Federer with the Rare Disappointment

It is hard for Roger Federer to disappoint me. For most of my adult life, Roger Federer has been one of the few constants in terms of sports fandom for me in a world where my partisanship generally shifts with the wind. What they don't tell you when you start covering sports is that actually getting to know the people you once idolized can make it significantly harder to view them objectively. Sometimes the players you once loved simply cannot be admired once you get the behind-the-scenes lowdown on their off-the-court persona. Spend too much time in a locker room (or worse) a media area and you might find out that the tv personality that entertained you or the player whose heroics you once cheered is actually a complete turd, with little redeeming value beyond their chosen sport.  It can be a sad realization.

But that has never happened to me with Federer. In fact, the few interactions with Roger Federer have made me only like him more. Along with my beloved Kentucky Wildcats, Roger Federer is the only athletic entity from which I have never wavered.  In the "Outer Courts" first ever tournament appearance at Indian Wells, we met Federer at lunch and after some nervousness, got up the courage to ask him if he would come on our Kentucky-based UK basketball post game show. Any rational human would have understood if he said "no I am busy" or "I don't know anything about UK basketball and don't know you two goobers so I will have to pass."  Instead, Federer just smiled at the absurdity of the request and agreed to come on for what were the most exciting 15 seconds in Kentucky since Rick Pitino decided to hit an Italian restaurant after hours.  He was in short, as perfect as I had hoped as his grace on the court was matched with his kindness and generosity off of it.

So with that as a backdrop, it pains me to say I simply cannot get behind this "Federer is Betterer" campaign that I see all over the US Open.  Look I get it. We all love puns. My favorite comic strip (if it is still indeed a comic strip) is "Frank and Ernest", a series that exists solely to make stupid punny jokes based on plays on words and the like (read some of the best on their website...I guarantee you laugh at least once). And I understand that because Federer's name ends in the odd "Ur" sound, it is hard to make it rhyme or do the kind of things that we like to do with our favorite stars. But to come up with "Federer is Betterer," is to not only throw out the laws of grammar but also create a cringe-inducing slogan that makes one look moderately illiterate if you wear it in public.

This idea traces back to a Wilson ad campaign that seems to start with the premise that as good as Federer is (he is "better" than everyone), there is still another level to reach (the "Betterer") and the new Wilson racket is hitting that level.  A series of "Betterer" commercials came out, the first of which is below:






The problem with this entire enterprise can be seen in this commercial. The comedy is corny (see they are smart and you can tell because they all have on dorky glasses!!!!) and even Roger seems to be mildly amused at the awfulness of it all. It's as if the ad campaign creators were late coming up with the final idea, someone heard a child say the word "Betterer" (not knowing it was not an actual word) and then they said, "THAT'S IT....HE IS BETTERER!!!" And the awfulness then came to fruition. However if all we had to worry about were these snippets, it would be fine. But Nike has now taken up the mantle of "Betterer" and is making the t-shirts you see at the top of this post. All over the US Open grounds I see these shirts for sale (although interestingly enough, not actually on any human beings) and every iteration of the phrase makes me cringe slightly more.

I don't begrudge Roger making money and I certainly am not against silly slogans that are plays on his name (you are talking to a man with an "Advantage Federer" and "Roger That" t-shirt).  But this is Roger Federer and some dignity must remain. This is a man who brought an unprecedented level of elegance and grace to the game and who it has been said, when seen in person can almost elevate the sports to a religious experience. His strokes are perfect...his footwork is perfect...even his hair is perfect. That person, an individual who seems to operate on a higher plain of style and panache than the rest of us simply can't walk around with people saying he is "Betterer."  It isn't just.

I am sorry Roger...it had to be said.

Boris Becker should probably get that elbow checked out

new.au.com

There is tennis elbow and then there is whatever is going on with Boris Becker's elbow. I'm no doctor, nor did I stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night, but I recommend he consults someone about that enlarged synovial hinge joint.

His arm appears to be growing a tennis ball.

Radwanska and Stephens sent home in upsets to lead off Wednesday's action

Wednesday at the US Open began with an upset in Louis Armstrong, where China's Shuai Peng defeated fourth-seeded Agnieska Radwanska in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4. The unseeded Peng has Radwanska's number here in Flushing-Meadows; the 28-year-old sent Radwanska home in the second round of the 2010 US Open, too.

Radwanksa is the highest seed on either side to exit this year's tournament. She was considered to be one of the favorites after receiving a favorable draw to the semifinals, however, Peng had other plans. Now Germany's Angelique Kerber is the one to watch for what was believed to be Radwanska's semifinals spot.

But wait, it doesn't end there.

The upset bug bit again moments later when Sloane Stephens lost the first match of the day on Arthur Ashe. The American, my tennis crush, fell to Johanna Larsson, the 96th-ranked player in the world.

What is going on with the women???

Michael Jordan can only laugh at Federer's tweener

Michael Jordan was Roger Federer's special guest last night at Federer's centercourt match with Marinko Matosevic. Jordan, who admits to knowing absolutely nothing about tennis, couldn't help but laugh when Federer pelted Matosevic in the back with a tweener.


Federer and Jordan spent some time together Monday evening, talking about life and being awesome at their respective sports. Then Federer took the court Tuesday night in the brand new Jordan Brand tennis shoe, the first of its kind.

The new Zoom Vapor 9 Tour White Cement features Jordan's Jumpman branding and Federer's 'RF' logo. Nike will sell like 50 bajillion pairs when it hits stores.

Who Is Catherine Bellis?

Yesterday, 15-year-old Catherine Bellis shocked the tennis world when she defeated 12th-seeded Dominika Cibulkova, 6-1,4-6, 6-4, in what is by far the biggest upset in the first two days of the 2014 US Open. The California native entered the match ranked 1,208th in the world, some 1,195 spots behind Cibulkova, the runner-up at this year's Australian Open. The surprise victory makes Bellis the youngest player to win a US Open match since 1996.

So who is this Catherine Bellis? Here are 10 things to know...

1.) Her nickname is 'CiCi.'

Her middle name is Cartan, so Catherine Cartan... CiCi... makes sense to me.

2.) She was born in 1999.

The same year that gave us The Sopranos, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?, Fight Club, The Matrix, and the debut of Britney Spears.

Andre Agassi and Serena Williams won the 1999 US Open.

3.) She is from San Francisco.

Now she lives in Atherton, California. You may spot her at Stanford Mall, one of her favorite hangouts with her friends.

4.) She won the USTA Girls 18's National Championships.

Bellis earned her wild card spot in the Open's main draw by winning the USTA Girls 18's National Championships earlier this month, defeating Tornado Alicia Black in straight sets.

5.) She loves Ellen Degeneres.

In her post-match press conference yesterday, CiCi was asked what talk show she would like to be a guest on. She said, "I love Ellen. I think would like to go on Ellen."

Your move, Ellen.

6.) Kim Clijsters is her idol.

Growing up, Bellis loved watching Clijsters. She admired her confidence, her game, and how she carried herself.

7.) She plans to keep her amateur status.

Bellis plans to attend college so she is prepared for life without tennis, should anything go wrong. The $60,000 she would've banked for the win as a professional hasn't even entered her mind.

8.) She's so over Justin Bieber.

She used to like him when she was younger, she claims, but that was a couple years ago. She's sooo over Bieber Fever now.

9.) She likes to cook and watch movies.

And play tennis, obviously.

10.) She faces Zarina Diyas in the second round.

Diyas, a Top 50 player, needed only 15 games to win her first round match over Lesia Tsurenko. At 20 years old, Diyas is also a youngster trying to make a name for herself on the tour. It'll be the first meeting between the two.

DO NOT Eat the Free Chia Pods at the US Open

This isn't exactly breaking news here, but in case you hadn't heard, food can be a little pricey at the US Open. A typical stadium lunch of burger and fries for two on the grounds will run you around 40 bucks, and that's one of the more affordable options.

Luckily, the generous people at the Chia Co. are giving away free Chia Pods to US Open goers. With one full serving of sun ripened chia seeds mixed with your favorite fruits and coconut milk, it is the perfect snack to overcome hunger while taking in that third match of the afternoon on Arthur Ashe.

Well, that's what I initially thought, before regrettably taking my first (and last) bite. That is what the Chia Co. wants you to think and that is what I would've written had I walked past the Chia Pod refrigerator without trying a sample.

But the truth is, the Chia Pod is possibly the worst thing my taste buds have ever encountered, and I've done some things, people. It's awful. Repulsive. Let's put it this way: If I were on a desert island with an infinite supply of chilled Chia Pods at my disposal, I would burn it all so the smell would ward off predators and then accept my imminent fate of death by starvation. Life isn't worth living if Chia Pods are the only means of survival. Therefore I can't imagine eating one to hold me over until dinnertime at the US Open.

Sadly, I continue to see Chia Co. employees stocking the refrigerator, or what I like to call, "The Ice Chamber of Packaged Farts." Are people really eating these things? If so, I don't believe it. I won't believe it. Impossible. I will eat the socks off Ivo Karlovic's sweaty feet after a five-set match before reaching the point of desperation where I peel back another lid on one of those bowls of berries and wolf urine.

I think I've made my point. 

Simply put, don't eat the free Chia Pods at the US Open. This guy knows:

“These chia seeds taste like tilapia.” “Um, don’t you mean tapioca?” “No, I mean tilapia."

— Jon Wertheim (@jon_wertheim) August 26, 2014

A Tale of Two Americans in Green

Yesterday was not a banner day for American tennis. With a chance to make waves and get excitement and energy flowing through the USTA Tennis Center grounds, Donald Young and Bradley Klahn both came crashing to the ground, winning one set combined and (in Young's case) giving the fans little besides temper tantrums. It was a depressing start to our nation's championship and one that hurt American tennis fans and television executives alike. But as a Bahamian janitor once said to me after he accidentally turned the power off on my radio show in the middle of a live broadcast in Nassau, "don't worry about the mistakes of today, tomorrow is a new day."  It didn't calm me down then (we were never able to get back on the air), but it gave me peace as applied to American male tennis going into today.

And as we sit here in the mid-afternoon, the early results are mixed. Two Americans took the court in loud green shirts (there are those that argue the proliferation of neon shirts in tennis is a bad thing...those people are the worst and if adequately represented by the photographer sitting next to me whining at this very moment, smell like salmon) and the result was mixed.  Sam Querrey won a hard-fought five set victory over Maximo Gonzalez (an Outer Courts favorite last year), that saw the young American bounce back from a number of heartbreaking opportunities which he nearly let slip away. Gonzalez, a clay court specialist whose style is essentially that of a tennis backboard, made nothing easy for Sam, but by putting together a string of top-notch service games in the final set, Querrey was able to squeak away with the victory.

Jack Sock was not so lucky. After an uneven performance that saw him down two sets to one, Sock retired with a foot injury before the start of the fourth. It was a tough ending to the summer for Sock who seemed finally on the cusp of making a big move  to the Top 40 with a draw that gave him a potential path to the Round of 16 and a career-making match with Milos Raonic. Instead, Sock found his tournament ended in the same way as the other hot American of the summer, Donald Young, with a disappointing performance in front of a lackluster crowd on the Grandstand.

As a longtime fan of Kentucky football, I know the pain and strife of cheering for something that is in the midst of a long struggle. But American men's tennis has become downright putrid. While there are some young players that give hope (Noah Rubin being one and he too got smoked in three sets today...but let's just look past that for a moment), the "now" generation is decidedly a bust. John Isner is a Top 10 player without any Top 10 results and the rest of the American roster can best be summed up by a description of a fellow fraternity member of mine in college....they "exceed in mediocrity." It was only 25 years ago that 22 of the top 50 players in the world were American. Now that number stands at three and may dip to one after this week.

Of all the major sports in the world, America's stature in men's tennis is likely the worst relative to other countries of all.  It is depressing for those of us yearning for the days of Sampras, Agassi, Courier and Chang, or even reminiscing of the so-so years of Roddick, Martin and Blake. Hopefully something new will be on the horizon (maybe James Donaldson, who I am going to watch take on Gael Monfils this afternoon), but for now, all we have are a couple of big serves, some green shirts and the best double entendre name on tour. It is a sad state of affairs.

Day One at the Open Wrap: Bee-lieve in Krygios

The US Open got underway today with a bang as a gorgeous day in Queens led to large crowds and a festive atmosphere at the opening day of our nation's championship.  For those of us here at the Outer Courts, it was our return to the world of tennis coverage and we were happy to be back. The US Open greeted us by, for the second year in a row, denying our attempts to sit in the media center and telling us we would have to take up residence in the cafeteria. As we made ourselves comfortable amidst the journalists chowing on their per diem, we had wifi problems (it didn't work) and seat problems (we had no chairs) that got us a late start. But like champs, we persevered,  got out onto the grounds in time to see a future star (Nick Krygios) and a guaranteed meltdown (the Donald Young volcano).  A great first day it still would be. There were no major upsets and the day lacked a real defining match, but there were some fun moments that got the tournament on the sporting map (all of you who had Kimiko Date-Krumm as the first US Open player to go viral on the national sports blogs, cash in your chips now). With that in mind, here is what you missed if you missed it:

Venus Wins the Golden Girls Matchup

When I was a kid, my favorite television to watch on the down low was "The Golden Girls."  While most of the sexual double entendre jokes went over my head at the time (in hindsight, that was a pretty risqué family show), Bea Arthur, Rue McClanahan, Betty White and the girls were still twice as entertaining as women half their age and certainly worth my eight year old interest. Unfortunately, the same level of entertainment wasn't exactly available today on Arthur Ashe, where Venus Williams (age 34) held off  Kimiko Date-Krumm (age 43) in three sets in somewhat of a snoozer. But while Krumm's age never ceases to amaze (her footwork is legitimately better than 50% of the players I have watched here), the story of the day was the bee that plagued the matchup. For two minutes, one lone bee took hold of the proceedings, irritating Venus and causing Kimiko and a number of the US Open staff to shuffle their feet quickly. The resulting video went viral and is probably the lasting image of Day One

It is once again proof of the old adage of comedy, there is little funnier than watching people run away from animals that scare them (I believe there was a "Golden Girls" and maybe even an "Empty Nest" episode with this premise). After the bee attack Date-Krumm's game went South, suggesting that if she really wants to have an edge, before Venus takes on Tamia Bacsinszky in the next round, she should look into what animals that may terrify the Swiss player (my guess is a spider would do the trick).

Nick Krygios Gets It Done

If you are a tennis fan, by this time you know the story of Nick Krygios. His massive amount of hype after his Juniors success, followed by his run at Wimbledon this summer has made him the "next big thing" for virtually everyone that follows the sport. Beating Rafa Nadal will make sure everyone wants to see your next performance, but as anyone who has ever watched a comedy movie sequel can attest, the second act is always the hardest. For the third straight Grand Slam, Krygios drew a seeded player and once again he gave a solid performance, taking down 21st seeded Mikhail Youzhny in four sets. Krygios completely overpowered the Russian, blasting his serves up to 138 mph and running him around the court for the vast majority of the match. Krygios struggled a bit with returns, but his service game was on point, as was his ability to move a crowd. Court 17 was raucous for the young Australian, showing near unanimous support for the entirety of the match. If tennis needs a new star for the next generation, Krygios has the charisma to make it happen and with a draw that looks favorable (only Andreas Seppi and possibly Tommy Robredo stand in the way of a Round of 16 berth), this could be the second consecutive major where Krygios becomes must watch television and the future of men's professional tennis.

American Males Take Off With a Thud

If you are an optimist about the state of male tennis (and if you are, you must be an optimist about everything in life), then you saw the Draw for this year's Open and thought, "there are some places for some Americans to make some noise."  Two of the players with the best shot to inject some Red, White and Blue 'Murica! noise were Donald Young and Bradley Klahn, who were both blessed with winnable opening matches and seeded players in the 30s on the horizon in the second round. With so much promise in the NYC, it was thus even more disappointing to watch both players crash and burn on Day One. Klahn's loss wasn't a complete disaster as he gave Andrey Kuznetsov a battle for four sets and simply missed opportunities to pull the slight upset. But Donald Young's (the second highest ranked American in the world...a sad fact in and of itself) performance was a complete train wreck, losing in straight sets to Blaz Kavcic, while embarrassing himself with his antics in the process. Drew has already written below about the match and I agree with most of what he said. However I find watching Young in situations like today simply depressing. He is completely unable to go through any adversity without spewing F-bombs and cursing in the general direction of his family. His loss culminated today in a rant (aimed at his mother of all people) in which he said, "I can't play with this f***** bitch ass racket." Whether the racket was bitch ass or not, the play certainly was and it helped culminate a day one for Team America we would like to forget.

Seeded Women Struggle But Get Through

Three top ten seeded ladies dropped a set in Round One, but found a way to get the victory. The biggest upset was averted early, after #2 seeded Simona Halep overcame a first set tiebreaker loss to young American Danielle Rose-Collins to win in three. (6-7, 6-1, 6-2). Rose-Collins threw Halep off with her power, but wore down in the end, to keep the bottom half of the women's draw from crumbling before our eyes. While they won the first sets, poor performances in the second caused Angelique Kerber and Caroline Wozniacki to have to go three in first round matches that should have been much easier. Both women found their footing in the third (with Wozniacki being helped by an injury default from Magdalena Rybarikova), but their shakiness was still evident. The day ended with 25th seeded Garbine Muguruza as the only seeded casualty, but it was very close to being a much worse day for the top of the women's field.

Andy Murray/Robin Haase

It was awful and I have already written about it once below. Let's just never speak of it again.

Biggest Surprise: Matthias Bachinger

If you are the type of person who religiously follows the US Open Qualifying Tournament (and my hope is that you are not), then you would have likely been surprised to find out that 235th ranked Matthias Bachinger qualified for the main draw with three straight set wins. The 27 year old German has never won a Grand Slam match, had not qualified for one ATP Tournament this year and has watched his ranking steadily slip since making the Top 100 in 2011. However Bachinger put forth one of the best performances of the day, taking out Radek Stepanak in straight sets. With many suggesting Stepanak could be an upset pick over Andy Murray, Bachinger's win raised quite a few eyebrows, giving the German a chance to truly shock the world when he plays the man with the golden urine later this week. We will learn more about him later this week, but for now salute Matthias for a job well done (pictured below in a contemplative state)

Biggest Disappointment: Vasek Pospisil

This was supposed to be the week that the Pospisil exploded on the scene. With a very favorable draw and a hot streak like no other, the 19th ranked player in the world was supposed to find his form, get to the round of 16 and give Stan Wawrinka all he wanted in a match that announced another top 20 player was here to stay. False. Instead, Pospisil lost to Simone Bolelli in five and gave up an open side of the draw that had his name written all over it. Pospisil may have been tired after his magical summer, but this question still lingers. While his Wimbledon Doubles title win is special, his streak with Jack Sock impressive and his trip to the finals in Washington DC important, when it is all said and done, how do we rank a player as rising who has lost in the first round of the last two Grand Slams?  Vasek that was not one crunchy pickle.


What's On the Horizon

Tomorrow the first round continues with a few matches of note. Roger Federer takes the court at night versus Marinko Matosevic who may or may not reach eight total games in the match (I will take the over...slightly). The Grandstand will be rocking for Gael Monfils/Jared Donaldson, as the Tour's most entertaining player takes on the 17 year old phenom looking to make a name for himself. That match will without question have the best crowd and likely produces the best chance at excitement on Day Two. The women get going with Serena Williams/Taylor Townsend in a match that won't be close, but is still worth your time if for no other reason than to realize how charming young Taylor can be. And we at the Outer Courts are excited about the debut of our man Ivo Karlovic, seeded 25th and ready to take on the Jarknado, on Court 4.  We will be here to take you through all of it (hopefully with working Wifi and a place to sit down) tomorrow.  See you then.

Donald Young's Problem Sits in Row 1, Seats 1 and 2

Once upon a time, Donald Young was a tennis prodigy destined for greatness. He had a Nike deal worth enough money to buy the US Open reliable Wi-Fi with plenty to spare. He was the future for American tennis, the next in line, they said.

Today, he is not that. Not at all. Today, he is hard to watch. And today, he lost in three straight sets to Blaz Kavcic, the No. 92 player in the world. 

Raise your hand if you've heard of Blaz Kavcic. Exactly.

Now I'm no tennis coach (shocker, right?) but I think I found part of the problem that is keeping Young from reaching even a fraction of his potential. It's his family. They're holding him back and I've witnessed it firsthand in consecutive US Opens, sitting directly behind them in his losses.

Don't get me wrong, I'm sure his Mom and Pops are lovely people. Or maybe they're not. I don't know and I don't care, really. But I do know they are the last people who need to be sitting behind Young during his matches. They need to be high in the grandstands or at home on the couch because it's clear they are a distraction. He is CONSTANTLY looking to them for approval, or as someone to cry to when things go wrong. The latter being the most frequent from what I've seen.

Time and time again in today's first round exit, Young would look to his family after a lost point. It's almost as if he was more concerned with their reactions than the actual scoreboard. I understand his parents coach him and coaches can offer some much-needed guidance during a match, but Young couldn't go two minutes without glancing over to the front row at Mom and Dad when his attention and focus should've been on Blaz Kavcic and the match he let slip away after winning the first four games. Mom and Dad can't make a difference from the bleachers, so why does Young, now 25 years old, feel the need to look their way so often? 

Furthermore, when Young looks toward his family, it's often followed with a flurry of language not suitable for our younger readers at The Outer Courts. My mother would drag me off the court by the earlobe at the mere thought of some of the things he spews his mother's way at any given moment during a match. The seating around the Youngs should come with a warning sign or an '18 and over' policy. Check IDs at the top of the stairs to be safe.

It's a shame, too. Young should be one of the most likable guys at the US Open. He is America's second highest ranked player on tour and he's from Chicago, the city that gave us Michael Jordan, deep dish pizza, and Family Matters. Every American likes Chicago, therefore every American should like Donald Young. Sadly, that's not the case. Not until he grows up and channels his emotions toward winning instead of slamming rackets and yelling at his parents in the first row. If they were to move out of sight, I believe we'd see a better Donald Young on the tennis court, maybe even a likable one.