©Colette Lewis 2007--
Flushing Meadow, NY--
Thanks to a late plane and a slightly confused taxi driver, we missed the junior qualifying today, and even the ride out to the USTABJKNTC on the famous New York Transit Subway No. 7 Train seemed longer than usual, probably because we were so anxious to get there in time for the Federer-Isner match. Agnieszka Radwanska did her part to extend the Ashe matches into the afternoon, but Andy Roddick let us down with his quick victory, and by the time we had reached the media credential office, Isner and Federer were in the middle of the tiebreaker. The USTA employee took his time with the credentials and we didn't mind, as all three of us stopped to watch the closed circuit telecast as the big Bulldog seized the moment and took the first set. It didn't last, of course, but Isner had Federer's attention and later in the press conference Isner said he knows he can play with the top guys in the game--maybe not Federer for three of five sets--"but one set I can play with him."
Isner, like a politician staying on message, stuck up for college tennis. He was asked about not winning the NCAAs and how good was the guy who did, and Isner complimented Somdev Devvarman of Virginia, calling him "a real tough player" and predicting Top 100 ATP for him when he finishes school next year. Then he said:
"I've always thought college tennis has been very underrated. A lot of people underestimate the depth of college tennis. There are so many tough players in college. I think a couple of guys playing college are going to come out next year and have success like I do."
Keeping with the Isner theme, we ran into Jesse Levine as he made his way to the locker room after his doubles match on Court 11 (he and Kuznetsov lost to No. 9 seeds Lukas Dlouhy and Pavel Vizner 6-4, 7-5) and he mentioned that he had lost a bet to John Roddick and to pay it off, he had to practice in one of Isner's Georgia Bulldogs shirts (the Florida-Georgia rivarlry isn't just in football). The mental picture I got of the 5-foot-9 Levine in one of Isner's shirts, had it reaching somewhere south of Nadal's capris.
At the player meeting, well-attended because the draws were expected to be distributed, parents, coaches and players heard from Paul Roetert, the tournament doctor, and a few others about what to expect at the year's last junior slam. Sitting in for her son was Nancy Klahn, because Bradley, who had qualified earlier in the day, had been asked to hit with James Blake prior to his match with left-hander Stefan Koubek tonight in Ashe stadium.
The junior qualifying results Saturday added considerably to the U.S. presence in the main draw, with four boys and five girls advancing. With Donald Young withdrawing from the juniors after his four-set loss to Feliciano Lopez, the boys draw had to be redone at the last minute and there's now a pretty big advantage to those in the bottom half, and should help Ricardas Berankis, the winner in the ITF Grade 1 in Canada today.
Devin Britton, Frank Carleton, Klahn and Dennis Nevolo were the U.S. boys to advance, while on the girls side, Kim Couts, Alexa Guarchi, Chelsey Gullickson, Stephanie Vidov and Allie Will earned their spots in the main draw.
The big surprise was No. 1 qualifying seed Bernard Tomic of Australia losing 6-4, 6-2 to Giacomo Miccini of Italy. With Young's withdrawal, Tomic will likely get in as a lucky loser.
A dozen U.S. players will be in action on Sunday, as the first round gets underway. For complete draws, see usopen.org.
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