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Johnson Mounts Heroic Comeback, Saving 6 M.P.

  • Posted: Aug 31, 2016

Johnson Mounts Heroic Comeback, Saving 6 M.P.

Top American reaches second round from two sets down

The first round of the 2016 US Open has provided many thrilling moments, but perhaps none more than by its home hopes on the new Grandstand court.

On Monday, it was John Isner rallying from two sets down to deny #NextGen star Frances Tiafoe. On Tuesday, Steve Johnson saved six match points in storming back from an 0-2 deficit of his own to defeat Evgeny Donskoy 4-6, 1-6, 7-6(2), 6-3, 6-3 after three hours and 13 minutes.

“I have no idea what’s happening right now,” Johnson, No. 21 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, said after the match. “But I really felt the crowd was awesome. I had a blast winning and it’s something I’ll never forget. This is why you play; to get through these tough five-setters and move on.”

Johnson was serving down 2-5 0/40 in the third set, when the American rallied from the brink. Two return errors and a forehand unforced error from Donskoy, as well as a Johnson ace, saw the California native escape. But he was not out of the woods just yet, staring down the barrel of two more at 5-6. After Donskoy fired a return error, Johnson launched a backhand winner to save the sixth and final match point. From there, the reinvigorated American cruised to the finish line, claiming the set in a tie-break and dropping a combined six games in the fourth and fifth.

“I didn’t look so good for a while. At 2-5, I just found a way to hold. I got lucky and then we were back even. I have no idea how I got out of that game and just found a way to win those points. My mentally was that it’s not over. My goal walking out today was to win in three sets, but it doesn’t matter how it comes.

“After I finally broke, I started to play better and better. Then I won the third and I’m thinking that I’m in good control of the match even though I was down two sets. It doesn’t always come easy and it would be boring if it was that way.”

It was Johnson’s second comeback from two sets down in his career, following a victory over qualifier Laurent Lokoli at Roland Garros two years ago. In total, the former University of Southern California standout has won four five-set matches.

With the win, Johnson sets a blockbuster second round clash against 2009 champion Juan Martin del Potro. It will be their first FedEx ATP Head2Head meeting.

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Kyrgios Cruises Under Lights

  • Posted: Aug 31, 2016

Kyrgios Cruises Under Lights

Contrast in fortunes for Aussie men’s seeds

Swinging freely under lights on the Old Grandstand court, Nick Kyrgios is off to a flying start at the 2016 US Open, downing Aljaz Bedene in straight sets. The 14th-seeded Australian moved past the Brit, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 in under two hours.

Having raced to a 5-1 lead in the opening set, the Canberra native saw his lead slip and appeared troubled when he took an injury time-out for treatment on his hip and lower back. Returning to the court to serve, he brought up two set points with a big off-forehand winner and closed out the set on his second opportunity with an ace, before leaving the court for more treatment.

Kyrgios downplayed the injury, citing his grueling training schedule leading into the US Open.

“I was nursing a little bit of an injury, and I how I responded was really well. I’m really happy,” Kyrgios said. “I thought I played solid, returned well, served well, hit the ball well. That was a pretty good all-around performance.

“It’s my hip. It’s fine at the moment. Obviously with the US Open I wanted to find my form, and I don’t know, just a bit of a load but it’s OK. It’s nothing to worry about.”

The 21 year old was rarely troubled from then on. He broke early in both second and third sets before bringing up match point with an unreturnable first serve. Kyrgios closed it out when Bedene dumped a forehand into the net, setting up a second-round meeting with Argentine Horacio Zeballos.

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The Aussie relished the close confines of the Old Grandstand and said he enjoying the crowd interaction.

“I don’t really zone it out, to be honest,” Kyrgios said of the crowd interjections. “Some guy was like, ‘Change your clothes, that’s an awful outfit’.

“I was trying to come up with a comeback. I didn’t want to say anything. He was an old man. He got me this time.”

The chances of an all-Australian Top-20 showdown in the third round, however, were foiled. In a rematch of their US Open first-round match from last year, Bosnian Damir Dzumhur gained revenge on 17th seed Bernard Tomic with a 6-4, 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(0) upset.

The World No. 72 in the Emirates ATP Rankings had never won a match at Flushing Meadows but bolted out of the blocks to take a two-set lead before Tomic could find his range. Dzumhur broke for 5-4 in the fourth set to serve for the match but the Aussie rallied, eventually forcing the tie-break.

A wild forehand return from Tomic slapped into the net gave Dzumhur a 5/0 lead before a double fault brought up six match points. Dzumhur took it on his first opportunity, leaving Tomic stranded with an off-backhand return winner.

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Del Potro Makes Winning Return

  • Posted: Aug 31, 2016

Del Potro Makes Winning Return

Argentine lands four-set victory over compatriot

Former champion Juan Martin del Potro has made a triumphant return to Flushing Meadows in his first match in New York since 2013. In an all-Argentine battle, del Potro – the 2009 US Open champion – posted a 6-4, 6-4, 7-6(3) first-round result over Diego Schwartzman on Louis Armstrong Stadium.

The 27 year old had not played at Flushing Meadows since falling in five sets to fellow former champion Lleyton Hewitt in the second round three years ago. He had undergone three surgeries on his left wrist since, having already endured a right wrist operation, which ruled him out of defending his US Open title in 2010.

Del Potro closed out the first FedEx ATP Head2Head meeting against his countryman with an ace, his 11th of the match. He finished with 34 winners and 48 unforced errors to his opponent’s 28 winners and 38 unforced errors and broke five times.

A wild card outside the Top 100 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, del Potro awaits the winner of American No. 19 seed Steve Johnson and Russian Evgeny Donskoy.

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US Open 2016: Serena Williams eases past Ekaterina Makarova in New York

  • Posted: Aug 31, 2016
US Open
Venue: Flushing Meadows, New York Dates: 29 August-11 September
Coverage: Live radio commentary on Radio 5 live sports extra from 22:00 BST plus live text coverage on selected matches on the BBC Sport website.

Serena Williams showed no sign of the shoulder injury that disrupted her US Open preparation as she dismissed Ekaterina Makarova in straight sets.

The top seed faced a tricky first-round opponent in Makarova, Russia’s world number 29, but won 6-3 6-3.

Williams, 34, will monitor how her shoulder reacts ahead of her second-round match against Vania King.

“I’ll have to wait until tomorrow to see, I haven’t been able to play that much since Wimbledon,” said Williams.

“Every day I’ll just see how it goes.”

Williams had played just three matches since winning Wimbledon, but impressed against 2014 semi-finalist Makarova in the night session.

“I love coming out here in front of this New York crowd, it’s super special,” said the six-time champion, chasing an open-era record 23rd Grand Slam singles title.

“I got off to a really fast start – I wanted to get some momentum.”

Venus Williams, seeded sixth, survived 63 unforced errors to beat Kateryna Kozlova of Ukraine 6-2 5-7 6-4.

Fourth seed Agnieszka Radwanska and fifth seed Simona Halep lost four games between them as they progressed, while leading names Stan Wawrinka, Kei Nishikori and Juan Martin del Potro went through in the men’s draw.

Tomic sorry after row with spectator

Australia’s Bernard Tomic apologised after making lewd comments to a spectator – the world number 19 insisted he was “baited”.

Tomic, 23, trailed Damir Dzumhur 5-4 in their first-round match when an exchange with a spectator began.

As well as two explicit comments, Tomic said: “I will give you some money to make you feel good.”

Courtside microphones picked up the comments by Tomic, who would go on to lose 6-4 6-3 4-6 7-6 (7-0) to Bosnia’s Dzumhur.

“”He definitely baited me the whole set for me to say that. But I do apologise,” the Australian said of the spectator. “He was just sort of saying negative stuff.

“I had problems on the other end, as well, with a few people in the corner. They were saying some negative stuff to me, in my language of Serbian-Croatian.

“The microphones didn’t pick that up. But I obviously caught the blame for that.”

Karlovic sets record with 61 aces

“I’m getting old, I have to work a bit more on my serve, I guess,” joked Croatia’s Ivo Karlovic after being told he only hit 10 aces in the final set of his win over Taiwan’s Lu Yen-Hsun.

The 37-year-old set a US Open with 61 aces on his way to a first-round victory – 22 of them in the second set alone as Karlovic passed Richard Krajicek’s record of 49 set 17 years ago.

“I knew there were a lot of aces because at one stage I was serving one on almost every point but I didn’t know it was a record,” said Karlovic.

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Why Fans Love Novak Djokovic

  • Posted: Aug 31, 2016

Why Fans Love Novak Djokovic

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Can Roger Compete With A Top Chef?

  • Posted: Aug 31, 2016

Can Roger Compete With A Top Chef?

The Swiss star puts his cooking skills to the test at an exclusive party for Moët & Chandon

Moët & Chandon global ambassador Roger Federer joined talented Mexican chef Enrique Olvera for an exclusive dinner in New York City.

The pair cooked an intimate, three-course meal, paired with Moët & Chandon’s rosé champagnes, on the terrace of the World of McIntosh Townhouse in SoHo. Guests, who were treated to a cook-off between the Swiss and Chelf Olvera, included Vogue, The Wall Street Journal, Bon Appetit, Food & Wine, Wine Spectator, Forbes and USA Today.

Federer jokingly confessed to being a better eater than a chef, and lucky for him at the soiree they did just that! The party dined on Spelt esquites with corn and chile de arbol, ending the meal with a rich chocolate zucchini cake with mint-infused crème fraiche paired with Moët Nectar Impérial Rosé.

Moet and Chandon off-court news 

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Escobedo Looks Back On First Grand Slam Win At US Open 2016

  • Posted: Aug 30, 2016

Escobedo Looks Back On First Grand Slam Win At US Open 2016

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US Open 2016: Evans through to round two but Watson crashes out

  • Posted: Aug 30, 2016
US Open
Venue: Flushing Meadows, New York Dates: 29 August-11 September
Coverage: Live radio commentary on Radio 5 live sports extra plus live text coverage on the big matches on the BBC Sport website and app.

Dan Evans beat Rajeev Ram to become the third Briton into the second round of the US Open, but compatriot Heather Watson lost her first-round match.

British number two Evans, 26, won 6-2 4-6 7-5 6-1 to join Kyle Edmund and Johanna Konta in the last 64.

Watson, 24, lost 6-2 7-5 to Dutch qualifier Richel Hogenkamp.

World number 73 Watson, who appeared to be struggling with a back injury, has failed to reach the second round at Flushing Meadows in six attempts.

Watson, the British number two, was in tears after losing the first set in 32 minutes before being massaged by a trainer and given pills by a doctor.

Later on Tuesday there is an all-British tie between Naomi Broady and Laura Robson, before world number two Andy Murray begins his tournament against the Czech Republic’s Lukas Rosol.

Also in action is British number three Aljaz Bedene, who takes on Australian 14th seed Nick Kyrgios.

On Monday, Edmund upset 13th seed Richard Gasquet in straight sets, while world number 14 Konta continued her fine season with a regulation victory over Bethanie Mattek-Sands.

Reaction to follow.

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