Mark and me on Center Court in New Haven

Perfect weather, really great seats every day (front row, baseline), excellent WTA tennis.

Melanie Oudin.jpg

She lost in the first round to Swede Sophia Arvidsson.

The food court -- no Indian food here.jpg

The food court only has two vendors now.  The space used to be filled on three sides with them.  Since the ATP pulled out, the tournament lost its main sponsor, Pilot Pen.  Matches used to start at 10:00 AM and the food court area used to be crowded with hungry fans.  Now, there's only 32 women in the singles draw, and there are no lines for hamburgers.

It's a far cry from the US Open's food court, which offers not just the usual hamburgers and hot dogs, but lobster rolls and chicken vindaloo.  At $15 and up, the food there is a lot pricier, too, and the lines?  Longer than Rafael Nadal's service rituals.  

Andrea Petkovic.jpg

It's so good to see Andrea back on the court. Although she hasn't played since April, when she withdrew from Stuttgart after tearing ligaments in her right ankle, she's really been out of it since January, when Petko pulled out of the Australian Open with a herniated disk in her lower back.  

Petko forehand form.jpg

“Success for me is going to be to win a match," Andrea told the New York Times. That would be huge already. I don’t expect much of anything from myself right now because I feel like I’m not there yet in the matches.” She beat Timea Babos in the 1st round in 3 grinding sets.

Petkovic's smashed racquet.jpg

Remember, this is I Hate Tennis, and if there was ever a moment for Andrea Petkovic to swing to the dark side in her love/hate relationship with tennis, it was after she let the second set away against Timea Babos.  She smashed her racquet against the court.  After Petkovic gritted out a third set victory, and claimed the match, she autographed the racquet and gave it to a boy.  Mark saw the kid outside Stadium Court and asked him if he could take a picture of it. Perfect "I Hate Tennis" image. 

Sara Errani.jpg

Errani played Spain's Carla Suarez Navarro.  Errani lives in Spain, in Barcelona, where she trains. She said "Vamos!" a few times after hitting winning shots.  

Sara Errani's backhand.jpg

Errani was steady on her backhand side, hitting with pace, depth and accuracy.  No wonder she sought patterns that put her in backhand duels with Suarez Navarro's one-hander.

Carla Suarez Navarro.jpg

Wish I had the stats on how many unforced errors Carla had from her backhand wing.  The shot sure looked great, though.  A one-handed backhand is gorgeous to watch. 

Sloane Stephens.jpg

Sloane's serve was in the low 100s against Bartoli.  

Sloane's backhand.jpg

I think of my coach when I see this shot of Sloane Stephens' backhand.  "Get your racquet back, and THEN move to the ball."  Butt cap toward the ball.  Racquet head pointing to the back of the court, not the side of the court.  Ready for power.

Marion Bartoli.jpg

Bartoli beat Sloane Stephens in a wild, 6-1, 0-6, 6-3 match.  Bartoli has a lot of unconventional, quirky biomechanical motions, like this awkward service stance.  But it works, and it's been working for quite some time.  She's been in the Top 20 since 2006.

The media center.jpg

Here's what the media room looks like.  A bunch of guys on their laptops, filing their stories and photos.  There was a TV set near the front of the room where you could watch the match.  There was also a monitor that showed the scoreboard.  Outside, just several feet away, the sweaty action was happening on Stadium Court.

Beer here.jpg

One way to encourage good coverage of your tournament is to provide the press with free beer. Or not.  You can miss deadlines that way.  

I stuck to the Diet Cokes.