Official U.S. Open Tennis Thread.

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I'm annoyed that Nadal and Federer are in the same quarter.

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start expecting more of that over the next year or two until Fed retires

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FIFY.

US Open was played in June.

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First Championships

US Open (tennis): 1881
US Open (golf): 1895


Thanks for playing though.

We have some lovely parting gifts. Bob tell him what he's won!

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US Open (tennis): 1881
US Open (golf): 1895

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Wasn't called the US (Tennis) Open until the 1970's IIRC.

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I'm annoyed that Nadal and Federer are in the same quarter.

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Yeah, this is annoying, especially given how weak the Ferrer quarter is. I was hoping that Delpo would end up in his quarter rather than Novak's.

Match day bump. Poor Ryan Harrison gets Rafa today. Federer plays a guy Zemjla, who I thought was really solid when I saw him at Roland Garros. Bobbyray's guy, young phenom Kyrgios goes against Daveeeed Ferrer. Serena v. Schiavone is about as good a first round matchup as you can have.

Radwanska pats the ball over the net every time and it drives me insane

First things first, let's go through the players:

Novak Djokovic: I still think you have to consider Novak the best harddcourt player in the game, despite what Rafa has done over the past two tournaments. I saw Rafa beat Novak in Montreal (on tv), and it was an incredible match and a great win for Rafa, but I'm still not convinced Rafa would have won the match if it were five sets. But the one interesting factor is whether Rafa has officially purchased real estate in Novak's headspace. He has won five out of their last six matches, and he won their last one in a Master's 1000 event on a hardcourt, which is supposed to be Novak's wheelhouse. The reason I think he is still the best hardcourt player in the world is because of what I've seen him do for certain periods of time. He can push anybody around on the hard courts and run them silly -- and this includes Rafa. Back in 2011 he was doing this consistently, his mental game was just so good. His mental game, has taken a hit and he doesn't seem to be able to sustain that top level that we know he has. But he does have that top level -- a sixth gear, if you will -- that even Rafa doesn't have, and why wouldn't he turn it on in the finals of the US Open? He would, but he has to get there first. More to come.

Rafael Nadal: He comes in on a serious hot streak and he is in the process of beating the absolute funk out of poor Ryan Harrison. He has an easier drawn than both Novak and Andy Murray. I'm not sure that he's quite at his 2010 US Open hardcourt form, but he's close to it. One thing I know for sure is that he's not getting knocked off by a no name. Isner could potentially give him trouble in the third round, but we'll first have to see if Isner gets that far. Rafa did himself some serious favors by winning both Montreal and Cincy and getting his ranking, and thus seeding, back up to #2.

Andy Murray: How will Murray react in the major after his biggest triumph as a professional in winning the prestigious SW 19 event and getting the proverbial monkey off his back? I think we can expect a let down. I believe Murray has a few more majors in him -- he's just that good of a player -- but I don't think this particular major will be one of those. First of all, he'll likely have to beat Novak (or Delpo) in the semis and then (likely) Rafa in the final, and I'm just not convinced he can do that. Rafa gives him fits, and if he beats one of those two guys to get to Rafa, methinks he'll be gasssed.

Juan Martin Del Potro: never count out the big Argentine, who went home with the US Open hardware in 2009. If he gets on a roll on the hardcourts, and that cannonball forehand starts landing near lines, he is a seriously tough out. You never know what you're gonna get from Delpo, though. The most consistent player on tour, he certainly is not. But I have a soft spot for the big fella, who I've just always seemed to like, and he has to be considered the fourth favorite, am I right? The Draw Gods did him no favors by placing him in the same quadrant with the flexible Serbian jokester, and then also placing vis a vis Andy Murray in a potential semifinal showdown, but if we assume for the sake of argument that he got past all of the above, he has shown he has the ability to push Rafa around on a hard court like no one else on the tour.

Roger Federer: Does anyone have a fork? Put it in him. If he makes it to the quarterfinals, he gets Rafa. And does anybody think Roger, at this point in his career, can beat Rafael Nadal in a five set match on outdoor courts? I don't think so, but please pretty please speak up if you do see this happening.

Thomas Berdych: Berdych is in Murray's drawn, and his road to the quarterfinals appears to be pretty favorable. Stan The Man Wawrinka could potentially threaten him, but I see Berdych making it to the quarters. If Murray avoids laying an egg and does the same, that will be a potentially interesting quarterfinal match.

Grigor Dimitrov: I've been a big critic of the WTA Heartbreaker who is also know as BabyFed, but he really has started to put his game together. He finds himself in Novak's draw, and he could find himself on the opposite side of the net from Mr. Djokovic as early as the third round. Bummer, dude. Bummer.

John Isner: Don't laugh. The big-serving American comes into this tournament playing some very good tennis. He played Rafa in the finals of Cincy and forced him into two tiebreakers. He tends to give Rafa trouble -- he took him to five sets in the French Open two years ago -- and they will potentially meet in the Round of 16. Rafa would certainly be favored in that match, but it wouldn't be a gimme.

We need a sticky.

Oh, I know what you're sayin'

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Yeah, this is annoying, especially given how weak the Ferrer quarter is. I was hoping that Delpo would end up in his quarter rather than Novak's.

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Yes, shall we talk about the dumpster fire that is the David Ferrer Quadrant?

The highest seeded guy is of course Ferrer, who has been playing like absolute racoontrash as of late. He got beat by Alex Bogomolov in Montreal, and then by Dmitry Tursunov in Cincinnati. Not exactly a murderer's row. He gets Australian up-and-comer Nick Kyrgios in the first round. I have difficulty thinking he'll drop this match to a guy who lacks experience on the big stage. He'll likely win his second round match as well, but could be presented with some difficulties if/when he faces the candid and colorful Ernie Gulbis.

Frenchman Richard Gasquet (aka Richard Gascoke) is at the other end of the quadrant. He isn't terrible at tennis, but the fact that he might win this quadrant and play in the semifinals is, well, interesting.

Uber talented Jerzy Janowicz is on the Ferrer side of the quadrant, and so we could find ourselves with a Janowicz/Ferrer matchup in the Round of 16. This would be an interesting matchup, and I'm not certain that Ferrer would be considered the favorite in this match. But I'm also not certain Janowicz won't trip and up allowing a lesser player to push through. Janowicz is inconsistent like that. But he does have MAD game.

In the top half of the draw, we have Milos Raonic, who blows at the game of tennis. Expect Gascoke to make it to the quarterfinals.

What a dumpster fire.