U.S. Open Notebook: Experiencing Flushing Meadows in Person

This past Friday I had the privilege of attending the US Open day session featuring Men's Second Round and Women's Third Round matches. I just want to share with you some of my thoughts and experiences of experiencing the open in person! 

U.S. Open Notebook: Winner's, Sleeper's, and Toughest Road

The 2013 US Open officially kicks off today in Flushing Meadows, New York. At the Billie Jean King Tennis Center over the next two weeks, the best tennis players in the world will compete for the final grand slam championship. On the women’s side, Serena Williams looks to defend her 2012 US Open Championship as Andy Murray will be looking to do the same on the men’s side. This will be the first time Murray will ever have the role of defending his crown. With all the top seeds healthy on the men’s side, and the fierce new rivalry between Serena and Victoria Azarenka, the next two weeks should be full of surprises and wonderful play.

U.S. Open Notebook: Plans to Renovate Flushing Meadows

For five consecutive years, the final grand slam of the tennis season, the US Open, has terminated on the non-traditional Monday due to rain delays. These delays, along with safety issues facing the players if the courts are still wet, has called uproar amongst the players over the past couple years. The USTA has fallen behind the other major grand slam events in terms of updating their facilities. (Australian Open and Wimbledon both have roofs on their main courts.) This past week, the USTA announced their plan for renovating their facilities.

U.S. Open Notebook: A New Queen on The Rise?

In my last post, I discussed the state of male tennis in the United States, focusing on the lack of prospects and national coverage. Now in general, male sports are more famous and receive more coverage than female sports, however, the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) has made multiple strides in gaining popularity not only in the U.S. but throughout the whole world. Tennis is really the only sport where male and female competitions are televised together, receive equal prize money, and analyzed with equitable media coverage. A great deal of this is due to big names like Serena Williams (She also has a clothing line.) and Maria Sharapova (She also models). Needless to say, the WTA has found a way to gain more media attention, and it is through using individual players for not only their skills on the court, but their appearance as well.

U.S. Open Notebook: Is There a Male U.S. Tennis Star in the Making?

If you were to stop someone on the street and ask the question, ”Who is the best American tennis player?” what would be the most common response? Many people would say Andy Roddick (He retired last year). Others would say Andre Agassi (Has been retired for over 5 years). And even others would say that Roger Federer guy (He is from Switzerland). The point is, with start of the decline of the Williams sisters (Venus and Serena) and last year’s surprise retirement from Roddick, the US does not have a face of tennis and the U.S. Open is right around the corner.

Drexel SMTSU - The Sports Biz Report - Wimbledon and NBA Free Agency

Summer in London: 5:00am Football discussions, Cricket?, Wimbledon

Hello from across the pond! Apologies for my small break from posts, but I have been in a transitional phase into my life in London! I am spending the whole summer studying abroad with a program called Foundation for International Education (FIE), information can be found here: http://www.fie.org.uk/london/. Throughout the summer I will write posts about my time here and how I have experienced sport. Below is my first post, recapping my first two weeks.

The Return of the King

In J.R.R. Tolkien’s trilogy, The Lord of the Rings, the final book The Return of the King sees Aragon the rightful air to become the king finally ascend to the throne after going through both personal and physical struggles. On Sunday, Roger Federer returned to his throne as both king of Wimbledon and the number one ranked tennis player in the world. The Swiss champion had not one a grand slam in 2 ½ years because of a combination of injuries and new challenges. Over the past two year Federer has battled back problems which have limited his physical abilities. As a result his high standard of performance declined. Combine his nagging back injuries and the rise of new challengers, Federer dropped to the number three ranked player in the world. Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Andy Murray all raised their game and were able to defeat Roger Federer consistently over the past two years. One of his toughest lost came last year when Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was able to come back from Federer two sets down in the Wimbledon semi-finals. That is a feat that would have been unheard of five years ago. Times were changing for Federer. Off the field Federer had to deal with the challenges of being a father for the first time with the birth of his twins. All theses challenges caused questions to be asked about the future of Roger Federer in tennis.

The critics wondered if we had seen the best of Roger Federer or if he would win another major. All those questions were put to rest this past Sunday as the tears flowed from his face after he dispatched a heart broken Andy Murray. It took a while but Federer has dispatched every challenge that has been put in his way to get back to the top. Every time he steps on the court he shows the heart of a champion. He has won everything that there is to win in the sport of tennis. Federer is the true and rightful heir to the throne as king of tennis for now and all time. 

By: Brian Palmer