The tournament is about to get under way, but the biggest question is what's with Novak Djokovic and the magic egg?
Novak Djokovic, injured but still many people's favourite to win the 2011 US Open, has been putting on a convincing front in these weird days of earthquakes, hurricanes and, now, a magic egg.
Since he left Cincinnati with a long face and damaged right shoulder after quitting against Andy Murray in the final, he has been out and about in New York promoting his daft video on Maria Sharapova, produced another with a singing fish and then popped up briefly on Friday at the National Tennis Center. He was in excellent spirits. On Saturday, with much of New York battened down waiting for the end of the world, he, Janko Tipsarevic and Jelena Jankovic found a Serbian restaurant open.
But there have been precious few chances for the media to ask him about his injury. On Sunday, when we went looking for him again, he tweeted, "Don't worry, be happy. Enjoying the easy day, indoors."
Never frightened to try something new, the player who embraced a gluten-free diet en route to winning 57 of 59 games this season, has gone one step further: getting into a pod that simulates "high altitude and compresses the muscles at rhythmic intervals".
According to the manufacturer, CVAC Systems in California (where else?), 20 minutes three times in a week in one of its machines improves circulation, boosts red blood cells, removes lactic acid and "possibly even stimulates mitochondrial biogenesis and stem cell production". Right.
So, the mystery can be revealed: while the rest of New York has been contemplating Armageddon, Djokovic has been sitting inside a giant egg, still tweeting and hoping his arm recovers in time for the Open.
He has been holed up at the sprawling New Jersey estate of the former tour battler, Gordon Uehling III, who has one of only 20 of the $75,000 pods. Djokovic, otherwise as open as a book, is unusually defensive about his training methods and diets and, although he has been visiting Uehling for four years, this is the first time he has confirmed the existence of the egg.
"I think it really helps," the world No1 told the Wall Street Journal, "not with muscle but more with recovery after an exhausting set. It's like a spaceship. It's very interesting technology."
We wish him well. But that right arm looked in bad shape in Ohio. If all this space-age stuff doesn't help, Djokovic represents a great potential scalp for the Irish qualifier, Conor Niland, in the first round.
You read it here first (or not, if he triple-bagels Niland, goes on to win the title and then flies over Flushing Meadows in a cape and underpants).
CRISIS? WHAT CRISIS?
When the US Open reopens for business on Monday morning, players will be quizzed briefly about what they made of an eventful weekend. Andy Murray will probably say he was gobsmacked by United's 8-2 win over Arsenal. "Can't believe what I've just seen," the not-so-closet Gooner tweeted on Sunday.
Unless, of course, he was talking about the linguistic somersaults performed by TV reporters trying to justify their hysteria over Irene, who barely kissed Manhattan with her wet lips.
The last time a hurricane and serious flooding accompanied a grand slam tournament was at the Australian Open in January ? and that was a major catastrophe, thousands of miles away from the tennis in Queensland. The only effect of the heavy rain in Melbourne was a burst water pipe that briefly flooded a street.
STAT CITY
There are 14 Americans and 14 Frenchmen in the men's draw and the best of the locals, Mardy Fish (the 8th seed), might be a good bet to make the semi-finals. He plays on day one, and should make short work of the German Tobias Kamke. Ga�l Monfils is France's highest seed at No7, and plays the "Bulgarian Federer", Grigor Dimitrov. As well as Monfils played against Djokovic in Cincinnati, I remember too well his collapse against the Serb the previous week in Montreal. He will go around without any of mine ? that's if I were allowed to have a bet.
Again, Andy Murray is Britain's only player in the singles draw. Japan have three representatives, for the first time in a slam since Roland Garros 37 years ago. Two of them, Kei Nishikori and Go Soeda, also play on Monday.
Santiago Giraldo is one of three Colombians competing. He plays the five-time champion Roger Federer; if the great man wins, he joins Andre Agassi in second place for most grand slam match wins in the Open era. Giraldo should consult his compatriot Alejandro Falla about Fed ? he took him to five sets in the first round of Wimbledon last year. Then again, Falla might not be in the mood to talk tennis after playing the tough Viktor Troicki.
Feisty, talented 18-year-old Aussie Bernard Tomic is the youngest man in the draw. He plays 30-year-old American Michael Yani. Tomic is the outsider to watch here ? at least up to the quarter-finals.
There are 26 men aged 30 and over in the singles draw, including new member of the 30 club, Federer. The last man over 30 to win a grand slam title was Agassi, who won the Australian Open in 2003.
And that's enough stats for one day.
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/blog/2011/aug/29/us-open-diary-novak-djokovic
No comments:
Post a Comment