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Tuesday, September 1, 2020

US.2 - The Area of Great(er) Scott

After a down-and-up Day 1, the Bannerette contingent at least produced on Day 2 what we normally see at the U.S. Open: a youngster taking a big step.

In her slam debut, 16-year old wild card Katrina Scott handled Natalia Vikhlyantseva like a seasoned pro, defeating the Russian 7-6(3)/6-2, and serving out the match in about as matter-of-fact fashion as you'll ever see for such a young player in her home slam for the biggest win of her career.



Naturally, ESPN couldn't bother to show it to the *on-air* audience.

Scott, a member of the 2019 Junior Fed Cup winning U.S. squad, came in ranked #637. She'll jump (in the live rankings) to around #440, making her the younger player ranked in the Top 500, moving past 15-year old fellow Bannerette Robin Montgomery (who lost to Yulia Putintseva in her slam debut yesterday), who's in the #550's.

It's moments like the one today that the lack of fans really hits hard. Playing on Court 15, Scott finished off the Hordette to dead silence. With no celebration (and no one to celebrate with, really), she simply taps rackets and then diligently, and quietly, put away her things. She slipped on her Black Lives Matter t-shirt as a few bystanders looked on from behind the umpire's chair, and then walked off.
Onto the rest of her career which, based on today, could get a great deal better in short order.



Scott next faces another U.S. women, and the highest ranked teenager in the world, #22-seed Amanda Anisimova, 19.



=DAY 2 NOTES=
...after an opening day in which one woman was a late withdrawal (Lesia Tsurenko, with an elbow, not a positive test), one seed fell (#32 Rebecca Peterson, to Kirsten Flipkens), the Barty-less Aussie women went 0-5 while their Ukrainian counterparts were 4-2, and the Bannerettes started 0-8 before a massive turnaround of 7-1 over the back half of Monday (and into early Tuesday, as Jessica Pegula finished off Marie Bouzkova in a 3rd set TB at a quarter past midnight), Day 2 was set to offer a virtual cornucopia of former major champions (S.Williams, V.Williams, Azarenka, Clijsters, Stephens, Muguruza & Kenin) and finalists (Keys and Zvonareva), as well as an Olympic Gold medalist (Puig), double-digit ex-junior singles slam winners, and a single returning-from-retirement Bulgarian.

First out of the gate was #10-seeded Garbine Muguruza, the former #1 and two-time slam champ. With new Hall of Famer Conchita Martinez (finally) having helped to return a smile to the Spaniard's game, Mugu had (remember?) showed great comeback form in January en route to an appearance in the Australian Open final. She had yet to make an appearance in the tennis Restart, though, having spent the many months away very actively documenting her shutdown training regimen and off-court adventures (while also stirring low-key social media rumors of a possible romance with Stan the Man).

Needless to say, how long it would take for her to find her range was an intriguing question.




As it turned out, it took Garbi about half a set to return to the land of the living.



Muguruza quickly fell behind 0-3 and 1-4 to Nao Hibino, but righted her train to Nowhereville. She took command to win 6-4/6-4 and improve to 7-1 in the '20 majors after having left last year's U.S. Open with a three-match slam losing streak and having posted her first season without at least one major QF run since 2013.



...meanwhile, Tuesday also offered up the return of former Wimbledon semifinalist (2010), one-time tour title winner (2014), big seed (and lovers of "conventional" shotmaking) tormenter, oft-conqueror of Venus and occasional "Movie Monster Matinee" twin-bill headliner along with The Rad, Tsvetana Pironkova.

The 32-year old Bulgarian announced during the shutdown that she was coming out of (essential) retirement after first being out with an injury and then becoming a mother in spring '18. Today she played her first match of any kind since the 2017 Wimbledon, where she'd followed up a 1st Round win over Sara Errani with a loss to Caroline Wozniacki.

Facing Russian Liudmila Samsonova, Pironkova got a swift 6-2/6-3 victory, setting up a match-up with Muguruza.





...#9-seeded Johanna Konta brought her good side today, winning the 1st Round match-up of the *only* Brits in the draw (Draw Gods... shame on you) 7-6(7)/6-1 over Heather Watson. Konta is three-quarters of the way to a Career SF Slam (she only needs the U.S. to complete the set), but she's got nearly as many 1st Round exits (12) as anything else (14, including five 2r losses) in her slam career.

Perhaps it's those sort of schizophrenic results at majors that explain that she's currently working on her fourth coach since the 2017 season. At the moment, Thomas Hogstedt is around on a "trial basis". But, really, with Konta, isn't *every* coach in that situation?

...the aforementioned Olympic Gold medalist, Monica Puig, took to the court today. But things ended as they often have for her since her big run in Brazil four years ago. With a loss. Puig fell to Margarita Gasparyan 6-3/6-7(0)/6-0.

Injury and inconsistency, and difficulties finding a correct and lasting coaching connection, has prevented Puig, now 26, from ever getting the sort of career bounce one might have expected from her career run in Rio, having reached just one additional tour final in the four years since. She played in two (1-1) prior to the result that made her a Puerto Rican sporting icon. As things stand, Puig has never advanced past the 3rd Round of a major since her Round of 16 at Wimbledon in just her second major MD appearance in 2013. This 1st Round loss is her sixth in eight trips to Flushing Meadows.

Puig is barely holding onto a Top 100 ranking at the moment, as she'll likely leave this Open still trapped in the #90's.

Gasparyan, of course, has battled adversity herself. The Russian missed eight straight majors between 2016-18 while trying to save her career and stage a comeback from a knee injury. In 2019, she led Elina Svitolina in the 2nd Round at Wimbledon, up a set and with a lead in the 2nd, when injury again brought her down, forcing a 2nd set retirement (Svitolina went on to reach her first slam SF).

Next up for the Hordette? Well...

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Welcome back, @serenawilliams ??

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Ma and Pa Time are undefeated. But so is Serena Williams at the 2020 U.S. Open. For now, at least.

After having been forced to three sets in all five of her Restart matches, Williams opened her latest quest for slam #24 on Tuesday against Kristie Ahn, the Bannerette who made a spirited wild card run to the Round of 16 a year ago. She returns with a ranking just inside the Top 100 and having become a sudden Tennis TikTok star during the shutdown.

Today, Ahn found herself up an early break in both the 1st and 2nd sets, and had a BP to serve for the opener, but (this sounds familiar) saw Williams pull out her big serve and experience to wrestle back momentum and finally get off the court without being forced to go the distance, winning 7-5/6-3.

The win allows Williams to break her tie with Chris Evert and become the all-time women's leader in match wins, picking up #102 (102-13). She's 20-0 in the 1st Round in Flushing Meadows.




...meanwhile, looking to win a second straight major, #2-seeded Sofia Kenin made Queens feel like Melbourne today, blitzing Yanina Wickmayer 6-2/6-2 in a little over an hour.

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Cruising Kenin ??

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A year after Bianca Andreescu won the U.S. Open, Leylah Fernandez was the only Canadian woman in this singles draw.

On Tuesday, the 17-year old at least kept the North's hopes alive for one more round, ousting 35-year old Original Hordette Vera Zvonarva (a U.S. Open finalist a decade ago) 6-4/7-5 to record her first career slam MD victory. The win could very well push Fernandez into the Top 100 for the first time after this major (she moved up in the live rankings as of today, up from #104).

Fernandez was a two-time girls slam finalist in 2019, losing to Clara Tauson at the AO before defeating Emma Navarro in Paris. She's been on an upward trajectory in '20, already having notched her first Top 10 win (#5 Belinda Bencic in Fed Cup), reached her first tour final (Monterrey) and upset Sloane Stephens in an Open tune-up event prior to today. She'll face Kenin next, just ahead of the Montreal native's 18th birthday on Sunday.

...is it time to join together and whisper (in lieu of a celebratory shout since, you know, there aren't many people anyone has to shout *over* on the grounds at Flushing Meadows), "Beware the shorts?"

Days after putting down a "1st Chapter" marker for a Vika Renaissance, Victoria Azarenka returned to the U.S. Open looking for just her second match win there since 2015. A two-time major winner, and two-time U.S. finalist (2012-13), Azarenka hasn't reached the QF at a slam since 2016, as she's had to deal with making a comeback from becoming a mother, heading to court in a custody battle, and fighting injuries, bad draws and, let's be honest, every reason to throw up her hands and wonder whether the Tennis Gods wanted her to *ever* reach her past level again, if play the sport at all.

At 31, though, the Belarusian staged a surprise Cincinnati-at-NYC title run this weekend, her first on tour since her "Sunshine Double" in Indian Wells and Miami four years ago. She got the crown when Naomi Osaka pulled out of the final with a hamstring injury, a move that clearly disappointed Azarenka, who felt that her form meant that she could have won the match outright. Back in the Top 30 after so many trials, she said, "I deserve to be where I am."

Ah, *confident* Vika. I remember her.

Today against Austrian Barbara Haas, Azarenka raced out to a 5-0 lead in the 1st en route to a dominant 6-1/6-2 victory in under an hour. Vika led 20-6 in winners (w/ just 7 UE), won 76% of first serves and never faced a BP.

(regular voice) "Beware the shorts."

...despite the slow start by the U.S. women, the Aussies, already missing #1-ranked Ash Barty and former Open champ Sam Stosur, have made Australia the "Nation of Poor Souls" (dis)honoree. With no women from the nation in action on Tuesday, their 0-5 Day 1 result -- w/ losses by Cabrera, Inglis, Ar.Rodionova, Sharma & Tomljanovic ) is enough to seal the deal.

...tonight, 37-year old three-time U.S. Open champ Kim Clijsters is set to play her first slam match in eight years, facing #21 Ekaterina Alexandrova on Court 11.

On Ashe, 40-year old Venus Williams (20-1 in U.S. 1st Round matches) arrives on Ashe for a potentially very interesting match vs. #20 Karolina Muchova.








THOUGHTS WITH CARLA ON DAY 2:




TIME WILL TELL... ON DAY 2:




TRUMP ON JANUARY 20, 2021 IF HE "LOSES" IN NOVEMBER ON DAY 2: only with a lot less violence and mayhem, and, you know, in a car with amusing background music



"Good on ya, mate. Thanks for all the damage to my country."


"FETCH!: Social Distancing Edition" ON DAY 2:




E-G-G-Y-S ON DAY 2:




HISTORY ON DAY 2:




A REMINDER ON DAY 2:





YEP, when you boil it down ON DAY 2:




A GOAT ON DAY 2:




LIKE ON DAY 2:




SOMETIMES LIFE COMES AT YOU FAST ON DAY 2:





Eagles lead vocalist/drummer Don Henley's third solo album, "The End of the Innocence," from 1989 is now (I think) a sometimes-overlooked masterpiece. It was one of my first favorite *full* albums, though I was a little late in getting to it (I'd bought it originally because of some of the background singers involved: including Sheryl Crow, Melissa Etheridge and Axl Rose). It truly is a great listen from start to finish, without a single skip-over track.

Aside from the title song, it included other great tracks such as "New York Minute," "The Heart of the Matter," "The Last Worthless Evening" and many others. It was Henley's first solo effort in five years, and he wouldn't release another for eleven more. Critic Vik Iyengar said, "Throughout the album, he manages to balance being cynical yet hopeful, and his great melodies allow his poignant lyrics to penetrate. This album is highly recommended for those who like their pop music with a message."

The title track won a Grammy for Henley for Rock Male Vocal, and was nominated for Record and Song of the Year (as was the album for Album of the Year). The video was directed by soon-to-be-hitmaking director David Fincher (who soon helm "Se7en" and "Fight Club"), and won Henley a VMA award.

It's such a beautifully written song. Some of the lyrics for "The End of the Innocence" are wonderful.

"O' beautiful, for spacious skies
But now those skies are threatening
They're beating plowshares into swords
For this tired old man that we elected king
Armchair warriors often fail
And they've been poisoned by these fairy tales
The lawyers clean up all details
Since daddy had to lie"

I'm particularly drawn to this stanza:

"Who knows how long this will last
Now we've come so far, so fast
But somewhere back there in the dust
That same small town in each of us
I need to remember this
So baby, give me just one kiss
And let me take a long last look
Before we say good bye"

Henley's lyrics (and the video) had a political bent at the time, as Ronald Reagan's image is shown in the video while the "this tired old man that we elected king" line is heard, though one could easily it apply it to today's condition. Say, a change that goes, "this tired old man who *thinks* he was elected king."











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???? ??

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This project has been a labor of love, technical details, and weekly Tuesday editing calls?? for the past few months. Welcome to the world, @theskills!! Throughout my career I've been lucky to have amazing coaches by my side, who taught me not only the fundamental skills that helped me on the court, but also lessons that guide my life today. From my first serve to my first tournament, they’ve pushed me to reach my highest potential - and for the first time ever, I’m going to be sharing those important life lessons they taught me along the way with our launch of The Skills. Even better, it’s not just me - you’ll have access to my course, plus the ability to learn from @m_phelps00 @shaunwhite, @kerrileewalsh, @larryfitzgerald & a whole bunch of other sports icons. Exclusively at @theskills. #TheSkills

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**U.S. OPEN "FIRST SEED OUT"**
2005 #28 Flavia Pennetta, ITA (Schruff)
2006 #15 Anna-Lena Groenefeld, GER (Rezai)
2007 #29 Samantha Stosur, AUS (Cornet)
2008 #24 Shahar Peer, ISR (Li)
2009 #25 Kaia Kanepi, EST (K.Chang)
2010 #8 Li Na, CHN (K.Bondarenko)
2011 #5 Petra Kvitova, CZE (Dulgheru)
2012 #27 Anabel Medina-Garrigues, ESP (Hradecka)
2013 #29 Magdalena Rybarikova, SVK (Mayr-A.)
2014 #25 Garbine Muguruza, ESP (Lucic-Baroni)
2015 #7 Ana Ivanovic, SRB (Cibulkova)
2016 #30 Misaki Doi, JPN (Witthoeft)
2017 #32 Lauren Davis, USA (Kenin)
2018 #31 Magdalena Rybarikova, SVK (Q.Wang)
2019 #27 Caroline Garcia, FRA (Jabeur)
2020 #32 Rebecca Peterson, SWE (Flipkens)
[2020]
AO: #32 Barbora Strycova/CZE (1st Rd. - lost to Cirstea/ROU)
RG: (September)
WI: CANCELLED
US: #32 Rebecca Peterson/SWE (1st Rd. - lost to Flipkens/BEL)

**U.S. OPEN "NATIONS OF POOR SOULS"**
2011 CZE (2-5 1st Rd., Kvitova loses)
2012 GER (4 of 5 highest-ranked GER out in 1st Rd.)
2013 AUS (1-4, Stosur out 1r, Rogowska 0-6/0-6)
2014 FRA (1-5 1st Rd.; only win in FRA-vs-FRA)
2015 SRB (1-4; Ivanovic/Jankovic/Krunic 1st Rd.)
2016 BEL (0-4 in 1st Rd.)
2017 GER (2-7 1st Rd.; Kerber 2nd U.S. DC out 1st)
2018 SUI (1-4 in 1st Rd.; Golubic 0-6/0-6; Bacsinszky love 3rd)
2019 ESP (1-4 in 1st Rd.; seeded Muguruza and CSN/ret. out)
2020 AUS (0-5 in 1st Rd.; #1 Barty & ex-champ Stosur DNP)
[2020]
AO: BLR (0-2 1st Rd., #11 Sabalenka loses; Azarenka absent)
RG: (September)
WI: CANCELLED
US: AUS (0-5 in 1st Rd.; #1 Barty & ex-champ Stosur DNP)

**U.S. OPEN "JUNIOR BREAKOUT" WINNERS**
2007 Kristina Kucova, SVK
2008 Gabriela Paz, VEN
2009 Heather Watson, GBR
2010 Yulia Putintseva, RUS & Sloane Stephens, USA
2011 Grace Min, USA
2012 Vicky Duval, USA
2013 Tornado Alicia Black, USA
2014 Marie Bouzkova, CZE
2015 Dalma Galfi, HUN
2016 Viktoria Kuzmova, SVK
2017 Maria Lourdes Carle, ARG & Emiliana Arango, COL
2018 Dasha Lopatetska, UKR
2019 Oksana Selekhmeteva, RUS
2020 Katrina Scott, USA
[2020]
AO: Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva, AND
RG: (September)
WI: CANCELLED
US: Katrina Scott, USA

**U.S. OPEN CAREER MD WINS - WOMEN**
102...Serena Williams *
101...Chris Evert
89...Martina Navratilova
79...Venus Williams * [pre-1st Rd.]
73...Steffi Graf
62...Lindsay Davenport



TOP QUALIFIER: DNP
TOP EARLY-ROUND (1r-2r): xx
TOP MIDDLE-ROUND (3r-QF): xx
TOP LATE-ROUND (SF-F): xx
TOP QUALIFYING MATCH: DNP
TOP EARLY-RD. MATCH (1r-2r): xx
TOP MIDDLE-RD. MATCH (3r-QF): xx
TOP LATE-RD. MATCH (SF-F/Jr.): xx
TOP NIGHT SESSION WOMEN'S MATCH: xx
=============================
FIRST VICTORY: #12 Marketa Vondrousova/CZE (def. Minnen/BEL)
FIRST SEED OUT: #32 Rebecca Peterson/SWE (1st Rd.-lost to Flipkens/BEL)
FIRST SLAM MD WINS: 1r wins: Bonaventure/BEL, Fernandez/CAN, Gracheva/RUS, Scott/USA
UPSET QUEENS: xx
REVELATION LADIES: xx
NATION OF POOR SOULS: Australia (0-5 1st Rd.; #1 Barty and former U.S. champ Stosur DNP)
CRASH & BURN: xx
ZOMBIE QUEEN OF NEW YORK: Nominee: Sasnovich (1r: MP vs. DiLorenzo)
IT ("TBD"): xx
Ms.OPPORTUNITY: xx
LAST QUALIFIER STANDING: DNP Q
LAST WILD CARD STANDING: 1r wins: Bellis, Scott
LAST BANNERETTE STANDING: 1r wins: Anisimova, Bellis, Brady, Brengle, Kenin, Keys, Li, Pegula, Riske, Rogers, Scott, S.Williams
COMEBACK PLAYER: Nominee: Bellis (first U.S. Open win since '16)
VETERAN PLAYER (KIMIKO CUP): xx
DOUBLES STAR: xx
BIG APPLE BANNERETTE BREAKTHROUGH: xx
BROADWAY-BOUND: xx
LADY OF THE EVENING: xx
JUNIOR BREAKOUT: Katrina Scott/USA (16; slam debut in WS draw; 1r win)





Be Safe. All for Day 2. More tomorrow.
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