TENNIS: 2006 U.S. OPEN

My purpose at TOTW is usually to look ahead. But today I must stray briefly for a few thoughts. After watching South Carolina open the 2006 college football season with a win over Mississippi State, I switched over to watch the conclusion of the Andre Agassi match. I had been checking in during commercials and it appeared the 36 year-old Agassi was gradually proceeding towards a relatively easy upset victory. Instead what followed were 2 of the most complelling hours of back-and-forth tennis that I've seen since....last year's US Open when 35 year-old Agassi made a dramatic unlikely run into the semifinals. Andre eventually overcame rising star Marcos Baghdatis in the 12th game of the 5th set over 3 hours and 40 minutes after they began playing. And guess which player was in worse physical shape as the epic finally concluded? Hint - it wasn't the old guy days from retirement.

I've been fortunate to have been an Andre fan since the beginning. I liked him just as much when he was the brash player who seemed to have the world on a string and often drew the crowd's ire. Why? I've always found it easy to root for Agassi because he's fun - on and off the court. Just as he rejected the dull "serve-volley-serve-volley" playing style of the 1990s, Andre also rejected traditional fashion, cliche-filled interviews, and even a boring love life. In the tradition of John McEnroe, he's always been well aware that the sport of tennis needs personalities in order to thrive. That's something peer Pete Sampras never possessed and it's why more people will remember Andre Agassi as the leading player of his time even though Pistol Pete seemingly accomplished more on the court.

On a personal note, I remember listening to Agassi win his first Grand Slam tournament back in 1992 at Wimbledon. I was vacationing on the British Caribbean island of Antigua and there the match was actually broadcasted on the local BBC radio. Tennis doesn't exactly lend itself to radio play-by-play. But somehow the 21 year-old Agassi - with his long hair, scandalously non-white outfits, and much older girlfriend Barbara Streisand cheering in the crowd - made it very compelling radio as I listened from the beach on my walkman. So today some 14+ years later, I salute Andre Agassi. Here's hoping there are a few more moments like yesterday's left in his racquet before retirement.

Moving along, since I'm determined to balance out baseball's dominance at TOTW, I'm recommending the featured men's match between 4th seed David Nalbandian of Argentina and 2000 US Open champion Marat Safin of Russia. Were it not for the dominance of Roger Federer during the past 4 years, Nalbandian would likely have a couple of Grand Slam titles. On the other hand, Safin (along with Lleyton Hewitt and Andy Roddick) appeared ready to lead men's tennis into a new era just a few years ago. Once again, along came Roger Federer and like everyone else, Safin hasn't accomplished much in his wake.

My pick: David Nalbandian. High drama in Flushing Meadows take a day off to recover from last night.

Here's my pick for best outift of the US Open. While I admit the lovely Maria Sharapova remains capable of topping herself, I don't think she ever looked better than during her 1st round match on Wednesday.



N.B. Today's entry is dedicated to my dad, the one and only Tennis Titan, who surely stayed up way beyond his early bedtime to watch the Agassi match last night!