Day 4: Round 2 is done and dusted!
SEEDICIDE:
In a match I did not see, the 17th seed Dimitrov found himself two sets to love down against the underrated Kukushkin. The bulgarian forced a fifth set, but lost it 6-4, continuing to eat the long shit sandwich that is 2015 for him.
Karlovic, the 21st seed, got stopped in his tracks in spite of his very good form of the moment. He had the very dubious honor of joining the portuguese player Sousa a the very select club: the guys who lost 7-6 in the fifth! Yep: Remember that the US Open is the only slam with a breaker in the fifth set.
The american Sock, 28th seed, was actually leading two sets to one against Bemelmans when the grueling heat and humidity combo at work these days in New York got the best of him. In a scene reminiscent of Azarenka a few years back at the Australian Open, Sock got dizzy to the point of not being able to stand and he had to be carted off court.
There is a lot of talking about the play conditions as a lot of player had to retire, end up cramping like crazy or just could not deal with the heat, especially in a context where the WTA's heat rule was in effect (if the matches go to a 3rd set, there is a 10 minutes break before it to allow the players to cool down). I really enjoyed what french marathoner Mahut had to say about it after his loss to Garcia-Lopez. He said, I paraphrase: "I enjoy that there is this added physical dimension to best of 5 sets, that's part of what makes the format special. It means it's not always the guy with the best tennis who wins, but it's the stronger guy, the one best prepared and I think it's ok. I lost to Garcia-Lopez today, but I am fine with it, the strongest man won."
GOOD-BYES:
The first round defeat of Nieminen, the counter-punching leftie from finland, was his last match at the US Open. The guy made a career out of great work ethic, clean ball striking, superior fitness level and great court coverage. Even with limited abilities to generate his own power, be it from the baseline or when serving, his skills earned him a junior US Open title, 2 atp titles and a best ranking of 13.
The second round also saw the last US Open of Hewitt. In his typical scappy style he fought from 2 sets to love down against young compatriot Tomic to force a fifth where he ended up having two match points on the Tomic serve. He then served for the match... and then served to force a fifth set breaker and, well, he lost 7-5 in the fifth against a Tomic forced to slap the ball around because he was cramping. Hewitt stop his career after the next Australian Open.
A similar scenario happened to veteran american Fish. Playing brilliantly, he served for the match against 18th seed Lopez in the 4th set, but he was not able to and from there the match just escaped him. First because of his nerves and then because his tank lasted only for 5 sets. While still highly competitive, that was Fish's last competitive tennis match. For a summary of his career and an explanation of his mental health issues that push him to stop it, I recommend you check what
Fish himself has to say.
THE TOP DOGS:
DJOKOVICdealt with Haider-Maurer to the loss of only 7 games.
Next stops:Seppi [25], Goffin [14] / Bautista-Agut [23].
NADALdid a Wawrinka and managed to win in straight sets after being the first to lose his serve in all three sets. Considering how labarious things are against Schwartzman, I don't see the spaniard going much further.
Next stops:Fognini [32] (the italian beat the spaniard twice on clay earlier in the year, but just lost to him in an electric match where niceties where shared), Raonic [10] / Lopez [18] (Lopez just beat Nadal in Cinci).
TSONGAis the best ranked player in the Nishikori section of the draw and it has been smooth sailing for him so far.
Next stops:Stakhovsky, Paire / Robredo.
FERRERwon in three tight sets against serbian Krajinovic.
Next stops:Chardy [27], Cilic [9] / Kukushkin
WAWRINKAwon in three tie-breaks against korean youngster Chung in a match I regrettably did not see.
Next stops:Bemelmans, Troickiy / Young.
MURRAYfelt the wind of the bullet as he found himself lead two sets to love against the very awkward Mannarino. The french leftie has a very strange technique with almost no take back on the forehand, he hits a very flat ball and has very good hands which give him a very broad array of surprising shots. On a personal note, I must say I also like Mannarino a lot, because he tends to play in monochrome T-Shirts and without sweatbands, so he looks like a spectator that walked on court and grabbed a racket, instead of being a guy [wearing the uniform of / disguised as] a tennis player. Watching the match, it felt like from the start of the 3rd, Murray was able to turn the match into a physical battle, a duel in which Mannarino unsurprisingly ended second best. Oddly though, in the post match intervew to a french sport channel, the frenchman said that he felt he played poorly during the first two sets and that it kind of helped him, because he was able to junk-ball and surprise Murray with his shots and that's when he gained confidence and started to play better that he played a more traditional brand of tennis, which allowed Murray to find his rhythm and set his teeth into the match. Nevertheless, considering the play conditions, playing 5 sets in the 2nd rounds was not ideal for Murray.
Next stops:Bellucci [30], Anderson [15] / Thiem [20].
BERDYCHemerged ahead in a tricky first set against veteran Melzer, but lost only four games after that.
Next stops:Garcia-Lopez [31], Gasquet [12], Tomic [24].
FEDERERfaced Darcis for the first time. A bit odd considering the belgian has been on tour for ages. Not very tall nor powerful, he compensates with a very sound game and a full repertoire of shots. He played a pretty good match really, but against a very inspired and light-footed Federer, he seldom found ways to hurt the swiss. The World N?2 gave no quarter and scored an absurd 46 winners in the 22 games of his 6-1 6-2 6-1 victory!
Next stops:Kohlschreiber [29], Isner [13] / Vesely.