What's your favourite moment of the U.S. Open 2009?

So this year’s U.S. Open is over. What’s your most enduring moment of this U.S. Open? Is it Kim Clijster’s daughter Jada clutching her mother’s trophy in the finals, or Roger Federer’s eye-catching hotdog, through-the-legs winner against Novak? Is it Serena’s controversy-laden outburst at the line referee or the dennis-the-menace act of the new American teenager Melanie Oudin’s who beat 4 Russian players? For me, it was Juan Martin del Potro’s flat-on-the-back celebration after beating both Nadal and Federer back-to-back for the title. I think it was a phenomenal achievement – both mentally and physically. Nobody before has humbled both Nadal and Federer to win a grand slam and do it inside 32 hours. I think this 20-something, 6ft-6-inch guy is a real trailblazer.

Congrats to Juan Martin del Potro for winning the U.S. Open. It’s a special victory for him especially because it’s his first grand slam win and that too against his idol. DelPo has been fantastic throughout the tournament. The way he demolished Nadal on his way to the finals and rose on the occasion to beat Roger in the finals is truly remarkable for a 20-year old. Even though I am a true blue Roger fan, I admire DelPo’s win. It’s a well-deserved one. Besides, more than Roger’s loss, DelPo’s coming of age is a gain for the game of tennis. With DelPo joining the list of talented Murray, Roddick, Djokovic, and Nadal, men’s tennis again looks competitive, more than ever. I am sure we’re going to witness some great rivalry in days to come.

That said, this loss in the U.S. Open doesn’t make Roger Federer any less great. It is obvious that a player of Federer’s caliber is expected to win the moment he steps on the court. He is likened to the once-invincible Australian cricket team. But he is not infallible. He is human too.
To all the critics of Roger, who are rejoicing in Roger’s loss, I just want to remind them that this is the guy who played in 23 out of the last 24 grand slam semis, won 15 of them, and reached his sixth straight U.S. Open finals this year. I can dig out more impressive records to his name. All this is no mean achievement; it speaks of his skill, talent, and amazing fitness level. It’s the mark of a great sportsman. 2009 was a great year for him. He won 2 grand slams this year and came close to winning the third too. Lot of players would be just happy to reach the finals of one.

Roger, however, would be sad that he could not emulate Kim Clijsters – who won the U.S. Open as a working mother – to win his first grand slam as a working father. I hope the grass is still greener on Roger’s side. Allez Roger!!

Talking of Kim, I think she made the mother of all comebacks. It was a win that a lot of working mothers would appreciate and take inspiration from. For Kim Clijsters, I guess, this should be a perfect storybook ending. Coming into her third tournament after a two-year hiatus from tennis that includes getting married and having a baby, Clijster’s beat heavy odds that were against her, before finishing Venus and Serena on her way to the finals. That’s an incredible feat. And to think of it, she was unseeded here. It must be surreal for her. Hats off to Kim!

And before I sign off, I must congratulate Leander Paes for winning the doubles trophy at the U.S. Open. At the age of 36, it must be really tough for a guy to do this again and again. Happy for Leander. You are the Sachin Tendulkar of Indian tennis. Hope you go on and on...

Sidekicks: Btw, I loved Roger’s through-the-legs shot in the semi final against Novak. Amazingly done, he made it look so effortless. I bet it would rank as Roger’s best shot ever.

Still the One!

For the last two days, whoever sees me tells me I am looking extra-happy. “What’s the reason dude?,” people ask me. But those who know the reason are prompt to congratulate me. Roger has won the U.S. Open. It was pretty uncharacteristic way for Roger to celebrate his win. Roger fell to his knees and then rolled onto his back, overwhelmed with the moment. He screamed his heart out before rising and saluting the crowd for their support. And this tells us how important this win was for Roger. "It definitely feels great. This is a very special moment in my career. To take this one home is incredible. It means the world to me," Roger said.

And to think of it, most people had started writing obituaries of his career..said his reign is over. It pained a lot to hear those comments. But I believed in you. And thanks so much for vindicating me. Now your detractors can Rest In Peace.

How quick we are to predict a star’s fall. Some people proclaimed that this is his worst performance and he will never be able to win another grand slam. Just because the guy had reached finals of two grand slams, semifinals in one, and won doubles gold in Olympics. How lackluster! How ordinary! Well..other players would be just happy enough to end the year with such performance. Look what Andy Murray said about his performance. "I had a great tournament," Murray said. "Came up against, in my opinion, the greatest player to ever play the game. I got the best of him the last two times we played. He definitely set the record straight."

Sure, at the start of the season, Roger was suffering from mononucleosis, still he reached semifinals of the Australian Open. He was uncharacteristically outplayed by Nadal in French open and lost the epic match on Wimbledon’s centre court by a mere 2 points, the kind of matches he usually comes out winning.

For almost five years, he has dominated the game with his velvety strokeplay and charismatic forehand. His artistry is just unmatched. Unlike Nadal’s muscular-style power play, Roger moves his racquet like a painter’s brush on a canvas. And each stroke is a chef d’ouvre in the making. He does things with the racquet that leaves people gasping for breath. He moves around the court with an omnipresent, superhuman-like quality. And the best thing is he is as graceful off the court as competent as on the court.

But throughout this season, we have seen the human in this almost-superhuman being. He grimaced in pain when losing the Wimbledon final, saw himself lose without even putting a fight to Nadal in French Open, couldn’t fulfill his dream of winning an Olympic gold in singles, and then lost his no. 1 ranking in August this year. It was as much frustrating for his fans as for him. His fans could feel his vulnerability. But in U.S. Open, he showed his brutal, ruthless side. He screamed at each point won and was excited as hell when he won the title. It was exciting to witness Federer being challenged. Searching for answers to questions that were raised on his ability. And it was as much fun to see him regain his lost pride.

Roger now has shown that he can turn things around as quickly as he switches from forehand to backhand to create a winner. And he has clearly indicated that he will not rest on 13 titles. He is going to break Pete’s record. With Nadal, Novak, and Murray closing in on him and threatening his invincibility, it’s a great time for Tennis and the game’s lovers are gonna enjoy the rivalry to the hilt.

Like on every other thing, Roger has an opinion on this one too "One thing is for sure. I'm not going to stop at 13."

The grass is still greener on Roger’s side.

Roger, you are Still the One! :))