The USTA has created a new initiative for the 2019 U.S. Open called Fan Week, with events and activities on a stage in front of Ashe Stadium near the water fountains.
There is an emcee named Harry Cicma, an affable, enthusiastic chap, who does interviews with players like Jack Sock and coaches like Sasha Bajin and trivia contests giving away free tickets for the main draw.
One humorous moment I watched yesterday was the emcee asking a fan onstage which player did Federer surpass in breaking the all time grand slam record? The contestant muffed the softball quiz question or choked under the pressure of the high stakes and replied with uncertainty in his voice, “Jack Sock?”
Who said New York sports fans are very knowledgeable? Or maybe the contestant was showing a very eccentric sense of humor. How could any tennis fan not be serious enough to know Federer was eclipsed PETE SAMPRAS?
Speaking of serious…John McEnroe and Jim Courier visited the stage today and drew a Woodstock like crowd. Johnny Mac talked about his Queens roots and US Open history. Tomorrow morning will feature the draws and Davis Cup announcement with new captain Mardy Fish. Hopefully some other players will visit the set.
Fans have embraced the innovation and the energy generated on stage. “The host did a good job. He had control of the proceedings,” said fan Peter Lavalle of Fort Lee, NJ. “I’m surprised they haven’t done something like this in the past. US Open qualies is a very special part of the tournament. Other years the grounds were a mess, construction was going on. Now this makes qualies feel more like a part of the tournament. Qualies could get much much bigger, even covered by Tennis Channel or ESPN.”
Aaron Fredricks of Long Island approved of the new innovation. “When there were interviews and discussions and trivia on stage it was good to watch, taking a break between the matches which are tiring for fans too. But they have to get more players and coaches or media on stage, more interviews. There were times I walked by and the stage was empty. They should consider to bring more of the players who finish there qualifying matches to the stage to be interviewed. Fans would appreciate that connection with the players and to hear some things about the match. Maybe even have fans ask the players questions would be interesting.”
Like any new creation, there will be trials and errors. But overall, the new concept of Fan Week at the US Open is a positive initiative that has been well received. There is a lot of potential for it to be developed into something a lot bigger and better.
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Joanna · August 21, 2019 at 8:38 pm
The US Open did a good job with this Fan Fest, it’s a good fun energy and the host has just the right combination of enthusiasm and stage presence. But they can’t get too much stuff buzzing up there because it might take away from the action on the courts. One thing that could be better, maybe do a QA but more serious and insightful rather than simple and surface stuff. Nice to meet you guys yesterday, thanks for showing me this site, love it.
jg · August 21, 2019 at 9:19 pm
Other tournaments seem to be doing a better job too, Citi Open for one really stepped it up this year, and incorporated some touches from world team tennis, and watching the entertaining exhibition at Winston Salem with Coco and Barty, they have the music going throughout much of the match and the players showing off their athleticism.
jg · August 22, 2019 at 12:16 pm
Roddick Blake playing at Open today, why not have one of these guys play Roger, who is probably older than them, Roger would do it for one set, he’d probably go half speed.
Hartt · August 22, 2019 at 1:04 pm
I will post this here because the other threads are getting long.
FAA and Shapo will face each other in the first round. I do not believe this! Two years in a row!
And Serena and Sharapova will meet in the first round. I predict a slaughter. 🙂
Hartt · August 22, 2019 at 1:29 pm
Kerber will play Mladenovic in the first round.
Fed is in Novak’s half.
Harold · August 22, 2019 at 1:49 pm
I couldn’t believe it, first round Shapo/FAA. First thought, poor Hartt is going to lose one of her treats eligibles in Round 1 again. Wonder what they texted to each other when the draw came out.
Shapo has two big matches coming up. Rubilev, and FAA. Will this be a stepping stone, or a setback. If he splits, which loss hurts more?
catherine · August 22, 2019 at 2:52 pm
Hartt – that’s not the worst 1st round match I can think of for Kerber. She’s got a chance, Kiki hasn’t been doing that well, but as ever, who knows ? Angie has to be aggressive, she can’t camp out behind the baseline and she has to avoid long rallies. On serve, I think they’re equally weak. Please, not a 3 setter.
Angie is on the Grand Slam of first match losses this year – AO FO W’don ?
What a shame about Denis and Felix. Unbelievable bad luck. I agree – Maria will be lucky to get 2 games.
catherine · August 22, 2019 at 3:50 pm
Angie is now advertising Head and Shoulders shampoo which doesn’t seem quite as classy as some products the elite players sponsor.
I still can’t believe she’s going into the USO with no official coach. Unless she’s road testing candidates and hasn’t said.
Same with Muguruza I think. There’s still time to pick up Sven 🙂
Hartt · August 22, 2019 at 4:31 pm
Yes, I agree that Angie could have had worse draws than Kiki.
Wow a first round exit in the other 3 Slams. That is pretty terrible!
Dan Markowitz · August 22, 2019 at 10:14 pm
Is this amazing or what? 15 American men went into the Qualifying Draw and only one is left, the youngest, Brooksby Jensen, for the last round tomorrow. That blows me away, the ineptitude of men’s tennis in America. I think there’s a good chance there won’t be an American male in the final week of the Open or if there is it’ll be Izzie, who’s not a player I enjoy watching play much.
Been interested to hear Alexandra Stevenson commentating on ESPN for the Qualis. I mean it’s about time ESPN got a commentator under the age of 50 or at least Mary Joe Fernandez’s age, and of color with their staple of Chrissy, Pam Shriver and Mary Joe, who’s Hispanic, but sounds pretty staid.
Stevenson is 38 now and I imagine no longer trying to mount a comeback. She still has the voice of a little girl. Could be she’s stuck at that period in her life when like Johnny Mac, she graduated from high school and went to Wimbledon and qualified and then reached the semis. Her life doesn’t appear to be so magical as those halcyon times.
Hartt · August 22, 2019 at 10:25 pm
Catherine, further to your comment about Angie promoting Head and Shoulders shampoo, I read a Forbes article today about the highest-paid women in sports. Angie was No. 3, behind Serena and Naomi. I forget her overall total, but she had $6.5 million in endorsements, higher than Sharapova at $6. But she was well behind Serena who had total earnings of $29.2 million, with $25 million of that from endorsements.
Jeff · August 23, 2019 at 12:25 am
Murray did to Puig the exact same thing Naomi did to Sascha. The clueless tennis media took Naomi’s side and are ripping Murray. I think both should be treated the same.
The No. 7 Gauff Flushing Meadows train needs to slow down. She is not winning this tournament no more than Felix winning the men’s event. It’s silly for people like Evert to talk up this possibility. I repeat Gauff is not winning.
None of you asked but yes I am in a bad mood over that Young-Jung result. Though it serves me right to put money on a loser like Young. The only stupider thing would have been to bet on Harrison. Two losers who deserve each other.
One thing me and Catherine are in agreement on and probably most of you as well is how corrosive social media is. We have seen how it is ruining Bouchard and Kyrgios; the great champions don’t do a whole lot of it – with the possible exception of Serena. Halep doesn’t do it and none of the Big 3. That’s another thing I like about Felix – he doesn’t seem to be into this nonsense and is focused on tennis.
Whoever mentioned that Kyrgios isn’t good enough for the NBA is right though I would love to see him make good on his threat to retire and try out for basketball just so he could embarrass himself further.
Nice to see Andy Roddick continue to lord it over the tennis world how he is the last American man to win a Slam. Full credit to him and I hope he continues to remind the generations before him how useless they truly are. He was smart to retire early and avoid more butt-kickings by the Big 3 and he actually finished with a winning record against Novak! His fight with Djoker in Ashe stadium is a thing of legend.
Someone mentioned Lloyd Carroll, who is that. Someone who played in the qualies?
jg · August 23, 2019 at 7:38 am
The rest of the world has surpassed the US on hard courts, maybe it’s time to switch back the US Open to Har Tru courts, where many players get their start here, especially in Florida and the northeast. I thought Miami should have turned into a har tru event, it lasted what a couple of years at Forest Hills and the USTA got pissed off when Manuel Orantes beat Connors in the final, so they thought there would be domination on the hard courts, well not anymore. Even in college tennis most of the top players are international. Hopefully Brooksby wins today ( he’s got that 2 handed slice, takes one hand off late)
Scoop Malinowski · August 23, 2019 at 8:06 am
Not saying Gauff will win it, but she certainly can win it. Will need luck and the best tennis of her life but she is improving leaps and bounds and her improvement rate is greater than any other player. She has shown she can play with the best and if she suddenly gets on a magical roll, which is possible,s he can go all the way.That is the incredible thing, she is showing she can play on the level of Venus, Halep, and Barty. She amazingly has proved that. There is no reason why she can’t suddenly rip into an even higher gear and hit a new level. I would not be shocked, this girl is very special.
Scoop Malinowski · August 23, 2019 at 8:11 am
Lloyd Carroll is a sportswriter from the Queens Chronicle weekly, who once called Mardy Fish a journeyman in a press conference after Fish lost a five setter to Robredo at the US Open. It was not meant as an insult, the way he worded it was just that he called Fish a journeyman and it was like a splash of reality to his ego. Fish suddenly got much better over the next year and became a top ten player. I joked to Carroll that his unintended insult of Fish actually turned his career around. I asked Lloyd to go ask Mardy if the journeyman tag from the year before’s press conference did spark his career and motivation and Fish admitted that it did! I think Lloyd said, ‘Mardy I feel I deserve some credit for your success in the last year’ and Fish replied, ‘And so you should.’ So it became a legendary story in our inner circle, that even a reporter could spark a struggling player’s career.
Scoop Malinowski · August 23, 2019 at 8:13 am
Jeff here is the old article about the Fish and Carroll story… https://www.tennis-prose.com/articles/7265/
Scoop Malinowski · August 23, 2019 at 8:28 am
The USA has not been surpassed in producing elite junior teen girls as Gauff and Anisimova are in position to become major champions in a few years (or even weeks). I know a lot of you dismiss Gauff beating Barty as a mere exo but Barty was trying and she did not tank it, she tried to win but failed to subdue this marvel of a teen. A lesson was learned by Gauff and she knows she can beat Barty or anyone.
Hartt · August 23, 2019 at 8:55 am
The social media thing and tennis is out of hand. I read that the WTA asked Bianca to increase her social media involvement a few months ago. As though being an amazing tennis player and potential superstar isn’t enough!
As for FAA, he does post photos on Instagram and does tweet, but it’s true he doesn’t get too involved.
Hartt · August 23, 2019 at 9:01 am
This is a terrific article about Althea Gibson from the BBC. (Outside of a typo about when she died – they gave the correct date later in the article.) With the upcoming unveiling of her statue at the USO there should be more stories about Gibson in the next few days. It’s sad that she did not receive more recognition for her amazing career and her role in opening tennis at the Slams, etc., to African-American players.
https://www.bbc.com/sport/tennis/49186075
Andrew Miller · August 23, 2019 at 9:08 am
Anisimova dad died, she has withdrawn. This was big news and should be. In reading a long piece on ESPN and building the Anisimova brand (which is basically, be as serious as Sharapova to have a life like Sharapova – as fluffy a piece of writing as it was long, sorry the writer took such an unserious tack…), it was clear her parents had her observe Sharapova to emphasize what being professional looks like.
Unless you’re Bouchard, who crashes the tour and says she wants to be Sharapova and acts like it and then gives up, I’d say this kid will feel like she owes something to her dad. Never want this to happen, but it’s the kind of searing experience that makes a player make hard choices at an early age.
catherine · August 23, 2019 at 9:11 am
https://www.ubitennis.net/2019/08/chris-evert-coco-gauff-winning-us-open-may-not-good-thing/
Scoop – this is Chris’ take on Gauff. I agree with her.
As I said before I bet Gauff plays every match on the Stadium court.
Andrew Miller · August 23, 2019 at 9:12 am
Agree with Hartt re the distractions tennis players have today. It’s pretty straightforward – if Tsitsipas is recording his travel videos he’s not working on his ppoor serve, which he has to clean up. People spend hours and hours to their Instagram pages – but I guarantee you the top players don’t care about it. It’s their team, their projects, their tennis. Which usually ends up boiling down to their tennis, their money, and their family and business partners. And that’s it….
Andrew Miller · August 23, 2019 at 9:19 am
If Gauff wins, which she won’t, I don’t think it matters. The tour can’t protect her from the corrupting influences of the sport and these kids are in the spotlights already. I’m more worried that today’s players don’t even have the discipline of Dan Goldie, let alone Dan Evans.
Stefanki talked about this. There’s a certain giving up that settles in early on. On the WTA there’s more of a belief that winning a slam is possible, but there’s not that much interest in being a perennial champion! Kerber wanted this but we all saw how that taste of fame unraveled her a bit until she rediscovered the magic and then reverted to her scattered self.
Which is fine for Kerber. Hall of Fame first ballot. No need to prove anything.
catherine · August 23, 2019 at 9:21 am
Andrew – what do you mean ? That the top players don’t care about IG or if they do it’s their own business ? And there’s nothing anyone can do about it.
catherine · August 23, 2019 at 9:33 am
I think Angie has some shreds of self-respect left which is why I find her behaviour puzzling. No sense in practising with her chums and not bothering with a coach if she wants to keep some dignity as her career winds down. A reporter’s comment on one of her losses earlier this year: ‘lacklustre and unmotivated’. Who wants their GS record sullied like that ? People are paying to watch her as well, a fact which may have slipped her mind.
Enough said until she plays – I commented on another thread.
Andrew Miller · August 23, 2019 at 9:36 am
Catherine, I think it’s the basic dilemma that Stefanki points out. The requirements of a player to Max their talent take a lot of work. When a player is lost to distraction, and also convinced that what works for them today in terms of shots and strategies will work for them tomorrow, they’ve already forfeited ranking point and lost matches before they’re played.
There’s a lot of money in sports now and there’s a lot of pressure for players to pay as much attention to “building a fan base” as earning some fans with their play. The Anisimova piece pointed this out to me, and back in the day Capriati oil of olay commercials as a fifteen year old.
We all know what happened to Capriati. I’m thankful she came back, but she was nearly eaten alive.
Now the distractions are at players fingertips. And they may feel like they need to feed the beast of popularity rather than work on their volleys etc.
Hartt · August 23, 2019 at 10:20 am
I don’t think it is a bad thing for a player to have an interest outside of tennis, as long as the tennis work comes first. It gives them a break from the daily grind, and helps keep them fresh. Tsitsipas’ vlogs mean that he doesn’t just stay in his hotel room during his down time. FAA has talked about how much enjoyment he gets from playing the piano and how it gives him a much-needed break from tennis from time to time.
Of course the key is that tennis has priority and that they put in the hard work.
Hartt · August 23, 2019 at 10:37 am
Even Felix will be featured in the September issue of Vogue. There is no escaping the media interest in these young players. I guess the best they can do is try to keep it to a manageable level.
Tennis Canada tried for many years to keep FAA under wraps as much as they could. But that is no longer possible with this young phenom who has charm to burn.
Andrew Miller · August 23, 2019 at 10:47 am
For sure media interest is nothing new. I just don’t remember Henin soaking it up. Yet Henin is one of the more significant players of the last few decades.
Scoop Malinowski · August 23, 2019 at 11:21 am
Some players like Henin resist media attention and want their accomplishments to speak. Others…Kafelnikov, Rios, Sampras, Hewitt, later Capriati, Nalbandian. Anyone see the pattern?
catherine · August 23, 2019 at 11:28 am
Chris Evert knows all about media interest, which is why she probably felt she could comment on Gauff. Chris was one of the most famous young women in the world when she was 18 or so and before she’d won a GS. She also had quite a strict upbringing, finished high school and somehow was able to keep things in balance for most of her career.
Nevertheless this is a quote I’ll always remember from Chris: ‘I was 15 when all this started, the fanfare. Sometimes your priorities get a little mixed up.’
Things are a bit different now, more pressure, which is why some of these young players need a strong presence in the background. Not always there. Social media gives you instant fame and the illusion of magnificent self-worth.
catherine · August 23, 2019 at 11:32 am
Henin wasn’t really a pin-up. Graf deflected media attention although it was extremely difficult for her in Germany as family problems added to the attention she never wanted.
Jeff · August 23, 2019 at 11:32 am
That Fish story is incredible! Nothing Fishy about that. Sorry I couldn’t resist.
I think it shows that inspiration can come from anywhere.
Yes social media is hurting tennis. I don’t want anybody to tell me I don’t get the younger generation either. Andrew is right, you aren’t working on your game if you are making videos.
Another problem is the tours enable this stuff. The ATP Twitter account posts every Tweener Kyrgios hits and Zverev actually joked what do I have to do to get my Tweener on your social media. Shows you what is wrong right there. The WTA stuff I have seen is simililarly idiotic.
Andrew Miller · August 23, 2019 at 12:11 pm
The sport needs media, that’s given. But there’s something big and important and that’s the sport. If certain media are ruining player prospects then players and the sport have to think about that.
Cell phones have been around for decades now, so that’s not new. But the constant media presence enabled by cell phones? That’s new.
Andrew Miller · August 23, 2019 at 12:18 pm
Clijsters stayed pretty focused? Azarenka stayed pretty focused?
Ok, true, Henin didn’t get the attention of Sharpie. But how did Sharpie manage to be a player first? Look at it this way: Sharapova got results first then attention, and kept tennis at the center. Bouchard comes along and wants Sharapova fame and gets it as her game goes to (not quite seed) say ten percent worse. So her ranking drops significantly, but her game keeps growing.
That is odd!!! That’s a strange phenomenon. Maybe like Kournikova but Kournikova got to #1 in doubles, so in some ways she maintained her status as a player.
Scoop Malinowski · August 23, 2019 at 12:20 pm
People are owned by their phones now, the phones and media entrance, captivate, control people. Take a look at anywhere there are people and the majority are looking at their phones. I was at a tennis court and next to us were four people playing doubles, on the changeover, three were on their phones and the one was annoyed by it. Phones and media control the public now. The world we live in. Media power is out of control.
Scoop Malinowski · August 23, 2019 at 12:20 pm
Jeff, it sure was an incredible story and only one tennis information outlet witnessed it and broke it 🙂
Hartt · August 23, 2019 at 12:23 pm
Catherine, I have been trying to find the answer to that burning question – exactly how tall is Ash Barty? Honestly, it has been as tough as a couple of my earlier quests, to find out what Khachanov’s wife looked like when he first burst on the scene, and to see Basilashvili smile. Recently, of course, Karen’s wife was seen often at his matches, although she is expecting their first child, so she hasn’t been seen at his tourneys lately. And I have spotted a Basilashvili smile not once, but twice!
After their exhibition match at Winston-Salem there is a photo of Ash and Coco Gauff standing next to each other. Coco looks to be a couple inches taller than Ash. Generally, Gauff’s height is given as 5’9″. So it looks like Ash is telling the truth when she claims to be 5’7″. Mission accomplished! 🙂
catherine · August 23, 2019 at 12:41 pm
Thanks Hartt. So Ash actually knows how tall she is. The WTA doesn’t 🙂
What Fish story ? I must have missed that entirely.
Scoop Malinowski · August 23, 2019 at 1:00 pm
Everything needs media, tennis, us open, players, good causes, my books. But when you see kids and adults staring into their phones non stop, it’s a concern.
Scoop Malinowski · August 23, 2019 at 1:02 pm
Sharapova wanted to be the best, Bouchard wanted to be Sharapova and Kournikova with a private life of Evert Hingis Madonna all rolled into one.
Scoop Malinowski · August 23, 2019 at 1:05 pm
Regarding Barty’s height, Serena is listed at 5-9 and if you google photos of them together, you will see Barty is either 2-3 inches shorter. So She is 5-6/5-7.
catherine · August 23, 2019 at 1:06 pm
OMG – I’m getting old. The WTA site had this silly thing where some of the younger players tried to use ‘old’ technology. Tape cassettes stumped most of them but not one single person knew how to use a rotary dial phone.
We have to remember the people we’re talking about a lot of the time.
Hartt · August 23, 2019 at 1:11 pm
That is downright funny about the rotary dial phone. Could they figure it out?
catherine · August 23, 2019 at 1:44 pm
No, most of them gave up. Video cassettes also flummoxed them. Reminded me how quickly things change nowadays – I wonder what it’s doing to young people’s brains ?
Hartt · August 23, 2019 at 4:15 pm
Shapo just defeated Rublev in their QF match in Winston Salem in SS, 6-3, 7-6(4). Denis played pretty well overall. He was fairly patient in the first set, but not as good about that in the 2nd. He served well, with 10 aces and 4 DFs. His serve got him out of trouble a few times.
Andrey was not having a great day. I think he had something like 7 DFs.
Denis has to play the SF tonight, and will face the winner of Tiafoe vs Hurkacz. The last time I checked Tiafoe had won the first set.
The other SF this evening will be between Johnson and Paire. They both had to play their QFs today as well.
Andrew Miller · August 23, 2019 at 5:55 pm
Nice work from Shapo. These are all good results. Rublev has had a good few weeks, he should be confidant with his game. Felix too. Johnson must be very pleased.
And Paire! He could win it!
catherine · August 24, 2019 at 5:43 am
Shapo got well beaten by Hurkacz. I ezxpect Hartt can tell us more.