A Day at the U.S. Open 2009

Date: Friday, September 04, 2009

A group of my tennis club friends took the almost-3 hour ride on a mini-bus to see the US Open matches yesterday, Friday, Sept. 4, Day 5, which featured a full session of matches. We stayed through the day session, and part of the night session.

Wow, what an entertaining (an exhausting) day, packed with thrills.

We decided to break up into groups of 2 and circulate as we wandered through the matches and courts. We all caught different parts of different matches, a mix of second and third rounds.

I made an effort, with my buddy, to concentrate on the outer courts and the practice courts, to see what came up.

I first took in some of the Tsonga match win over Nieminen at Grandstand, and saw some of Murray's win at Arther Ashe stadium. (Last year, I saw Federer play a second round match at Ashe, but my seat was so high up that it was not conducive to a good view, in my opinion. Ashe is a monster-size stadium for only one court.)

We then hit the outer courts. We saw some of a doubles match with Nadia Petrova/Bethanie Mattek-Sands v. Virginie Razzano/Agnes Szavay. Then, another court to see some of Victor Troicki. We saw pretty Maria Kirilenko practicing on one of the empty outer courts before the start of a match. We then saw some of the Tomas Berdych match with Horacio Zeballos. We also some of Rajeev Ram teamed with up Melanie Oudin in their first round mixed doubles match. We saw some of Fernando Gonzales v. Josselin Ouanna.

The highlight of the day for me was hitting the practice courts to see these guys practice. Man, we were treated to star after star on various courts, some hitting on their off day, others warming up before their match.

*Kim Clijsters, Gael Monfils, The Bryan Broths., James Blake, Maria Sharapova, Taylor Dent (who went out later to Grandstand for his 5 set thriller win over Ivan Navarro).

The big moment came when the buzz at the practice court was that Federer was coming. There was a burst of applause when he entered from the back with his hat and tennis bag, people shouting "we love you Rog.". His father was following behind him. They walked over to Practice Court #1. His two hitting partners were running late. 

Fed. and father were sitting in chairs waiting for about 5 minutes. But it seemed like an eternity to me. Fed. began jogging around the court, and came within 5 feet of me and my buddy. His hitting partners showed up for a vigorous hit session. It was the thrill of the day for me, in a day of thrills.

He moves like no other player I have ever seen, gliding on the court like floating on air, moving his core-body into each shot.

As if all this wasn't enough, we then see Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe come out on another practice court, just to hit for old-times sake, it seems. Wow.

Anyway, I could go on, but I'll stop. It was the tennis highlight of the year for me.

My take-aways for tennis playing nuts:
I spent a day with my eyes as big as half-dollars watching these guys play. What I noticed at this level of play, compared with players are lower levels -
*The incredible preparation (intentionality) each of them makes before each shot is uncorked (this seems like most of their effort)
*The fluidity of their movement and footwork on the court
*How cleanly and consistently they keep hitting the ball
*The length of their swings, especially their follow-throughs, on their strokes

Hope this information was helpful.
Best, Gary

Roger Federer and the Ghost of Bill Tilden

For consideration: A fascinating and comprehensive article on Roger Federer's chase of Bill Tilden's record of 6 straight U.S. Open titles in 2009. 

Roger Federer and the Ghost of Bill Tilden (World Tennis Magazine, September 14, 2009)

Best, Gary

Big Bill Tilden

Big Bill Tilden
Most young players today know little about him. Bill Tilden was the first great international tennis superstar. He was responsible for bringing tennis out from the days when it was just a genteel country club pastime into today's modern age of big-time competitive tennis. 

From 1920 to 1926, an era before jet travel, Tilden did not lose a single tennis match on the major circuit of any real significance, sweeping through Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.

He was a master showman and a brilliant student of the game. His instructional book Match Play and the Spin of the Ball  stands as a timeless tennis classic.

Tilden's all-court attacking game was also far ahead of his time - except of course for those long pants!

Elements of his tennis style blazed a trail in his day - his "open stance", as well as other shots such his deep forehand slice shot, and masterful "American Twist" kick serve. His famous "Cannonball" flat serve, reputedly clocked at over 150MPH with the old wood rackets, was legendary in his era. 

In 1950, the Sportswriters of America voted Tilden the best player of the half-century, without any real dissent. A exceptional tribute albeit against the backdrop of a tragic personal life.

For anyone who wants to read more about Tilden and his era, please see: Sports Writer Frank Deford's brilliant biography titled Big Bill Tilden: The Triumphs and Tragedy, (Simon and Schuster, 1976, reprinted in paperback, Hall of Fame Edition, 2004). 

I also suggest reading the New York Times Article on Bill Tilden in August 2009.

Bill Tilden: A Tennis Star Defeated Only by Himself, Karen Crouse (August 30, 2009)

Best, Gary

PS#1: Some quotes from Tilden you might find interesting:

"There is no sensation in the sporting world so thoroughly enjoyable to me as that when I meet a tennis ball just right in the very middle of my racquet and smack it, just right, where my opponent should be but is not."

"Tennis is more than just a sport. It's an art, like the ballet. Or like a performance in the theater."

"In these days of modern tennis a player is as strong as his weakest stroke."

"Never change a winning game; always change a losing one."

"Never let your opponent see the same shot twice."

"What is the future of the tennis game? ... As one of the champions of today, I see vistas of progress ahead, of which I glimpse only a bit, but which the champions of tomorrow will have explored and developed. Where are these lanes of progress? Not from the backcourt. Not from the net. It is rather in the use of the forecourt for sharp angled shots, in the use of the mid-court volley, the half volley and rising bounce shots, that future progress lies. Every player who desires to succeed in the future must equip himself with every shot in tennis and then strive to explore the mysteries of the forecourt."

PS#2: A new book is to be published on Tilden in Sept. 2010 by Roger Kahn:

(Kahn, author of baseball classic The Boys of Summer, is considered one the preeminent sports writers in America.)

Before His Time: Bill Tilden, By Roger Kahn (2011)

PS#3: What others said about Tilden in his time:

"[T]he greatest tennis player the world has seen...William Tatem Tilden 2nd was his name. He was the autocrat of the courts as no other player has been since, an absolute monarch in a period when American tennis was at it most resplendent and great players were developed in many lands. He was not only the supreme, the most complete player of all time; he was also one of the most colorful and controversial figures the world of sports has known...He was the master of his time and for all time." Allison Danzig, New York Times Sportswriter, quoted from Fireside Book of Tennis, Simon and Schuster, 1972, Pages 172 - 180.

"When Tilden was Tilden, nobody could touch him. In fact, nobody could compare with him. And King William knew it and reveled in it...He bestrode the tennis world like a Colossus between whose legs the lesser figures of the game ran about and found themselves dishonorable graves." John Kieran, The Ruler of the Courts, Macmillan Company, 1941.

"William T. Tilden 2nd, is a master of all styles of play and a bewildering variety of strokes. He habitually varies his topspin drive with heavy undercut slice, uses one of a dozen different services, and varies the length and pace of his strokes so that his opponent is never quite sure what to expect. Tilden possesses an uncommon fleetness of foot and an extraordinary reach and suppleness. Combined with this unparalleled equipment is a tennis brain of the first order, which makes him quick to discern, and profit by, the mistakes of an opponent." Samuel Hardy, Captain, U.S. Davis Cup Team 1920, quoted in Tennis for the Expert, William T. Tilden 2nd, American Sports Publishing Co., 1930.

"The Thin Man: An Homage to Bill Tilden"

Pancho Segura

Pancho Segura - now 88 with a lifetime of learning and coaching to his tennis career.

Segura was close friends with the great Pancho Gonzales, and coached Jimmy Connors to World No. 1.

The late Jack Kramer would once call Segura's devastating two-handed forehand: "the single greatest shot in the history of tennis."

It was said that no one better understood the geography of the court and the flow of a match than Segura. "You are trying to draw a short ball so you can attack," Segura said.

A few other Segura tidbits of strategy:

"30-love is when you can afford to take the chance; 15-30 is when you can't. At 30-30 you better get your first serve in and play close to the vest. On a big point against a net-rusher, it's good to return down the middle -- he can't afford to go for much, so you can pass him on the next shot. Punish second-serve returns so that you make the other guy go for too much on his serve -- and then he'll start missing. Lob a lot early in the match so that you make the opponent aware that you might lob -- and leave a few inches open for passing shots. On and on and on."

Segura believed that tennis was the ultimate test of democracy in action: "It doesn't take more than a racket and a heart to play this game. That's the great thing about a sport like tennis. It's a great test of democracy in action. Me and you, man, in the arena. Just me and you, baby. Doesn't matter how much you have, or who your dad is, or if you went to Harvard, or Yale, or whatever. Just me and you."

For Joel Dricker's very nice article at ESPN: Pancho Segura

Best, 
Gary

The first point of the first game of the first set . . .

This is probably an important point. If competitive tennis is about imposing your will physically, psychologically, and strategically on the opponent, the first point makes for a lasting impression. 

How many times did we see Sampras start with an ace, McEnroe with a winning volley, Davenport with a hard deep groundie?

Of course, you can still win a game, set or match after losing the very first point.

But the first point effort and result certainly sends a message to the opponent about your game. 

This point was made in the book, Education of a Tennis Player, by Rod Laver with Bud Collins.

It also came up again in an another informative book, Maximum Tennis, by Nick Saviano.

Best, 
Gary

More Sleep = Better Tennis

Wanna play better tennis?

Try sleep extension - meaning get some more sleep.

This summer, Stanford University Sleep Disorders Clinic and Research Laboratory researcher Cheri Mah, M.S. studied the sleep patters of women's tennis athletes on their peak performance and mood. Those extending their sleep patterns to 10 hours a night improved their optimal performance.

Peak Performance Can Only Occur When An Athlete's Sleep and Sleep Habits Are Optimal

Best, 
Gary

Tennis Injuries, anyone?

For an informative article on tennis injuries
 on CNN's website, please see:

Tennis Injuries

Best, 
Gary