Martina Hingis through to U.S. Open doubles 2nd round

Tennis - Once upon a time, the Williams sisters and Martina Hingis were battling it out in the final stages of the Grand Slams. Now, the trio are back again competing for silverware at the US Open - but this time in the women's doubles event.


On Thursday, Venus and Serena Williams combined to score an upset win over the seventh seeded duo of Timea Babos and Kristina Mladenovic to move into the second round of the doubles event, hours after Serena had advanced to the third round of the singles draw with a convincing win over fellow American Vania King.


Meanwhile, Martina Hingis, whose appearances are restricted to the doubles events only these days, partnered with Flavia Pennetta to advance when their opponents Andrea Petkovic and Magdalena Rybarikova retired while trailing 1-6, 0-3, Hingis and Pennetta will next meet the 15th seeds Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Lucie Safarova.

tennisworldusa.org

Roger Federer cruises into 3rd round at U.S. Open

Roger Federer eased past rocket-serving Aussie Sam Groth in straight sets on Friday night in New York, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4, to set up a third-round encounter with Spain’s Marcel Granollers.

Though Groth was able to hit 147 MPH on the radar gun, it didn’t keep Federer from making inroads into the big Aussie’s service games. 

At one point during the match Federer wowed the lively night session crowed by blocking a 142 MPH serve for a clean winner.

“What I like about these kind of matchups is there's always going to be something unusual that's going to happen, unusual shot-making,” Federer said. “You have to react rather than just always play percentage tennis. You just hope to get the other odd ball back, and then all of a sudden it drops short; you've got to run up to it. Whenever somebody is at the net or you're at the net, there's always something of the unknown that's going to happen a little bit more.”

Federer broke serve five times on eleven opportunities, which should have facilitated a rout for the Swiss maestro, but Groth managed to stay close to Federer in each set.

Federer broke for 4-3 in the opener with a magnificent backhand pass and served the set out to take the early lead.

After trading breaks in the second set, Federer would score the late break in the ninth game, then hold to love for a two sets to love lead.

In the third, Groth would threaten by moving ahead 4-2 when Federer netted a backhand, but Federer would respond to take the next four games to seal the victory in one hour and 48 minutes.

“To be honest, for me, I was trying not to get caught up in the whole Roger act out there,” Groth told reporters after the match.

He added: “I feel I should have won the third set. Game points at 4-2, game points at 4-All. I didn't execute when I needed to.”

Federer moved into a tie for 7th place on the all-time US Open win list with 69. He’s now two behind Pete Sampras and Bill Tilden, who are tied for 5th, and four behind Ivan Lendl.

Groth had never faced a top ten player before.

Federer improved to 24-1 in night session matches on Arthur Ashe Stadium with the win. 

tennisnow.com

Roger Federer amazes Chris Evert, Brad Gilbert and Patrick McEnroe with his longevity

Roger Federer will play his 60th consecutive Grand Slam at this year’s US Open, which is the most consecutive Grand Slam tournaments played by any man in the Open Era, and Federer’s not only playing, he’s considered to be one of the top two favorites to win the whole event.

That subject was discussed during an ESPN conference call on Friday by Chris Evert, Brad Gilbert and Patrick McEnroe, each of whom confessed to being blown away by not only the fact that Federer is still playing beyond his 33rd birthday (August 8), but that he’s thriving, staying clear of injuries and moving better than he has in years.

“The thing I love about him,” said Evert, “is his temperament is so easy going that he won’t get mentally burned out because he just lets losses and things roll off his back. He’s relied mostly on his physical talent rather than I think the intensity of a Nadal, for instance. Somebody like Nadal or Djokovic I think would burn out mentally. He forgets about the match once it’s been played. That’s why emotionally and mentally he’s been able to sustain that high level.”

Heading into his 15th US Open appearance (which is more than any other active player), Federer has been in good health all season long, unlike his top rivals. With Nadal missing the US Open due to a wrist injury, Djokovic battling a tricky wrist injury that hampered his form during the clay season and Andy Murray recovering from hip surgery that was undergone in 2013, Federer has somehow managed to remain relatively unscathed physical.

“What’s amazing about him is in 15 years he’s had no surgeries, no major injuries,” said Brad Gilbert. “He had this thing last year, 18 months, with his back. He didn’t miss any significant time. That’s first and foremost, that he’s had no serious injuries. He seems to be able to play without barely even sweating, not to mention he’s about one of the only guys that plays on clay, you look at his socks, he doesn’t have any dirt on his socks.”

Avoiding getting dirty, so to speak, is what will eventually set Federer apart from his current rivals, says Evert. She also believes that his style of play—short and sweet and aggressive—will help him prolong his career even further.

“On the physical side, his game is so efficient, his body is efficient,” Evert said. “He doesn’t try to wear you down with 18-ball rallies. He’s pretty much a quick-point player. I think physically, you know, he doesn’t get involved in the long, drawn-out matches, so that helps to preserve his body. I think he’s a different temperament. Nadal, Djokovic and even Murray are completely different. I think their bodies and their minds will give up on them a little earlier than Roger’s will.”

“I think seeing Federer close up as we did in Cincinnati, which obviously he won again for the sixth time, you just marvel at him,” said Patrick McEnroe. “His movement is so phenomenal.”

Federer, who has amassed 80 career titles to go with his 17 Grand Slam titles, is bidding to become just the fifth man in the Open Era to have won two major titles after the age of 30 at this year’s US Open. As the second seed he will begin his bid for a sixth title in New York with a first-round encounter with Australia’s Marinko Matosevic.

“He’s obviously done an amazing job of taking care of his body, listening to his body,” Gilbert said. “Another thing that he’s really done smartly probably over the last seven, eight years, he plays an incredibly wise schedule. He doesn’t overplay. He seems to plan his schedule for the entire year and sticks to his schedule and listening to his body. He certainly is the Cal Ripken of tennis and what he’s doing should be a landmark for players to emulate how he’s been able to stay healthy and keep himself in the mix.”

tennisnow.com

Roger Federer teams with Michael Jordan to create new tennis shoes

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(Photo: Nike)

There’s going to be plenty of attention on Roger Federer’s footwork when he kicks off his 2014 U.S. Open against Marinko Matosevic Tuesday night, but it won’t be for the usual reasons.

The 17-time Grand Slam winner will be debuting his new shoe, the Nike Zoom Vapor 9 Tour AJ3, which will certainly look familiar to classic sneakerheads or anyone who happened to be an NBA fan in the late 1980s.


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Federer’s latest model channels the Air Jordan 3, which debuted in 1988. Federer told For The Win via email through a Nike rep that he really got into basketball, soccer and tennis when he was seven years old, the same year the Jordan 3 was released. When he was looking to do a collaboration with the brand’s most legendary pitchman, those were the model of Jordans he liked the most.

Legendary Nike designer Tinker Hatfield, who crafted a bulk of the Air Jordan shoes and has worked on some of Federer’s previous signature models, designed both the Air Jordan III and Zoom Vapor 9 Tour AJ 3 as well.



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Also involved in the collaboration process? Michael Jordan himself.

The NBA Hall of Famer said that he was intrigued when he heard about Federer’s interest in wearing a Jordan tennis shoe.


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“About a year ago, I heard that Roger wanted to design and wear a Jordan shoe on the court. I have followed Roger’s career and have been a big fan for some time now,” Jordan said via a Nike rep. “I definitely thought this could be a really unique and special collaboration and when I heard that Roger wanted the shoe to be modeled after the Air Jordan 3, I was in. To me, this collaboration is not just about style. I really wanted Roger to get involved and understand what he needed from the shoe itself to perform at his best while still having the look and feel of a Jordan sneaker.”

Jordan, who posed for a selfie with Federer during a meeting Monday night in New York City, will be in attendance at the Billie Jean King Tennis Center for the on-court debut of Federer’s new shoes.It will actually be the first professional tennis match Jordan has ever attended in person.

usatoday.com

Roger Federer off to a good start at U.S. Open

Darth-Federer is back! :)










I stand corrected he does have black ones these are so much better

menstennisforums.com


WHAT HAPPENED: Radiating rediscovered confidence, with a larger racquet, two new twins under his roof in Switzerland and coach Stefan Edberg in his corner, 33-year-old Roger Federer is – suddenly – a favorite to win the US Open. In his opening-round match under the lights against the unheralded Australian Marinko Matosevic, the second-seeded Federer was close to his imperious best before playing a scratchy third set. The Swiss needed a final-set tiebreak to win 6-3, 6-4, 7-6.


“It was a bit more difficult in the third set than I wanted,” Federer said on-court after the win.


Moving forward in classic Edberg style, Federer won 22 of 30 net points. Looking to volley has been part of Federer’s game plan to shorten points since he began working with Edberg last year.


Perhaps even more impressive than Federer’s net play Tuesday night was the magic he created with less-vaunted parts of his arsenal: feathery touch lobs and cracked topspin backhand winners.


“I came up with some really good passing shots tonight,” said Federer.


Throughout the match, Matosevic rushed the net nearly as much as Federer, in a tacit acknowledgement that he stood little chance playing from the backcourt against his free-swinging opponent. Matosevic, currently the 79th ranked paleyer in the world, had a much better showing than the only previous time he faced Federer, when he went down 6-1, 6-1 in Brisbane in January of this year.


Basketball Hall-of-Famer Michael Jordan was in attendance inside Arthur Ashe Stadium, and Federer wore sneakers that are the result of a collaboration with the six-time NBA champion. For his first test in New York this season, Federer dismissed Matosevic in the same manner Jordan's Chicago Bulls did to the local New York Knicks in the 1990s.


WHAT IT MEANS: Last year Federer frequently looked a step slow, and predictions of his demise abounded. But the veteran came into Flushing Meadows having reached four consecutive finals, including the title at the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati weeks after coming oh-so-close to snatching his eighth Wimbledon crown earlier in the summer.


The keys to his reinvigorated game have been Federer’s improved health – the Swiss has said he feels 100 percent, with no lower-back issues – and, as a result, his improved court movement.


One potential danger evidenced in this victory was Federer’s inability to break serve, converting on just 3 of 14 opportunities. That has been a problem in the past and is something the Swiss will need to improve upon in later rounds.


usopen.org


I like the shoes but, he really should have made them in black as well, otherwise it just doesn't work with the Darth-Federer black.

Martina Hingis playing U.S. Open doubles

WASHINGTON -- Anticipation involves risk.
Positioning means determining the best place to hedge this risk.


On the tennis court, Martina Hingis has mastered this with a delicate touch.


It has been 14 years since Hingis last held the No.1 singles ranking, yet she moves like a ballerina on the court. Her footwork is not so much lightning-quick as flowing and graceful.


"She's so smart, just the smartest tennis player," Hall of Famer Billie Jean King said. "The way she plays is just so intelligent. She knows how to play and develop a point better than anyone. Watching Martina play is to see a clinic in how to play tennis."


With a single Hingis drop shot, she still reminds you of the player who won the U.S. Open at 16 in 1997 at Arthur Ashe Stadium.


"I have a saying: 'selection of shot equals talent,'" King said. "The selection of her shots is amazing. Martina is the epitome of that. And she can execute. Not only can she think where she wants the ball to go, she can actually do it. Some people think right; they just can't execute. Martina can do both.


"What it really comes down to, though, is her tennis intelligence. The way she develops a point shows her intelligence. I can't think of a smarter player, ever."


Now she's back at the U.S. Open, paired with Italy's Flavia Pennetta in doubles. As a warm-up for the Open, they lost in the quarterfinals to Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci in Montreal 6-2, 3-6, 10-1.


Even at the start of her career, Hingis was special. Tennis might never have had a better prodigy.


She began learning the game at 2 from her mother, Melanie Molitor.


At 12, Hingis became the youngest player to win a junior title in a Grand Slam tournament.


By 13, she turned pro. When Hingis won the 1997 Australian Open at 16, she became the youngest Grand Slam champion in more than a century.


By 18, Hingis had five Grand Slam singles titles. But at 22, she was out of tennis because of severe ankle problems requiring ligament surgery.


Hingis returned to a full schedule of competition in 2006. She had an impressive comeback season, winning her first Grand Slam mixed doubles title and two WTA singles titles.


However, by the fall of 2007, her body was breaking down. She also tested positive for cocaine and was suspended for two years.


As a member of the Washington Kastles of World TeamTennis this summer, Hingis looked like an artist enamored and invigorated by her craft.


"Winning with my teammates, that's the highlight," she said. "Just like anybody, I am motivated by playing well, making good deals and victories, of course. That's my motivation."


During the circuit's month-long season, she seemed to buy into the team-first approach.


"TeamTennis gave me both the life and the energy to come back to the sport," she said. "When I came back last summer, I wanted to get back the feeling of completion, of winning with a teammate. I just missed that."


Her peers are happy to see Hingis back in action.


"The way she sees tennis and understands it — I've never seen anyone like that," said Slovakia's Daniela Hantuchova, who teamed with Hingis in the 2013 U.S. Open.


Hantuchova played for the San Diego Aviators in WTT this summer.


"Obviously, it's so great for the game to have her back. Whenever she's around, she brings that special thing that she has in her. Playing with her or against her has always been a huge honor."


Added Hingis, "In the U.S., you appreciate great sports, and you have a long tradition with tennis. American fans are very knowledgeable, so I love competing in front of them. It's different than in Switzerland — it's not just about the individual; it's more about team. I like that."


Hingis' touch and finesse translate well to doubles.


In 1998, she became the fourth woman in history to sweep the calendar-year Grand Slam doubles titles and overall has nine Grand Slam doubles titles.


These days, you won't find her lacking for teammates.


She plays doubles with a host of partners: Germany's Sabine Lisicki, Australia's Anastasia Rodionova and Russia's Vera Zvonereva, among others.


"It's good that I'm multicultural — that helps," said Hingis, who is Swiss but was born in what is now Slovakia.


After she retired, Hingis coached at the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in Paris, working with Rodionova and others. In 2014, she began coaching Lisicki.


While in Paris, Hingis' former compatriot and sometime doubles partner Hantuchova persuaded her to pick up a racket again.


"She's been my idol since I was a little kid," Hantuchova said of Hingis. "She has always been such a huge influence on my career. She understands me very well because we are from the same part of the world. ...


"We were born about 20 minutes apart in the same part of Slovakia. We go out for dinners when we're not too busy with the schedules. We've stayed close friends. We always keep in touch. I will always admire her."


In March, Hingis and Lisicki won the Sony Open in Miami.


King says she thinks Hingis can win in New York again in doubles.


"I think she loves this, playing doubles," King said. "In doubles, can she win? Oh, yeah. She's amazing."


Hingis enjoys returning to the U.S. Open, where she last played in singles in 2007, losing to Victoria Azarenka in the third round.


"The U.S. Open, it's a great stage," Hingis said. "It's the biggest tournament: size, prestige, everything. If you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere, right? It's always such a great time. The vibe in the city, the people, they just appreciate great sports."


She's optimistic she still has what it takes to be a champion.


"Can I win a Slam again? Well, that would be like a dream. That's why we're out here, to win titles," she said. "A Grand Slam, yeah, that's definitely what I'm aiming for at the end of the day, right? I wouldn't mind. Sign me up. I'm ready."

usatoday.com

Roger Federer talks to Wilson Tennis