Often in life what appears to be improbable is ultimately inevitable. It’s only later, though, that we understand that what seems to make no sense at first is in the end what was meant to be all along.
For much of the early part of his career, Novak Djokovic — the Celiac-ridden guy from an economically straitened family in war-torn Serbia — was a reliable, color-coordinated number three to the elegant, aloof Roger Federer and his intense, visceral rival, Rafael Nadal. But in becoming the oldest man to win the singles title at the US Open Sunday, Sept. 10, the 36-year-old Djokovic has eclipsed them —tying Australia’s Margaret Court for most Grand Slam singles titles (24); returning to the number one ranking for a record 390th week (altogether that would be seven and a half years, folks); setting a new record for most times winning three Slams in a year (four, in 2011, ’15, ’21 and ’23), having the most ATP Masters 1000 titles (39) — the list goes on.
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Read MoreWhat was Media Day (Friday, Aug. 25) like for me at the US Open, having not attended for the past three years?
The same thing only different. Everything at the Media Center is digital now. And there seem to be a few new tournament sponsors, including now LVMH-owned Tiffany & Co., maker of the U.S. Men’s and Women’s Singles Championship trophies, and Mount Sinai Health System -- which also has a booth at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows Corona Park, Queens, where the US Open runs Monday, Aug. 28, through Sunday, Sept. 10.
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Read MoreOne of the aspects of the coronavirus and its resulting disease, COVID-19, that astonishes me is the inhumanity of it all. I don’t mean just the unbearable poignance of people dying alone of this and other diseases because of quarantines and travel restrictions., which my friend Anne, a former nurse, finds particularly sad. and which I find especially terrifying. I mean the way people are treating one another.
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Read More“Getting there is half the fun.” So they say.
Not so if you’re going to the US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in Queens. Miss that left off Exit 13 D on Grand Central Parkway, and you’ll have to circle around after dallying in LaGuardia Airport renovation Hades.
Even if you make the left, the surly officer will deflect you from the drop-off at Lot 3. Finally, a more sensible officer will take pity on you and your driver and you’ll find yourself in the park before the center’s entrance. ...
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Read MoreIn my novel “Water Music” – the first in my series “The Games Men Play” – the tennis-playing protagonists fall in love before a US Open final that they assume will be rained out.
That is no longer a plot option.
On Tuesday, the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens, N.Y. unveiled the new retractable roof for its Arthur Ashe Stadium. And while not everything went off without a hitch, more than 200 invited sponsors, staffers and members of the press seemed most impressed with what is nothing short of an engineering Grand Slam.
“Oh, oh, did I feel rain?” Katrina Adams, chairman of the board and president of the White Plains-based United States Tennis Association, teased under sunny skies. “Well, guess what? It doesn’t matter now. A plan more than 10 years in the making literally comes to a close today before our eyes.” ...
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Read MoreWell, they’re dropping like the proverbial flies at the US Open with a record 12 retirements in the first round.
It’s no surprise. The USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center – site of the Open in Flushing Meadow-Corona Park, Queens – is one of the happiest places this side of The New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx. It’s a rich, beautiful experience with great food and shops – and, of course, great tennis. It’s also hotter than Hades. ...
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Read MoreThere will be no Rafanole this year at the US Open, which gets underway Saturday with “Arthur Ashe Kids’ Day” at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadow, Queens, N.Y.
The big news is that defending champ Rafael Nadal has pulled out due to the wrist injury that kept him out of the early portion of the hard-court season. There appears to be a pattern here: Rafa plays lights out to ace the clay-court season, peaks at the French Open, cries when they hand him the umpteenth trophy at Roland Garros in Paris, flames out at Wimbledon, gets injured, takes some time off and starts the whole cycle again.
This would seem to favor Novak Djokovic, but wait. After a trifecta of Ws (Wimby championship, world No. 1 ranking and wedding to longtime love Jelena Ristic), Nole burned out of tournaments at Toronto and Cincinnati. The New York Times, which seems to have no enthusiasm for Nole, noted that he’s been “fending off charges” that he hasn’t been practicing much since the wedding. Fending off charges? Really? Is he a criminal? What’s next, blame the wife?
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