While We Were Sleeping: Day 1

Covering the Australian Open from America isn't easy on one's sleep schedule, especially while balancing the tennis with another full-time job. A man's gotta get at least a little shut-eye each night and the 16-hour time difference between Melbourne, Australia and Lexington, Kentucky isn't the ideal setup when pulling double duty. That 7:00 p.m. primetime match in Rod Laver Arena each night? It airs over here in the States at 3:00 a.m., right around the time my eyelids tend to throw in the towel. I can only drink so much Mountain Dew before the high fructose corn syrup coma sets in.

Each American morning we'll review the Australian Open results and happenings while The Outer Courts was resting its eyes 9,500 miles away. Here is the first edition of "While We Were Sleeping"...


Novak Djokovic is one step closer to Aussie history.

Three-time defending champ Novak Djokovic won his 22nd consecutive match in Melbourne Monday night (or early Monday morning) by defeating Lukas Lacko, 6-3, 7-6 (2), 6-1. Djokovic, who called himself "rusty" after the win, is chasing his fifth Australian Open title, a feat no man has achieved since the Open Era began in 1968. Djokovic is currently tied with Andre Agassi and Roger Federer at four titles apiece.

Roy Emerson won six titles when it was the Australian Championships, but we're not here to talk about the Australian Championships.

Serena Williams beat a 17-year-old.

Five-time Aussie champ Serena Williams defeated the local girl, 17-year-old Ashleigh Barty, in two quick sets. Barty held serve to take the first game, which brought on a huge roar from the crowd, but the match was over in under an hour. Williams advances to face Vesna Dolonc in the second round.

Fun Fact: Barty was six years old when Serena won her first Australian title in 2003.

Denis Istomin and his glasses defeated Marcos Baghdatis.

2006 runner-up Marcos Baghdatis was given an early exit from Melbourne by Denis Istomin in three straight sets. The win was a controversial one, at least to me, considering Istomin was wearing Google Glass during the match.

I demand an investigation. Istomin could've been watching YouTube, checking Twitter, taking photos, or reading The Outer Courts during play. I bet he was reading The Outer Courts. And that's an incredibly unfair advantage.

Ivo Karlovic, our Ivo Karlovic, gone too soon from Melbourne

@Brisbanelopez

It's with a heavy heart that The Outer Courts bids adieu to Ivo Karlovic from the Australian Open. Anyone who has followed this site through other tournaments knows how much we love Ivo and want the best for him in every match. We had hoped to see him in the finals in two weeks -- ridiculous, I know -- but fellow Croatian and 32nd seeded Ivan Dodig defeated Ivo on Day 1 of the tournament, 7-6 (8), 6-3, 7-6 (4).

Dodig joins Stanislas Wawrinka (US Open '13), Adrian Mannarino (Western & Southern Open '13), and Sam Querrey (BNP Paribas Open '13) as guys we can never forgive for sending Ivo home from tournaments we cover.

Good thing he still has Twitter. No one can ever take that away from us. Ever.

I always thought the shelves in my living room were kinda off white. But today I wiped the dust off..

— ivo karlovic (@ivokarlovic) November 1, 2013

Watching Venus Lose Makes Me Sad

Why did they have to start with Venus Williams?  Did the Aussies want to intentionally suck away my energy in the first match of the tournament? Look, I follow the same routine for every big tennis tournament, Olympic Games or any other event that goes on a long period of time. I am uber-excited for it to begin and thus I get unbelievably giddy for night one. I put everything else aside and focus on consuming every moment of action of the first day, before slowly seeing my excitement dwindle over the next few days, as my energy drains. Life usually gets in the way, I make the decision that interacting with my friends and family is more important than a 3 am Court 8 Fabio Fognini match, and then I consume the events by doing what rational people do, focusing on the highlights. But the eagerness of Day One is always something I look forward to and this year the Australian Open schedule makers completely ripped it away from me.

They knew what they were doing. It was completely forseeable that Venus Williams would lose tonight to (22) Ekaterina Makarova. Not only was Makarova the higher seed, but she also has a history of Australian Open magic, specifically against the Williams sisters, knocking out Serena in 2012. When the draw was released, I groaned at the matchup, knowing that Venus's early season positive form could potentially come crashing to a halt in round one at Melbourne,  before I even had a chance to get comfortable.  Venus has a history of painful Australian open losses and the matchup with Makarova seemed destined to add another page to her general disdain for this place. Unfortunately the match completely followed the script. Venus won the first set, gave up the second and seemed to be cruising in the third, going up 3-0 and setting up a potential major move for the American into the fourth round. But then history bombarded us, Makarova won five straight games, served out the set and we witnessed another painful Venus loss.

Here is the reality. I hate to watch Venus lose. I have always found the eldest Williams sister to be somewhat of a tragic figure. On the surface that seems silly. She has won seven grand slams, has more money than she will ever need and by all accounts, lives a healthy, well-rounded life in which tennis is only a part of her overall makeup. But I can't help but still feel bad when I see her lose. Part of it is because even as the older sibling, she will always be the lesser tennis Williams. While still having a Hall of Fame career of her own, she will never be remembered without a comparison to her sister and the ways in which she has come up short will be part of every memory about her. Most of the time when siblings play sports, one is markedly better than the other and the dynamic becomes clear and defined. Whether it be the Lopez brothers in basketball, the Waltrips in auto racing or the McEnroes in tennis, it is almost always the case that one sibling is a star and the other is a successful, but clearly lesser version.

But the Williams sisters are different. Venus was the star first. She was a trailblazer in sports, breaking barriers from the moment she entered tennis and bringing a powerful, athletic game to the sport that completely changed the way all of the female players approached being a professional. When Venus Williams came on the scene the game shifted on and off the court, as her rise was one of the single biggest draws the sport had ever seen. However just a couple of years later, along came Serena and everything changed. There were a couple of years of great competition as the two sisters dueled for the best player in the world status, but very quickly it was clear, Serena was the more dominant force. Venus became an afterthought as Serena did everything her little sister did, only better. She took the mantle as likely the best player to ever play the game and Venus was left as a multiple major winner, always in her (younger) sister's shadow. The closest sports equivalent one can find is the Manning brothers in football, but only if Eli somehow turned into football's Babe Ruth, while Peyton retreated to Stan Musial status (a legend, but not the GOAT) . But that didn't happen...even if Eli wins more rings, Peyton is the superior player and both can take solace in their individual accomplishments and stable relationship to each other.

I am sure Venus feels none of the disappointment I project on her. She seems to be her sister's biggest supporter and has never looked to me to be the jealous type. I love that the sisters still play doubles together and their friendship has never wavered, at least in public. But as I watch Venus's career wind down, her losses inevitably sadden me. I project what would likely be my own insecurity in a similar situation (hating someone younger, cooler and more talented than you in your own profession is why I have a dartboard with Drew Franklin's picture on it in the Outer Courts' office), onto Venus when it is probably not needed. She seems fine with it, and I should be too. But I can't help it. Watching Venus lose makes me sad and has dampened my excitement for Day One in Melbourne. I now am not sure if I can stand to stay up all night, and even Chris Fowler's late night puns are not having the same effect on me. Hopefully something will fix this quickly and get my giddi...oh wait, did you say Ernests Gulbis just threw a racket and is having a temper tantrum, while using language that would make the producers of "Wolf of Wall Street" blush?

Ok fine, I am back in.

A Tennis Fan's Guide To Melbourne, Australia

Welcome to The Land Down Under, tennis fans! 

You look lost. You're lost, aren't you? Don't be embarrassed, Melbourne can be overwhelming for an out-of-towner like yourself. Why don't you sit back, let those binoculars rest around your neck, and allow me to assist you in your journey so you can focus on other things, like tennis. 

Here is The Outer Courts' travel guide to Melbourne...

Melbourne, Australia

Melbourne, conveniently located in the state of Victoria, was founded by John Batman, a young bounty hunter, in 1835 and it is now the second most populous city in all of Australia.  4.17 million people call Melbourne home and all of them absolutely hate it when Americans rave about the blooming onion at Outback Steakhouse.

Notable Melbournians

Some of our favorite famous people were born in Melbourne, including Kyrie Irving, NBA point guard; Liam Hemsworth, Miley Cyrus' ex-fiance; Cate Blanchett, Academy Award-winning actress; Kylie Minogue, pop star; Rupert Murdoch, really rich gold guy; and the late Steve Irwin, "The Crocodile Hunter."

Five Things To Do In Melbourne

-- Tell a stranger, “G-day mate!”

-- Attend a cricket match at the Melbourne Cricket Grounds! (Look up the rules of the game first.)

-- Enjoy a walk through Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne, one of the best-landscaped gardens in the world!

-- Eat bush tucker! What is bush tucker, you ask? It’s Australian food! Try the kangaroo, and, if you don’t like it, just cover it ranch and force it down.  You’re on vacation!

-- See a show at the Regency Theatre! Or a concert!

Five Things You Shouldn’t Do In Melbourne

--  Do not ask for showtimes for any of the Crocodile Dundee movies while visiting the Regency Theatre.

-- Drink Foster’s beer.  It’s only popular in American convenient stores and homeless shelters.

-- Litter.  Australians take the cleanliness of their streets very seriously.

-- Crocodile wrestle. Yeah, you saw Steve Irwin do it, but you’re not Steve Irwin.

-- Tell an Aussie, “Let’s put another shrimp on the barbie!” because you thought it was funny when Lloyd Christmas did it.  He was talking to a girl from Austria, anyway.

Australian Open Quick Facts

-- It draws the second-highest attendance of all tennis tournaments across the globe

-- Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka are the defending singles champions. Djokovic won the last three Australian Opens, Azarenka won the last two.

-- It was first played at the Warehouseman's Cricket Ground in 1905.

-- This year's overall player prize compensation is $31 million in U.S. dollars. The singles champions will win a cool $2.35 million apiece. That'll buy a lot of bush tuckers.

-- Wilson supplied 4,000 tennis balls for the tournament.

-- TennisChannel.com and TheOuterCourts.com are the two best websites on the internet for all of your Australian Open needs.

Hooroo!

(That means goodbye.)

The Outer Courts Brings The Australian Open to You!

Hello my fellow tennis fans! I hope you have enjoyed the offseason layoff and are ready for a new year of tennis action here at The Outer Courts. It has been a long time since we last saw many of you, and you have likely wondered when we would return to update the site and allow you to read something other than the post on perspective of line judges (admittedly, not the most exciting way to end our last year). But we are now energized and ready to come back on tour with all of our favorite tennis personalities. But first,  we must be honest with you. Your favorite Kentucky bloggers (I say that assuming you don't know a ton of Kentucky bloggers) have been following the worlds of college football and basketball lately (here's an update...UK football had an awful season, Kentucky basketball is pretty good once again and Louisville has hired a serial adulterer for every one of its college sports teams). Thus we are hitting the 2014 Tennis Season in a way that is likely very similar to how you are approaching a new year. Even though there have been a number of early tournaments, we haven't paid much attention until the Australian Open. Yes, I know there were early events and Juan Del Handsome, John Isner and 62 year old Lleyton Hewitt got early titles, but my interest really had yet to be piqued. The other early tournaments are essentially only played in America for tennis diehards, melancholy insomniacs or those knee-deep in a mid-life crisis with little to do in their lonely new apartment communities except watch any television event overnight that is not an informercial rerun. For the rest of us, our lives are more fulfilled and tennis starts under the scorching sun in Melbourne with tennis' first and least-loved major.

I have always had a soft spot in my heart for the Australian Open precisely because it is the red-headed stepchild of the Tennis major championships. Like the PGA Championship in Golf, the Preakness in Horse Racing and the Brickyard 400 in NASCAR, we are told that the Australian Open is equal to the other major championships in its sport, but as Americans, we don't really believe it. The French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open all have the special qualities that make them seem exotic, dignified or patriotic, but Australia is for most of us just a country to allow us to use funny accents and make terrible jokes. Even as a passionate tennis fan, you would be hard pressed to include more than one Australian Open moment in your top ten tennis memories of all time, and chances are you can't remember one thing that happened in the tournament last year except Sloane Stephens. In America, the Australian Open is in a no-win part of the sports calendar, deep in the NFL playoffs, with college and pro basketball hitting their full stride and the weather outside so cold that watching people sweat across the globe seems a bit bizarre. But that is unfortunate, because the Australian Open provides some of the best tennis television of the year. Whether it is the unbelievably passionate crowds that attend, the occasional epic matches that take on a life of their own under the sun or even Chris Fowler on ESPN sharing smirky, inside jokes that only tennis fans would understand (because he knows no one else is watching at 4 am), I find the televised coverage of Australia to be one of my favorite parts of the tennis year.

And with that in mind, we are covering the Australian Open in a different manner than the other Outer Courts tournaments, at home from our couches. Now you could suggest that in actuality we are doing this because it is the heart of college basketball season, Australia is very far away and Tennis Channel wasn't thrilled of the idea of Drew and me racking up an expense account down under (we draw up quite a budget of official tournament pullovers), but I would say that regardless of the truth of those statements, the different perspective is still valued. Since nearly all of our readers here will be watching the event in the exact same manner, why not share the collective "dose in and out of sleep while eating cheetos" Australian Open experience together? Thus Drew and I will cover the event in a way that other tennis reporters could only dream, from the heart of Kentucky, giving you the stories that matter to you the home viewer.

With that in mind, it is important to note how you can watch the event. Here is the television schedule for the first four days of the Australian Open:

SUNDAY:          7 pm - 7 am   First Round Coverage   ESPN2

MONDAY:         7 pm - 9 pm  First Round Coverage   Tennis Channel

                             9 pm - 7 am  First Round Coverage    ESPN2

TUESDAY:        7 pm - 9 pm  Second Round Coverage  Tennis Channel

                             9 pm - 7 am   Second Round Coverage   ESPN2

WEDNESDAY: 7 pm - 9 pm  Second Round Coverage  Tennis Channel

                             9 pm - 7 am   Second Round Coverage   ESPN2

Clearly, over the next four days, you can become immersed in the Australian Open in ways that you never deemed imaginable. For many of you reading this site, such in-depth coverage of an event may not be normal. Staying up in the middle of the night and ignoring your families to watch players you don't know sweat under intense heat (when they aren't being wimpy and playing under a roof) might not be something that you have ever previously considered. So you probably are thinking, how should I attack this endeavor?  Well first let me suggest, why don't you make a bracket with Tennis Channel and have your own picks?  You can find my men's bracket here and from there, you can make your own. Now I will be quite honest, I have no idea who will win most of these matches and many of my picks were made on the, "if I had to hang out with a person with one of these two names, who would I go with." By taking my usual, "the more interesting the name, the more interesting the person" mantra to heart, I picked a group of players who possibly have more letters than skills, but who I will have no problems pulling for over the next two weeks.

So sit back, relax and enjoy The Outer Courts' coverage. We will bring you whatever there is to know about the Australian Open that can be known by watching television. I have the DirectTV package so I can see six matches at once, so I will keep you updated on the doings on the Outer Courts, Drew will bring the jokes/photoshops and we both will make fun of anything and everything that pops up on our television screen. This is our time as tennis fans to revel in the enjoyment of something the rest of the sports world can't understand. It is the Australian Open and let those other meatheads have football, basketball, the Golden Globes and American Idol. We have Australian tennis while we are supposed to be sleeping and that my friends, is why we are better! We hope you enjoy the ride.

Calling the Lines

A time honored tradition in every sport, there is nothing more American than blasting a referee. Go to any game of any sport in America and I guarantee that there will be a loud minority of people yelling at whoever is officiating the game. This culture of complaint is not limited to professional or even college games (where the relative anonymity of the crowd makes it easier to scream, but arguably less effective). Simply show up at a youth event anywhere across our land and some parent (or grandparent) will be acting a fool, cursing a person that probably lives down the street for them (and from whom they may buy groceries, get their car repaired or break bed in church) over something as silly as a double dribble call. We often feel that the normal rules of society, treat others the way you would be treated, be respectful and don't call people four letter words/private body parts while screaming and pointing, simply do not apply in the context of sports. It is an unalienable American right.

However in the world of tennis, the level of officiating criticism takes on another level. Fans (and players) at tennis matches believe that the lines people are consistently making mistakes and often intentionally. I have watched at least part of over 30 matches over the course of this tournament and I have seen a player openly question a line person's call in every single one. The reaction from the crowd is even more harsh. Any shot on a show court that is even close to the line leads to a loud murmur from the crowd suggesting disagreement for whatever the decision is, whether in or out. I often want to ask those in the crowd, especially those sitting at the top of Arthur Ashe Stadium, do you really believe that you, sitting potentially 100 feet above the court, can somehow see it better than the individual seated with her focused on the line and the line only?  Their confidence is impressive, even if their rationality is not.

With this in mind, I sat directly on the line for today's David Ferrer-Richard Gasquet match, only a couple of feet behind the lines judge in the photographer's pit. My goal was simple...to determine just how hard it is to call out/in during a major male tennis match. The answer...it can be unbelievably difficult to judge the closest of close calls. Part of this has to do with the angle of the view. While there likely isn't a better option (having the linesman float directly over the court seems impractical), the side view tends to distort the proceedings a bit. With the glare of the sun (or lights at night), the white of the line can blur a bit, causing the most important feature (the actual spot the line ends) to bleed somewhat. I think this is in part why people suggest lines people tend to "err on the side of in." Whether conscious or not, the line looks bigger the more you stare at it with a glare.

Then there is the problem of the speed. With the lines people staring directly at the line, the ball's speed and arc can appear suddenly, and be tough to pinpoint. Unless you have laser-like focus, this can occasionally sneak up on you and cause a person problems while finding the exact spot of contact. Because of the crazy angles that can now be hit by the top players (thanks to the modern strings), even following the arc of the ball (and using that to surmise the landing point) can be difficult. There there is the problem that makes me believe that even Hawkeye is occasionally wrong...the ball is round and figuring out exactly what part of the ball hit what part of the line is an inexact science, perfected only by ants on the ground. To do so at tremendous speed becomes even more difficult.

With all that said however, after spending a match observing them, I believe the lines people do about as good a job as possible. On the challenged calls in this tournament (which are presumably the closest of the close calls), the decision has been reversed only 28% of the time. That is a fairly solid success record, and one thats error rare would probably be acceptable even without Hawkeye (miss on average 3-6 calls a match and can you really complain? It is certainly a better rate than officiating in other sports). After trying to recreate their job for a set, I have even more respect for what they do. Some calls are too close for anyone and on those, everyone will make mistakes. But the lines people generally do their job as well as it can be done (with the problems above hindering) and are certainly better suited to make the calls than the players focused on returning the shots or the drunk fans far up in the crowd above them. As I often say about the people who are on television commentating, a doctor preforming surgery or someone cutting my hair...they aren't perfect, but they are probably better than you.

A young Rafael Nadal with a young Richard Gasquet

Richard Gasquet is in his first US Open semifinal and Rafael Nadal is one win away from meeting him there. Gasquet, the first Frenchman to reach the Open semis in 22 years, has never won against Nadal on the ATP tour, but he has one win over Nadal from a junior tennis tournament in France when they were 13 years old.

Enjoy.

Rafael Nadal practicing on Ashe between sessions

I caught Rafael Nadal practicing with Christian Garin between sessions today, while the fans were out buying up what's left of the merchandise and Moet. The 2013 French Open mens' champion and 2013 French Open boys' champion smacked the ball around on Arthur Ashe, where Nadal will face Tommy Robredo in the final match of the night.

After sitting across from Nadal, directly behind Garin, I can say with 100% confidence that I wouldn't come close to returning anything Nadal sent my way. Not a prayer.

Good luck with that tonight, Tommy.

An EXCLUSIVE look inside The Outer Courts' US Open office

The photo above was taken in the US Open's media center, where the working media folk gather to provide tennis fans all the information they can handle through their various media outlets. Hundreds of scribes work tirelessly around the clock, from sun up to sun down, to keep the world informed of all the happenings in Flushing Meadows throughout the entire tournament. It's like the brain of Arthur Ashe Stadium; a really big brain with high-water khaki pants, wrinkled floral print shirts, and an appetite for free donuts in the morning and free donuts left over from the morning at night.

That's not where we are.

The Outer Courts has its own office at the 2013 US Open, far away from judgmental stares and black coffee farts. We are in the cafeteria on a first-come, first-serve seating policy. Some call it an inconvenience; we call it home.

Take a walk with me into an area few have seen, unless they walk by on their way to the hot bar.

You're looking at my desk here at The Outer Courts' office. Though it's not the television-equipped desk of the media room, the Evian water bottle and Ben & Jerry's ice cream sandwich wrapper add to the ambience.

Yes, that's a Tennis Channel logo on my backpack.

This is my view: a direct shot (when people aren't walking by with beer) of practice courts P1 through P5. That's five courts in viewing distance without leaving my seat. It's so hard not to be spoiled.

As you can see, window seats are hard to come by. Especially one with a few of the TV if I lean back really far.

Check out the bar in the back corner. The media room may have lockers, statistics, reliable WiFi, interview areas and power outlets at every desk, but the media room doesn't have its own bar with FREE alcohol. 

But The Outer Courts' office does.

Note: The free alcohol is only available to "M" credentials, which is everyone from the media room. We aren't allowed to partake.

Look! Condiments! Plasticware! US Open beverage napkins!

Just a few complimentary items we offer to our visitors. Take one. Take two. Take a handful. They're here for you, just as we're here for you at the 2013 US Open.

Thanks for stopping by. 

Enjoy your mayonnaise.