US Open sidelines

By: 9 years ago

A cyclist passes the Unisphere inside Flushing Meadows Corona Park during the first round of the U.S. Open tennis tournament, Monday, Aug. 31, 2015, in New York. AP

NEW YORK, United States—US Open sidelines on Tuesday, the second day of the 2015 tournament at Flushing Meadows:

They said it

“You don’t want it to impact your game and you don’t want to look back and think, ‘What a stupid move that was in hindsight.’ Then you’re frustrated about it. So I don’t know. I understand the request, but I’m not sure if many players are actually doing it.”

– Roger Federer on the idea of giving television interviews during breaks in matches

“Have you ever played tennis? You did? You probably weren’t very good.”

– Victoria Azarenka to the chair umpire in her 6-1, 6-2 victory.

Andy’s Awkward Tweet

– Retired US star Andy Roddick, whose 2003 US Open triumph is the last Grand Slam title by an American man, isn’t at Flushing Meadows, but don’t tell that to people who see him. Roddick tweeted: “That awkward moment when you’re walking down the street in NYC and someone says “good luck in the tournament.” The US Open tweeted in response: “Is it making you consider coming back?” Roddick replied “No :)”

Stars in the crowd

– Retired New York Yankees baseball star Derek Jeter was sitting the players box watching Danish fourth seed Caroline Wozniacki’s victory over 413rd-ranked American Jamie Loeb at Arthur Ashe Stadium. Jeter helped the Yankees to five World Series titles and served as captain from 2003 to 2014.

Young man with a plan

– Donald Young had lost all five prior meetings with French 11th seed Gilles Simon without taking a set and was two sets down in their first-round match before rallying to win 2-6, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. It was the first time the 26-year-old American had ever recovered to win after dropping the first two sets. “I was just about to go home there. You gave me a lot of energy,” Young told the crowd. “I had nothing to lose. He was kicking my butt. I started going for my shots and that’s what it was.”

Take charge to beat Serena

– Czech sixth seed Lucie Safarova, ousted by Ukraine’s Lesia Tsurenko on Tuesday, was asked what it would take to stop top-ranked Serena Williams from capturing the US Open and sweeping the first calendar Grand Slam since Steffi Graff in 1988. “Be the umpire,” Safarova joked. Her only realistic hints for those still in the field—”Try to take away the time from her and serve well.”

Today’s number

20 – the total of service breaks in the match between Monica Niculescu and Alexandra Panova. Niculescu won 7-6 (7/3), 5-7, 6-3.