Tennis, Tennis, Tennis

It's been a tennis couple of weeks for me. I've played more tennis this week than I played in the last year and I've watched more of the U.S. Open than I'm proud of. I even ordered a pair of tennis shoes from Zappos. It all began when, as you read in detail in my long post, I read Andre Agassi's Open a few weeks ago. As an athlete, it was a fascinating look into "the loneliest sport." It re-opened my eyes to the game that I played recreationally as a child and into my teens but never seriously. And then the U.S. Open began and I was still riding the Open-high. I was quickly captivated. Serena's resurgence, Cece Bellis' run, Federer's Federer-ness, Wozniaki's post McIlroy break-up victories. I even got to see all these characters that I read about in Open: Brad Gilbert, Boris Becker, Darren Cahill, Michael Chang - all these people that I already liked or disliked because of Agassi.

I couldn't watch enough of the tennis... and I watched too much of it. In a few weeks I'll be back to caring little about tennis I'm sure but for now I've got the Women's final and the Men's semis and final. 

I'm taking Serena over Wozniaki, although (I think) I'm rooting for Wozniaki. It's an improbable run for a former number 1 who's only other Grand Slam final appearance was 5 years ago in the U.S. Open final where she lost. And Rory McIlroy dumped her in May - something that the commentators don't want us to forget. Hopefully it goes to 3 sets. As for the men's, I'm hoping for and betting on a Federer - Djokovic final. It's difficult to root against Federer but I feel the same about Djokovic. There's really nothing not to like about them. Federer is polite, humble, talented and getting older. Djokovic is enthusiastic, polite and only 27. He has perfectly groomed hair. But Boris Becker is his coach. Hoping for 5 sets with a Federer victory.

A quick rant: It's ridiculous that tennis (and golf) crowds have to be quiet during serves and points. When a batter is awaiting a 95 mph pitch in the batter's box, the crowd can scream and scream. The same is true for a shooter at the free throw line. I know it's tradition, but it's dumb and tennis players (and golfers) should be able to play even if spectators are yelling and cheering. 

And in typical NYT sports section fashion, writer Harvey Araton wrote a fascinating piece that wasn't actually about a match or game (because no one goes to the NYT to see what happened in a sporting event). In his article, "Weary of Pro Tennis Delays? Cry Into the Towel," Araton looks at the trend of the sweat towel in today's tennis and it's a great read. 

Watch on.