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On Wednesday night I went to the US Open for the night session, and after watching the mixed doubles match between Krasnoroutskaya/Nestor and Hantuchova/Ullyett, I headed to Ashe stadium to watch our Lindsay. 
It took us forever to find our seats up in the promenade level (yup, we got the nosebleed seeds!) and when we did, we weren't absolutely crazy about the view. Lindsay looked like a little red spec from up there and you couldn't even see her small, 5'4'' opponent. We had some great company, though. We were sitting right next to a group called the "Net Heads" (they actually wore nets on their heads) who were avid Lindsay fans. They cheered and danced and waved their flags whenever she would hit a winner. Out of curiosity I asked one of them why he was wearing a net on his head and he explained that the USTA gives these people tickets to tournaments all around the world so they can cheer and support the American players. The "Net Heads" still have to pay for other things like plane rides and hotel prices, but the tournament tickets are absolutely free. Now I wonder how I can join this program with the USTA…
Anyway, after the first set was over we decided to be naughty and sneak down to the Loge section. Much better! I was actually able to take some quality pics of Lindsay (16 in all
) but, in a matter of minutes, we were caught by a US Open official. And I thought I had been very stealthy! He said we had to go back to our original seats and we begged and pleaded him to let us stay for just one more game, and he agreed, and then disappeared. With him out of the way, we decided stayed put in the good seats. I'm such a rebel.
Now, to the actual match. For the first set Davenport was painting the lines and the depth on her groundstrokes was too much for the little Italian. And I was pleased to see that Davenport was actually moving very well side to side and putting in the effort to get a lot of balls back, so I think that's a good sign for her foot. On the down side, however, Lindsay was catching a few balls late and her footwork was not always spectacular. Both players started out poorly with unforced errors in the second set, but very quickly Lindsay was able to race out to a 3-1 lead. However, Camerin started to raise her game from that point on. She's very speedy on the court and started to frustrate Lindsay by getting some more balls back. She especially impressed me with her ability to step it up and be aggressive when given the opportunity. Surprisingly Camerin was dictating many of the points during that second set, trying to set up her big forehand. But it was Davenport playing the big points better and she was able to sneak out another break at 4-2 in the second, the longest game of the match, with some heavy hitting from the baseline. The Italian took advantage of two doubles from Lindsay to break back and then hold for 4-5, but Davenport did not falter while serving for it a second time. I was afraid that the helicopter overhead might distract her, but she served it out very cooly at 5-4.
Overall I was pleased with Lindsay's play, but I think she'll need to be more consistent from the baseline and definitely improve that first serve percentage if she wants to win here. And I was really impressed with the game of the 21-year old Italian, who I heard also reached the second round at Wimbledon and is now inside the top 90. I'll keep my eye on her as she moves up the rankings this next year. She can hit a big ball for a small girl.
I will definitely upload my many pics of Davenport in a day or two.
It took us forever to find our seats up in the promenade level (yup, we got the nosebleed seeds!) and when we did, we weren't absolutely crazy about the view. Lindsay looked like a little red spec from up there and you couldn't even see her small, 5'4'' opponent. We had some great company, though. We were sitting right next to a group called the "Net Heads" (they actually wore nets on their heads) who were avid Lindsay fans. They cheered and danced and waved their flags whenever she would hit a winner. Out of curiosity I asked one of them why he was wearing a net on his head and he explained that the USTA gives these people tickets to tournaments all around the world so they can cheer and support the American players. The "Net Heads" still have to pay for other things like plane rides and hotel prices, but the tournament tickets are absolutely free. Now I wonder how I can join this program with the USTA…
Anyway, after the first set was over we decided to be naughty and sneak down to the Loge section. Much better! I was actually able to take some quality pics of Lindsay (16 in all
) but, in a matter of minutes, we were caught by a US Open official. And I thought I had been very stealthy! He said we had to go back to our original seats and we begged and pleaded him to let us stay for just one more game, and he agreed, and then disappeared. With him out of the way, we decided stayed put in the good seats. I'm such a rebel. Now, to the actual match. For the first set Davenport was painting the lines and the depth on her groundstrokes was too much for the little Italian. And I was pleased to see that Davenport was actually moving very well side to side and putting in the effort to get a lot of balls back, so I think that's a good sign for her foot. On the down side, however, Lindsay was catching a few balls late and her footwork was not always spectacular. Both players started out poorly with unforced errors in the second set, but very quickly Lindsay was able to race out to a 3-1 lead. However, Camerin started to raise her game from that point on. She's very speedy on the court and started to frustrate Lindsay by getting some more balls back. She especially impressed me with her ability to step it up and be aggressive when given the opportunity. Surprisingly Camerin was dictating many of the points during that second set, trying to set up her big forehand. But it was Davenport playing the big points better and she was able to sneak out another break at 4-2 in the second, the longest game of the match, with some heavy hitting from the baseline. The Italian took advantage of two doubles from Lindsay to break back and then hold for 4-5, but Davenport did not falter while serving for it a second time. I was afraid that the helicopter overhead might distract her, but she served it out very cooly at 5-4.
Overall I was pleased with Lindsay's play, but I think she'll need to be more consistent from the baseline and definitely improve that first serve percentage if she wants to win here. And I was really impressed with the game of the 21-year old Italian, who I heard also reached the second round at Wimbledon and is now inside the top 90. I'll keep my eye on her as she moves up the rankings this next year. She can hit a big ball for a small girl.
I will definitely upload my many pics of Davenport in a day or two.
