Flushing Meadows shook with an explosion of deafening roars on Saturday as US sensations John Isner and Melanie Oudin sent former champions Andy Roddick and Maria Sharapova spinning out of the US Open.
On a day when Russian world No. 1 Dinara Safina’s luck and patience finally ran out, Isner and Oudin sparked off celebrations in their hometown of Georgia after showing off their “bulldog” spirit to full effect.
Big-serving Roddick came face-to-face with a 2.06m player he had mentored up the ranks and by way of thanks Isner boomed in 38 aces to trample the fifth seed 7-6, 6-3, 3-6, 5-7, 7-6.
PHOTO: AFP
While 55th-ranked Isner was delighted to pull off the biggest shock of the men’s draw, Oudin followed up her win over world No. 4 Elena Dementieva by thumping another Russian.
The 17-year-old Oudin had the honor of ringing the opening bell at the NASDAQ exchange earlier this week and her stock rose even higher on Saturday as she carved out a heart-pounding 3-6, 6-4, 7-5 third-round win over 29th seed Sharapova.
“She’s so gutsy,” Isner said of Oudin. “She plays with her heart out there. We really kind of have the same attributes. We got a little Bulldog in us. We fight really well.”
Safina is also famed for her fighting spirit and on many occasions has come from match point down to stifle her opponents.
But on Saturday, 72nd-ranked Czech teenager Petra Kvitova took a leaf out of Safina’s Houdini manual and saved three match points before stamping her mark in New York with a 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 win as the clock struck 12.47am.
As the women’s field continued to be decimated — with no seed left in the top quarter — Isner finally burst the bubble in the men’s draw, as until his win over Roddick, it looked as if all 16 top seeds could reach the fourth round of a grand slam for the first time.
Earlier, five-time champion Roger Federer and world No. 4 Novak Djokovic led a parade of seeds — Nikolay Davydenko (8), Fernando Verdasco (10), Robin Soderling (12), Tommy Robredo (14) and Radek Stepanek (15) — into the second week of the hardcourt major.
Federer, seeking a 16th major, came into the match riding on a 13-match winning streak against Lleyton Hewitt but had to snap himself out of a lull to triumph 4-6, 6-3, 7-5, 6-4.
Federer and Hewitt are two of just three fathers ranked in world’s top 50 and it was the Swiss who was caught napping in the opening set.
“Looks like he slept in the same room as the (six-week-old) twins last night,” John McEnroe quipped.
Taiwan had a hard day in doubles play, with Chan Yung-jan and Slovenia’s Katarina Srebotnik losing to Serena and Venus Williams 7-5, 6-1. In mixed doubles, Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez of Spain and Andre Sa of Brazil defeated Taiwan’s Chuang Chia-Jung Chuang and Christopher Kas of Germany 6-3, 6-3.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two