and Fish, for all his well-publicized weight loss and 40-14 won/lost record, didn’t perform well at the majors.

Ryan Harrison

Still, this was, overall, a solid year for American tennis.

On the plus side: (a) Roddick is still top-10 at No. 8, (b) Fish is at an all-time best ranking, (c) the younger talent, Sam Querrey at No. 18 and John Isner at No. 19, seem entrenched now in the top 20, (d) and there is Harrison, a pugnacious young man who put on as good a show at the U.S. Open as we’ve seen from an American male teenager in a long time.

On the downside: (a) At 28, one has to wonder whether Roddick is at a point in his career where, no matter how hard he trains off-court, he’s going to pick up injuries, (b) Fish hasn’t proven he’s a force at the majors, (c) Isner didn’t play nearly as well in the second half of the season as he did in the first, (d) Querrey needs to find more consistency against the best players and (e) other than Harrison, there wasn’t much to cheer about among the younger U.S. players.

The U.S. began the season with nine players in the top 100 — Roddick, Querrey, Isner, James Blake, Fish, Taylor Dent, Rajeev Ram, Michael Russell and Robby Ginepri. There are five top-100s this week.

Time to break them all down.

* Roddick: Began 2010 at No. 7, will finish the year at No. 8 for a marginal -1. Splendid start to the year. Won Key Biscayne after a quarters finish at the Aussie Open. Didn’t play the clay season or Davis Cup in order to keep himself at a higher fitness level, but it all came apart with a case of mononucleosis and then joint problems. Had a 44-18 record overall with two titles. There was a bad round of 16 loss at Wimbledon, went out 3rd round at the French Open, second round at U.S. Open. It’s difficult to judge his year with the physical setbacks he’s had, but if he can minimize his inevitable injuries, I think he’s close to maximizing the talent he has.

* Fish: Up from No. 55 to No. 16 for a +39 jump this year. His weight loss has been well documented and no doubt it has improved his movement and confidence to stay in the longer rallies. Was 40-14 with two titles. In the majors, 1st round Aussie Open, 2nd French Open, 2nd Wimbledon, round of 16 at the U.S. Open. At 29 years old, he has to work harder than ever off-court to maintain what he’s achieved.

* Querrey: Q-Ball is +7, from No. 25 to 18 this year — 39-24 record with four titles and — this is significant — one on clay at Belgrade. At 23, it’s all in front of him. High moment came with a win over Andy Murray in theLos Angeles final, but he was smitten hard at the U.S. Open, losing a long, gripping five-setter to Stan Wawrinka in the round of 16. Other Slam results: 1st round at the Aussie Open and French Open, round of 16 at Wimbledon. One trouble statistic. He was only 3-8 against top 20s this year. Also, only 1-5 after the dejecting loss in New York.

* Isner: He’s a +15, going from No. 34 to No. 19. We all know what his big moment was this season, though it could be more accurately called a big 11-hour moment, if that makes sense. He defeated Nicolas Mahut in what will be one of the four or five most memorable matches in tennis history. And he played well two weeks later in Atlanta, where he lost in the final. But he seemed tired throughout the U.S. hardcourt season. He was 38-24 overall, but only 12-9 since Atlanta. At age 25, he’s often twinned with Querrey. Because of his bigger serve and his volleying ability, Isner can be top 10. He’s going to use this off-season to further strengthen himself off-court. One piece of advice: Stay out of 11-hour matches.

* Russell: He’s included here because he’s at No. 99, down 16 from last year. Mighty Mouse is 32 years old and has had more injuries than half these other players combined. But he’s still good enough to have made $322,000 this season, and no one is going to retire with that income potential. He was only 11-23 in ATP matches, but built his ranking and bank account in the Challengers, where he was 10-4 with a title. He’ll be in and out of the top-100 until he decides to start a second career.

Fallen top-100s.

* Blake: At 30 and with chronic knee problems, we’re not sure what sort of future James has in pro tennis. He’ll start next year at No. 135, a -91 fall from the start of 2010. Just 15-17 for the season. Had a good win over Tomas Bellucci at Stockholm a couple months ago, but then went down easily to Jarkko Nieminen two rounds later by 6-0, 6-2.

* Dent: Retired after a brave comeback from back surgery.

* Ram: Plunged 106 spots this year to No. 185. Reached top 100 with Challenger success, but you have to come back the next year and defend the points. He didn’t.

* Ginepri: At No. 144, it’s hard to see him playing much longer.

Three young players of note.

* Donald Young: Hard to believe he’s been part of the U.S. tennis consciousness for seven years now, but he’s only 21. He moved up 66 spots to No. 128 this year. Was 29-14 in Challengers, only 3-6 in ATP matches. He’s a complete mystery.

* Ryan Sweeting: Like Young, a junior Grand Slam titleholder. Up 38 spots to No. 116. At 23, there’s still time and he’s got a big enough game that he could make some inroads, but no one sees him any longer as an impact player in U.S. tennis.

* Harrison: Here is the key figure for U.S. tennis in 2011. If you look at his numbers, they’re not overwhelming — 4-9 in ATP matches, 13-12 in Challengers. But at 18, you’re looking for individual moments in his performances, not numbers. And at the U.S. Open, he upset Ivan Ljubicic, then lost to Sergiy Stakhovsky in five after holding three match points. That performance told us he can compete strongly with players in the 30-50 ranking range and that he’s not intimidated by big stages or big moments. What we’re looking for in 2011 is better week-to-week consistency at the Challenger level and spot brilliance when he plays regular ATP events. Don’t push this kid too hard. He’s young, he’s talented and while he doesn’t have Roddick’s big serve, he’s got Roddick’s bring-it-on attitude.

Federer’s ATP World Tour Finals White-Wash

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WorldTennisMagazine.com takes a look back at ATP World Tour Finals from yester-year in this special series – ATP World Tour Final Rewind. Today we look back to matches from November 19, as excerpted from the book ON THIS DAY IN TENNIS HISTORY ($19.95, New Chapter Press, www.TennisHistoryBook.com) by Randy Walker.

Roger Federer

2006 – Roger Federer concludes one of the most dominating seasons in tennis history, defeating James Blake 6-0, 6-3, 6-4 in the final of the Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai,China. Federer finishes the year with 12 titles in 16 final-round appearances in 17 total tournaments played, three major championships (Australian Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open) and becomes the first player to exceed $7 million in prize money in a season with a $8.34 million during the 2006 campaign. Only two players manage to beat Federer during the year – Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray. Says Blake of the undisputed world No. 1, “Obviously, we’re all chasing Roger. It’s no secret. He’s playing head and shoulders above the rest of us.” Says Federer of his epic year, “To finish it off by winning the Masters Cup, the world championship so to speak, it’s the perfect ending to an incredible season. There’s not much more I could have done.” Federer is one match from winning the Grand Slam – losing in the final of the French Championships to Nadal. He finishes the year with a 92-5 record – winning his last 29 matches.

1995 – Boris Becker defeats Michael Chang 7-6 (3), 6-0, 7-6 (5) in the year-end ATP Tour Finals in Frankfurt, Germany. Says Becker, “This was the best crowd I’ve ever had in Germany.”

2005 – World No. 1 Roger Federer blanks Gaston Gaudio of Argentina 6-0, 6-0 in the semifinals of the year-end Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai, China – the first ever white-wash in the 35-year history of the year-end men’s championships.

Will Mardy Fish Again Keep U.S. Out of Davis Cup Nether-World?

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Mardy Fish may once serve in the role of U.S. Davis Cup savior when the United States takes on Colombia this weekend in Bogota.

The United States needs to defeat Colombia in this Play-off Round to stay in the elite 16-team Davis Cup World Group and be eligible to win the Davis Cup trophy in 2011. A loss would drop the United States into “zonal” competition where it will be ineligible to win the Cup until it emerges from a pool of second-rate tennis nations from North, Central and South America and again play in the Play-off Round and win. Only one other time in the history of the competition has the United States been relegated to zonal competition (1988).

The U.S. may have fallen out of the Davis Cup World Group in 2003 if it were not for the heroics of Fish, who is joined on the U.S. team in Colombia by John Isner, Sam Querrey and Ryan Harrison.

Mardy Fish

After the U.S. team, missing an injured Andy Roddick, lost to Croatia in Zagreb in the 2003 Davis Cup first round, it drew a difficult away match against the Slovak Republic in September’s Play-off Round. The tie was played on clay and U.S. Captain Patrick McEnroe had selected Roddick, James Blake and, for the first-time ever, the Bryan twins, Bob and Mike, to the U.S. squad. McEnroe asked Fish to travel with the team as a “fifth player” for practice and for use in an emergency. Roddick was the newly-minted US Open champion and on a roll, dominating the U.S. summer hard court season, entering the match having won his last 19 matches. Blake was struggling in practice during the lead-up while Fish was playing at a very high level. When it came time to nominating his team at the traditional Thursday draw ceremony, McEnroe replaced Blake with Fish as the No. 2 singles player behind Roddick.

Roddick christened the brand new Slovak Tennis Centre in Bratislava by taking the court against Dominik Hrbaty, the former French Open semifinalist. Playing with the retractable roof closed due to sun glare, Hrbarty played one of the greatest matches of his life, shocking Roddick 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 to give the Slovaks the surprising 1-0 lead.

Fish and Kucera next took the court with the future of the U.S. Davis Cup team almost squarely placed on the shoulders of Fish. Staring at a potential 0-2 deficit, thoughts of the United States being relegated for only the second time in its history appeared very real. Fish had only played three live Davis cup matches in his career – losing two – while Kucera boasted an impressive 25-9 Davis Cup singles record and with fresh thoughts of his recent 6-4, 7-6 (7), 6-4 victory over Fish in the second round of the US Open three weeks earlier.

Kucera routinely won the first set 6-4, after winning five of the first six games. At 5-5 in the second set, Kucera was able to get two looks at break points that would have given him the opportunity to serve for a two-sets-to-love lead. Fish responded with two resounding service winners to bring the score to deuce. As he then stepped to the line to deliver his first serve to Kucera, the Slovak National Tennis Centre suddenly went dark. All of the lights in arena went out as the court and stadium became shrouded in complete darkness.

With terrorism still fresh on the minds of Americans, the players were quickly whisked back into the locker room. Officials from the Slovak Tennis Association quickly determined that a blown circuit had created the black-out and after a delay of 28 minutes, play resumed. Fish still found himself in a precarious position of having of staving off Kucera after such a long wait that was bound to stiffen Fish’s body and play upon his nerves at such a crucial time in the match.

When play was called to continue, Fish calmly walked to baseline and served two consecutive service winners to hold his serve for the 6-5 lead. Kucera, seemingly more affected by the delay than Fish, was broken the next game, evening the match at one set a piece. Kucera quickly moved to a 5-3 advantage in the third set, seemingly taking control back in the match, before Fish again rallied to win nine straight games en route to an improbably 4-6, 7-5, 7-5, 6-1 victory which can be labeled about as clutch of a Davis Cup victory as one can have.

“The way Mardy played tells you why I picked him,” McEnroe said. “Down, 0-2, would not have been very pleasant.”

From there, the U.S. regained the momentum and after the Bryan twins won in their debut to make the score 2-1, Roddick was not going to be denied, bullying Kucera substitute Karol Beck to clinch the victory that vaulted the U.S.  back into the Davis Cup World Group in 2004.

ROBBIE KOENIG BLOG: FISH AND ISNER IMPRESS IN CINCY

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I have been in Cincinnati for two day and, first and foremost, the upgrade to the facility has been fantastic. A big congrats goes out to Bruce Flory and his team. I am very much looking forward to the finished product next year!

Some of the matches have been good but nothing outstanding. The crowds have been a little disappointing, perhaps off the back of the women’s event they needed two days to chill out, but I’m sure we’ll see the Cincy faithful back in their droves Wednesday for what is a spectacular line-up with the four best players in the world in action!

Sam Querrey

I enjoyed Mardy Fish’s match Tuesday. It is good to see the American being rewarded for all the hard work he’s been putting in of late. Long may it continue. And a shout David Nainkin, his coach, for getting the best out of his charge! Big John Isner is looking so comfortable on the big stage, it’s a joy to watch. Surely his coach, Craig Boynton must be up for coach of the year for all he’s been able to get out of John??

My biggest disappointments were James Blake and Paul-Henri Mathieu, who given their current rankings (both outside the top 100), showed little determination out there. You’d have thought they would have given sweat, blood and tears considering their circumstances. It wasn’t easy on the eye.

I’ll tell you one thing though, Wednesdays tennis will be very easy on the eye when the “quad squad” – Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray as I like to call them – take center stage!!!

–          Robbie

Blake Strode Makes Most of US Open National Playoffs

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By Charles Bricker

Tennis unknown Blake Strode couldn’t have been much more excited when his coach lined him up with a one-hour training session with James Blake, but Blake — that’s James Blake — seemed a bit confused for a moment when they met on court.

Blake Strode
Blake Strode photo © Collegenandjuniorstennis.com

“Hi, I’m James,” said the veteran U.S. star who has been besieged this year by injury and a plunge in the rankings. “And I’m Blake,” Strode told him. Was James thinking, “Who is this joker?”

It was obvious that no one told him the name of the young man he would be hitting with at the Atlanta Tennis Championships, and James wouldn’t have recognized the name if anyone had. “I think it caught him off guard,” said Strode. “He had sort of a funny look.”

Eventually, James figured it out. It was no joke. As in, oh, OK, your name is Blake, too.

The name Blake Strode is almost unknown in the professional tennis community, though it’s a bit better known since he won nine matches in a 1,200-man tournament to earn a wild card into the U.S. Open qualifying later this month.

The USTA, which has a penchant for promotion, came up with the idea early this year of giving Everyman, and Everywoman, a shot at getting into the Open, and it would have been a pretty good piece of public relations had some weekend warrior from Nowhere, Nev., won the event and gotten the wild card.

Of course that wasn’t going to happen. Hundreds of players with an ongoing fantasy of playing in the U.S. Open — even the qualifying — signed up, aged 14 to nearly 70. But, not surprisingly, a number of professional players whose rankings were too low to get directly into the qualifying at a Grand Slam, also saw their chance here.

Strode, 23, currently ranked No. 594, and Alexandra Mueller, 22, at No. 445, were the winners. Not household names in tennis, but not Everyman and Everywoman, either. In fact, Strode was given an outright wild card a year ago into the U.S. Open qualifying after an All American year at the University of Arkansas.

His ranking places him 40th on the list of U.S. players while Mueller, of Abington, Pa., is 42nd among ranked U.S. women.

We’re not quite sure about Strode’s future on the ATP tour, but it’s easy to feel confident about his future in life. He has been accepted to Harvard University Law School, though that’s on hold while he explores his tennis future.

“I graduated from Arkansas in the spring of 2009 and I’ve been playing (Futures and Challengers) for a year,” he explained. “I heard about the U.S. Open qualifying playoffs in an email from the USTA and, at first, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to do it because of how it might affect my regular tournament schedule.

“But the more I looked at it, the more I knew I could fit it in. Absolutely, this was exciting. It was a chance to go back to the Open.”

He had been blown out in straight sets in his first round qualifying match in New York a year ago and felt pretty comfortable in the days leading up to the opening round. But, “Once the match started, everything hit me. I was overwhelmed by the moment. I was rushing, making a lot of mistakes. It was over pretty fast, but it was a great learning experience and it definitely made me want to go back.

“This time, I have a pretty good idea of what to expect. You know, it’s a totally different experience from the other world of playing Challengers and Futures — from the locker room to the meals to the massages. It’s all at your fingertips. I don’t want to say what they do for you at the Open is over the top, but it wasn’t what you were used to.”

Strode didn’t have a scintillating junior career, so, with his personal commitment to education, the scholarship to Arkansas was inviting. Plus, it wasn’t too far from his home in suburban St. Louis. “Four years at college. . .you learn to do things on your own and you mature as a person,” he said.

He loved the team aspect of college tennis. “Like the pressure of not letting your teammates down if the team score is tied and you’re the last match on court.” That senior year success and his year touring the ATP bush leagues got him ready for the U.S. Open qualifying playoffs.

More than a thousand players were separated into tournaments at the district level, with the survivors going to Atlanta for the final round. James Blake was there for an ATP event and Blake Strode was there attempting to win a trip back to New York.

In the final, he confronted Cecil Mamiit of South Pasadena, Calif., a 34-year-old who is retired from the ATP wars and who played a strong opening set. Strode settled down to play a little safer, won the second set and, after failing to serve out the match at 5-4 and 6-5 in the third, girded himself for the tiebreak, which he won 7-1.

He didn’t put on much of a celebration on court. “Somewhat muted,” he described it. “I’m not a real expressive guy.”

Of course, we’ll see about that if he wins his first round qualifying match at the Open.

Charles Bricker can be reached at nflwriterr@aol.com. He is an alumni of the University of California at Berkeley and has had 41 distinguished years in the news business, covering 25 NFL seasons and Super Bowls and for the last 16 years, he has covered men’s and women’s professional tennis. Listen to Charlie every Monday at 7 pm – and on podcast – on World Tennis talk at http://primesportsnetwork.com/tennis.html

CHARLIE BRICKER: LOW MARKS FOR SHRIVER, BLAKE FOR MID-MATCH EXCHANGE, BUT BLAKE DESERVES MORE SYMPATHY

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By Charles Bricker

What ARE the ESPN honchos going to do with Pam Shriver?

They thought they had the perfect spot for her, shipping her out as a sideline or roving reporter, looking for quirky interviews around the grounds. But even that isn’t working out after Shriver and James Blake got into an embarrassing on-court tete-a-tete Tuesday at Wimbledon.

Blake called Shriver “an ass” and Shriver, whose booming voice can easily be heard over crowd noise, remarked, loud enough for Blake to hear, that he has “rabbit ears.”

It’s a fair guess that sometime today they’re going to apologize to each other, but the damage is done and it’s ultimately going to be worse for Shriver than for Blake, who can be partially excused for his boorish outburst because he’s going through a particularly difficult time in his career right now.

His knee hurts. His ranking has dropped into the hundreds. And as gracious and eloquent as he often is in interviews, he can be extremely moody. As for Shriver, she doesn’t live in a cocoon. She undoubtedly knows how poorly things are going for Blake right now and there was no need to mock him.

In case you missed it, the exchange is at youtube.com. Here’s the brief on it: Blake was down a set and a break to Robin Haase on an outside court, where Shriver checked in during the opening set to add some commentary. She was not in an enclosed booth and, since the crowd hasn’t had much to cheer about, her voice was becoming an irritant to Blake.

James could have looked up at Shriver and, without saying a word, put his finger to his lips, as if to say, “Shhhh, please.” Instead, he cracked that Shriver should know better, having played the game for years.

Shriver didn’t let it slide. She then commentated that Blake had just told her to shut up. Now Blake wants to get in the last word. He turned around again and called Shriver “an ass.”

Some time after Blake went down in straight sets, he gave a sullen interview to reporters about how difficult his tennis life has become with the pain in his knee while Shriver was summoned to the central ESPN booth, where Hannah Storm, perhaps on orders from above, laid the story out for viewers who might have missed the on-court exchange. (Watch Storm, Cahill and Shriver discuss it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eDU8J6fxRNw)

Shriver looked appropriately contrite, though she tried to excuse her loud voice by pointing to her earpiece. Yeah, yeah. We’ve all had that experience of talking too loudly to someone while listening to earphones, but Shriver has been doing this for years. She should have known better.

The aftermath: High marks to ESPN management, to Storm and to sidekick Darren Cahill for not burying the story. Low marks to Shriver for violating one of the prime rules of journalism, which is that the story is about what you’re reporting, not about you. Low marks to Blake for losing his cool, though I’m a lot more sympathetic with James than Pam.

Who knows what the executives at ESPN are thinking about Shriver after this set-to. She doesn’t seem to have much of a portfolio at the Grand Slams. On Day 1, she was out on Henman Hill, the little grassy rise near the practice courts where they’ve set up a giant TV screen so that customers without Centre Court tickets can watch key matches.

Up on the screen, Roger Federer looked as if he was going down to a shock loss to Alejandro Falla and Shriver had just corraled U.S. teenager Melanie Oudin, who was headed back to the locker room from the practice courts. Shriver began asking Oudin to analyze what Federer had to do to get back on top. It was one of the head-scratching moments of the 2010 Wimbledon.

Melanie Oudin, 18 years old, was supposed to give an on-air assessment of how Roger Federer could pull out this win? The kid looked slightly stunned.

On balance, Shriver has certainly not been awful over the years with a microphone in her hand, though she’s had some questionable moments.

On court after Caroline Wozniacki’s quarterfinal win at the U.S. Open, she informed the young Dane that she would be an “overwhelming favorite” against “Wickmayer of Belgium,” and she said it with a toss of her head that seemed to dismiss Yanina Wickmayer as lucky to be in the semis. Boos cascaded down from the Arthur Ashe Stadium audience, leaving Shriver to ask, “What did I say?”

It will be a long time before she has difficulty recalling what she said to James Blake.

Charles Bricker can be reached at nflwriterr@aol.com

2010 US OPEN ARTWORK SURFACES, GEICO BECOMES WTT PRESENTING SPONSOR: THIS WEEK IN TENNIS BUSINESS

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By: Justin Cohen

  • The official artwork of the 2010 US Open has surfaced to the public (see photo) as tickets for the 2010 US Open tennis championships have been on sale to the public for just over two weeks. For ticket information, go to www.USOpen.org.
  • World Team Tennis announced that GEICO will be the presenting sponsor of the 2010 WTT Pro League. Since 2005, GEICO has been the official auto insurance sponsor of the WTT Pro League and presenting sponsor of the WTT Coaches Challenge. GEICO will now be extending its role with the WTT as the presenting sponsor and will have league-wide branding and signage initiatives including baseline signage, net post covers, umpire boxes, instant replay boxes and LED screen. “We applaud World Team Tennis for putting together a unique program that challenges players and entertains fans,” said Rynthia Rost, GEICO Vice President.  “We see how WTT inspires people to be connected to the sport and enjoy the competition.  We’re delighted to once again take part in the upcoming WTT season.” The WTT Pro League regular season kicks off on July 5 in ten cities with the finals being played in Kansas City on July 25. Serena and Venus Williams, Andy Roddick, Maria Sharapova, Martina Hingis, John McEnroe, James Blake, Lindsay Davenport, Kim Clijsters, Anna Kournikova, Michael Chang and Bob and Mike Bryan are all slated to participate in the WTT Pro League this summer.
  • Via Twitter from TennisReporters, former American player Jan-Michael Gambill allegedly owes more than 1.7 million dollars in delinquent federal taxes.
  • AT&T and Tennis Channel announced the addition of Tennis Channel to the U-verse® television line up. Tennis Channel is available on channel 660 and 1660 (high definition) in the AT&T U450 package, as well as The Sports Package. Plans are in full gear for a distribution expansion across multiple AT&T screens, including AT&T mobile and U-verse online services. “We’re proud to bring the Tennis Channel to AT&T customers. It’s a great addition to the U-verse TV channel lineup and our Sports Multiview app,” said Dan York, the President of Content at AT&T. “This deal helps us with important strategic content initiatives and gives our U-verse TV customers access to even more exciting sports content, and in thrilling HD.”
  • The USTA Player Development has announced the hiring of Argentine Diego Moyano as their new Clay-Court Specialist coach. Moyano, who will be based at the USTA Training Center Headquarters in Boca Raton, Fla., will assist in coaching and training programs designed specifically for clay court play. Moyano, who played professionally from 1997-2005 and reached a career best ATP ranking of No. 130 in 2000, will report to Jose Higueras.
  • Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have been re-elected to the ATP World Tour Players Council. Novak Djokovic was not re-elected, while Sam Querrey and Nenad Zimonjic were the newly appointed members.
  • The Bank of the West Classic from July 26-August 1 at Stanford University’s Taube Family Tennis Stadium will feature 11 of the top 27 seeds from this year’s Wimbledon. Samantha Stosur, Agnieszka Radwanska, Marion Bartoli, Shahar Peer, Yanina Wickmayer, Maria Sharapova, Zheng Jie, Vera Zvonareva, Daniela Hantuchova, Alisa Kleybanova and Maria Kirilenko will all compete in Palo Alto during the Olympus US Open Series event.
  • The Cowboy Tennis Classic at the new Cowboy Stadium in Dallas has been cancelled. No reason was given for the cancellation of the July 10 exhibition matches that were to feature Andy Roddick, John Isner, Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova. All tickets will be refunded according to a statement.
  • Saddlebrook Resort in Tampa, Fla., has become the presenting sponsor of “World Tennis with Harry Cicma” which can be seen on the New England Sports Network (NESN). The final three shows in July, August and September, will be hosted from the official site of the Saddlebrook Resort and will feature interviews with top players that train at the resort. The “World Tennis with Harry Cicma” deal with Saddlebrook was brokered and negotiated by Leverage Agency Chief Executive Ben Sturner. Leverage Agency (www.LeverageAgency.com) is a top five sports marketing agency with headquarters in New York City. Other sponsors of the 2010 season of the show include Tournagrip (www.uniquesports.com), Ace Authentic (www.aceauthentic.com), Grand Slam Tennis Tours (www.GrandSlamTennisTours.com), the International Tennis Hall of Fame (www.tennisfame.com), Morfit Performance fitness apparel (www.MorfitPerformance.com), the Peter Kaplan Tennis Academy (www.WesthamptonTennis.com), State Ultra Lounge (www.StateUltraLounge.com) and New Chapter Media (www.NewChapterMedia.com.)
  • Justine Henin’s brother, Thomas, faces one year in prison after being convicted of embezzlement and fraud in Belgium. He was recently sentenced to two years in prison with one of those years suspended after he was busted for stealing 200,000 Euros from a bank he worked at 10 years ago. Henin’s other brother, David, is also alleged to have benefited from the crime and might be slapped with 300 hours of community service.
  • Following his opening round straight set loss to Robin Haase at Wimbledon, 30-year-old James Blake said he experienced more pain in his knee that has caused him troubles recently and will consider retiring from the ATP World Tour if the problem continues. “If it doesn’t get better soon, I’m not sure how much longer I want to play in pain,” said Blake. “It was feeling great in Eastourne, and then had a little setback.” The former Top 10 player said he will see how the injury holds up throughout the summer.  “If (the option) is continuing to play in pain, I’ll reassess after the Open and see if I want to continue that. If I need to, after the Open, take the rest of the year off and then see if I can start fresh in 2011.”
  • Thomas Muster, a former world No. 1 and 1995 Roland Garros champion, will come out of retirement at the age of 42 and play on the ATP Challenger circuit. “I never formally retired, as I said after that match I would go on a holiday,” said Muster. “So now I am just returning from my holiday.” He will play his first challenger at Braunschweig in Germany in two weeks.
  • The Campbell’s Hall of Fame Tennis Championships in Newport, R.I., is having a special ticket offer through June 26 for the only professional grass court tournament played in the United States. Buy two tickets for the finals on Sunday, July 11 and receive an autographed picture of top seeded American Sam Querrey. Tickets for the tournament, which will be played from July 5-11, can be ordered online at tennisfame.com or by calling 866-914-3263. American Rajeev Ram is the defending singles champion.Georgia Tech’s Irina Falconi and University of Southern California’s Robert Farah were named the 2010 Campbell’s/Intercollegiate Tennis Association National College Players of the Year on Tuesday. The award is given annually to one male and one female singles player who has had the most outstanding year in college tennis. Falconi and Farah will be recognized at the 2010 International Tennis Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on July 10 in Newport, R.I., during the ATP World Tour Campbell’s Hall of Fame Tennis Championships. Former ITA National Player of the Year winners include James Blake, Amer Delic, Bob Bryan, MaliVai Washington, Lisa Raymond, Jill Craybas and Laura Granville.

TOUGH DRAW TO GREET NADAL AT WIMBLEDON

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Rafael Nadal will face some tough early tests at Wimbledon in 2010 as the draws for The Championships were released Friday.

Nadal, the world No. 1 but Wimbledon’s No. 2 seed behind six-time champion Roger Federer, opens against the tough Japanese star Kei Nishikori, ranked No. 204 but ranked as high as No. 56 and playing good tennis after returning to tour from an elbow injury.

Lurking in the second round for Nadal is former top 10 star James Blake of the United States, who has been struggling with injury and confidence, but always a threat, especially on the grass. In the fourth round, Nadal could face the man who no one wants to draw in any tournament, especially on grass, John Isner. The 6-10 former University of Georgia star with the booming serve is seeded No. 23 and opens against former Queen’s finalist Nicolas Mahut of France and could face No. 13 seed Mikhail Youzhny in the third round.

Nadal’s quarter of the draw also features No. 6 seed Robin Soderling, whom Nadal beat in the final of the 2010 French Open final and with whom he played an epic five-setter at the All England Club in 2007. Soderling opens against American Robby Ginepri.

Federer has a relatively easy first week, opening with Alejandro Falla of Colombia, then facing the winner of the match between Ilija Bozoljac and Nicolas Massu and potentially Tommy Robredo in the third round and Jurgen Melzer or Feliciano Lopez in the fourth round. Thomas Berdych, Stan Wawrinka or the fresh-off-injury Nikolay Davydenko could be quarterfinal opponent. Davydenko could be a first-round exit by the hands of tall, hard-serving Kevin Anderson of South Africa.

The second quarter of the men’s draw – the winner who would face the winner of Federer’s quarter – could be labeled “the group of death” to quote World Cup soccer as it features world No. 3 Novak Djokovic, 2002 Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt and three-time finalist Andy Roddick. Qualifier Taylor Dent could pose some second-round trouble for Djokovic. Hewitt lurks as a potential fourth-round match for Djokovic. Roddick, the three-time Wimbledon finalist and heartbreak final-round loser in 2009, also sits on the bottom of Djokovic’s quarter as the No. 5 seed with Marin Cilic, Ivan Ljubicic or fellow American Mardy Fish a likely fourth-round opponent. Roddick opens with fellow American Rajeev Ram, who won the grass court event in Newport, R.I. last year.

Any Murray sits in the third quarter and could face Queens champion Sam Querrey in the fourth round. Querrey, seeded No. 18, could face No. 14 Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain in the third round. No. 8 seed Fernando Verdasco is also positioned in Murray’s quarter of the draw.

For the full men’s draws, go to www.Wimbledon.org

ISNER, QUERREY NEED TO BE RESPECTED AT ROLAND GARROS

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By Blair Henley

It seems like only yesterday that tennis fans and pundits were predicting dark days for American men’s tennis. With Andy Roddick aging and James Blake and Mardy Fish sitting well outside of the top 50, the USTA found itself in desperate need of a rising star or two.

Well, they got what they were looking for, or more accurately, a gift was left on the doorstep of American tennis’ governing body. While all eyes were set on Donald Young’s progress, a Californian named Sam Querrey entered the picture. After a successful junior career, he passed up a full scholarship from the University of Southern California to turn pro in 2006. Only a year later, fellow American John Isner made his professional debut after playing four years of college tennis at the University of Georgia.

Fast forward a few years.

Today, Isner and Querrey are ranked No. 19 and 22 respectively and find themselves second (and third) in line for the American tennis throne currently occupied by someone they have both beaten in the past year: Andy Roddick. In fact, it was the voluntary withdrawal of Roddick and James Blake from Davis Cup consideration this year that opened the door for Isner and Querrey to participate.

Though the U.S. fell to Serbia 3-2 in March, the presence of two new faces on the team (Querrey also competed last year) has prompted headlines announcing a changing of the guard.

So who exactly are these guys?

First off, they’re friends. Isner has said that they text daily. They are also doubles partners and took their first title together this February in Memphis. At that same tournament, they played each other for the first time on tour in the singles final, with Querrey defeating Isner in a tough three setter.

That was the first of three times they have played this year. Isner got some revenge in the third round of Indian Wells, only to be taken down again by Querrey in the clay final of the Serbia Open a week ago.

It just so happens that those two final matchups were the tallest in ATP Tour history. Isner stands 6’9” and Querrey is just inches shorter at 6’6.” Not surprisingly, they rely heavily on the strength of their serves, but both men have also made fitness a priority which has improved their baseline games. The two have been working to further develop their net games as well, which will be a key tool if they hope to crack the Top 10.

At the rate they are going, such a feat doesn’t seem out of the question. Querrey was the first man ever to win a Challenger level event in his professional debut, and Isner went from a ranking of 839 to 107 in his first six months on tour. Since then they have shown themselves willing to make adjustments, which has aided their steady climb. The similarities don’t end there.

Both Querrey and Isner bounced back from health issues in 2009. Isner’s battle with mononucleosis kept him out of the French Open and Wimbledon, while Querrey fell through a glass table in Bangkok. Twenty-five stitches later, he narrowly avoided permanent damage to his right arm. Both men have inked endorsement deals with Olympus – the only tennis players to do so. And, in case anyone was wondering, they are also single.

The biggest difference between Isner and Querrey (clearly there aren’t many) is their path to the pros. Isner, who just turned 25, is close to three years older than Querrey, and admits that he didn’t have professional aspirations out of high school because he “wasn’t good enough.” Unlike Jimmy Connors (UCLA) or John McEnroe (Stanford) who left college after only one year, Isner used all four years of eligibility at Georgia to strengthen and develop his steadily improving game. In addition to getting his degree in Speech Communication, he left with a NCAA team title and he holds the school record for wins in both singles and doubles.

Querrey admits he had a difficult time making the decision to forego college tennis, but unlike Isner, he had to consider his significant international success as a junior. Both men seem to have made the right choice.

Isner made it to second week of the last two Grand Slams, but look for Querrey to use the confidence gained in his two tour wins this year to show some Grand Slam success of his own (let’s hope he quickly gets over this week’s embarrassing loss to No. 315 in the world, Daniel Munoz-De La Nava, in Madrid). After reaching the final in Serbia, the duo has shown that victory on clay is not out of the question, and their opponents at Roland Garros would be wise to respect that.

Both John Isner and Sam Querrey have experienced lulls in their progress over the past three years, but have rebounded quickly, showing they can handle the expectations of a nation. No doubt the two Americans have room to improve, but they are heading in the right direction.