We have already witnessed great tennis, youth, showmanship, grit and stamina leading up to this point. Now, we can anticipate even more surprise, beauty and strength as we enter the final eight days of the~
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Ana ivanovic has staying power here at the US Open, her shots are powerful and her demeanor unwavering. Her beauty shows on and off the court, she is well liked, even stopped on a NYC sidewalk so a young fan could take her picture!
Young Victoria Duval takes out 2011 US Open champion Sam Stossur, who would have thought? Watching that match was like a child playing a grown woman, such a disparity, it takes willpower on both sides of the net to make the grade, and here it was the seventeen year old.
We saw American John Isner win to Frenchman Gael Monfils, but later lose his next match, even that HUGE deuce side serve of his could not get him out of that corner he was boxed into, there is hope for the rest of us that we can win points against the daunting serve of a master. And of course, back to Monfils, his humanity, humor and stamina did not get overlooked by this New York crowd, as in rare form the eager spectators chanted, "Monfils! Monfils!" much to the dismay and chagrin to American John Isner. of course, social media was "all-a-twitter" the next day discussing the protocol of Americans cheering on a player from a foreign land. My take? Why not? Great tennis is great tennis, and Monfils is a fabulous player, give him a hand when he deserves it!
The surprise match ever so far? In my book kudos to the match between Del Potro and Lleyton Hewitt, both US Open champions dueling like crazy, and ultimately Hewitt won! At 32 years old, he has stayed competing, and his win was applauded heartily. It looked like Hewitt the "surfer dude" versus the classy, focused Del Potro, who somehow ran out of gas in the fifth set while Hewitt kept up his incredible passing shots one after the next.
Today, Lleyton wins again in 4 sets!!!! His smile and expressive eyes say it all, doing your very best is worth the effort!
And our favorite Spaniard Rafa Nadal! He plays with out his knee tape, his form is impeccable yet slimmer this season, and his inside out forehand is bigger than ever. A true champion in every sense of the word. Nadal will go far in this slam.
Roger Federer? Certainly not to be discounted, he is coasting through his matches, quietly getting forward one step at a time. update September 2nd~ Roger is out! In 3 sets, taken by the Spaniard Robredo, perfect, clean tennis.
Novak Djokovic? Wow what a guy! He plays to his heart's content, grabbing momentum when he can, grasping it and taking it into the second set even if he has lost the first, as in his Round 2 match. A winner's mind, all Novak. I am reading his book, Serve to Win (that came in two days from Amazon!) and I resolve to go gluten free, thank you so much Novak for opening a whole new world to me!
AND, more congratulations to the world number 1 doubles players, the Bryan Brothers! You lost your first set today, came back in the second, and stole the third, on your way to well earned victory!!
Okay, epic match happening now between Serena Williams and Sloane Stephens. it is in the second set, they have been battling over an hour with Serena taking teh first set at 6-4, and now Serena has a 5-1 lead, serving for a place in the quarterfinals. Heavy eyeliner, Serena! Long nails, too!
Saving her aces for last, Serena loads her serve to take the first ace at 15-0. Sloane next shanks a ball wide. 30-0. Ace again. Serena definitely saves her aces for last. 40-0. Serves to the T. Out. Rally, Serena hits long. 40-15. Serena taking her time serving. Serves wide, challenge, ball is out. Double fault now. 40-30. Serena's working for the ace here. Taking her time. Hits to the T, a short, contorted rally on Serena's part and Sloane nets!
Congratulations, Serena! On to the quarterfinals! Goodbye Sloane Stephens, you are a great player, we will see you again!
Fashion update~ Really like Serena's outfit, she is wearing a really pretty orange top from Nike, with flowing feminine skirt and the charcoal grey briefs, same color as Nadal's shorts!
MORE night tennis at the Open~ wow, what great playing Novak! And Sousa, you played so well, I have been in your sneakers, congratulations on your 4 games earned from world number 1!
Li Na, you played great, you have the BEST footwork in the business, what sneakers do you wear?
Radwanska we will miss you, see you at the Australian Open in January! Can you believe it, post-Christmas?
Today is indeed the turning point of this US Open grand slam tournament, momentum has indeed picked up and is charging forward, onward to the quarterfinals, semis and finals!!!
You may want to compare and contrast these observations with US OPEN DAY 11, every now and then , there can be TWO pivotal moments in a tournament!
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