US Open

I decided to shirk my school and work responsibilities further this evening to watch a few US Open tennis matches. I watched the last three sets of the four and a half hour plus match between Juan Carlos Ferrero and Tomas Zib. Ferrero finally closed the fifth set after struggling to close the previous three (he failed to do so in the fourth) to win 4-6, 7-5, 7-6, 6-7, 6-3. Zib, having played fewer ultra-long matches in his professional career was showing signs of cramping going into the fifth set, but the play was still just as incredible. The two players were so evenly matched that several games in the final sets went into deuce multiple times. Both players were very tired by the end, and I rooted them both and scorned each player’s missed opportunities as I saw them. I wanted them both to win because each put out a great deal of power and effort, evading each other at every serve and shot.

As that match was closing, the made-famous Wimbledon 2004 champion Maria Sharapova narrowly escaped defeat by a very strong Laura Granville, 3-6, 7-5, 5-7. The players both seemed rather nervous, Granville for facing the Wimbledon winner and Sharapova for proving her worthiness as an excellent tennis player. Both were very strong, but the last set went to Sharapova as she emerged from “la-la land” in her words, focusing on the game at hand and handily beating back her opponent. This new seventeen-year-old tennis star still has work cut out for her: she committed 44 unforced errors (primarily going wide on her forehand). Still, her serve proves to be her greatest weapon with a first serve average speed of 102 miles per hour and a blistering second serve average speed of 93 mph! With fewer jitters, I am sure her name will be seen in the headlines for years to come.