WISHBONE RACKET

Rackets that split just above the grips, leaving a Y-shaped handle with one grip in front of the racket head, and another behind. Lionel Burt, who got the rackets cleared through the International Tennis Federation, designed them originally to help balance out the body during a swing, easing stress on the wrist, elbow, shoulder and back.

HAWKEYE

In a small booth overlooking Arthur Ashe Stadium, a team of technicians sits hunkered amid a tangle of wires, monitors and whirring computers. Although they are more than 10 stories above the match being played below, in a sense this is the best seat in the house.

The network of cameras and computers they control can track the flight of a tennis ball with an accuracy measured in millimeters — 3.6 to be exact. Overseeing it all is Paul Hawkins, the thin, sandy-haired, 30-something Englishman who had the crazy idea a few years ago to do for tennis what no other professional sport seems to have managed: create an instant-replay system that works.

“I have a technology background,” said Hawkins, who holds a doctorate in artificial intelligence. “I love sports. So I kind of had an opportunity to combine my two passions.”

The result was Hawk-Eye, probably the most successful instant-replay system in sports. Since its introduction at the United States Open three years ago, Hawk-Eye has won over fans, players and even officials.

In fact, about the only criticism of Hawk-Eye is that it is not used more widely. Currently, instant replay is available only on the two larger show courts: Ashe and Louis Armstrong Stadium. This was an issue twice for the top-10 player Andy Murray, whose second- and third-round matches were marred by numerous questionable line calls and umpire overrulings.

In addition to the five-figure cost of the system each year, the infrastructure improvements — like a video-enabled scoreboard — make it cost prohibitive to put the system on all Open courts.

But Hawk-Eye has been so well received, the United States Tennis Association is seriously considering investing $100,000 to add the system next year to a third court — the Grandstand —said David Brewer, tournament manager for the Open.

“Even Hawk-Eye, when we first looked at it six or seven years ago, wasn’t accurate enough, but it is now,” he said.

The big breakthrough, Hawkins said, was not relying on optical devices to determine where a given shot lands — a surprisingly difficult spot to measure accurately. Hawk-Eye uses a system of 10 cameras to track the speed and trajectory of a ball in flight, but that is only part of the magic. The rest is done exclusively through computer modeling.

Because no tennis court is exactly flat and no line precisely straight, before the tournament. Hawkins’s team takes thousands of precise measurements of the dimensions and contours of each court, which are then converted into a three-dimensional computer model. Hawk-Eye’s virtual world takes into account other real-world factors that can affect accuracy, like the amount a ball compresses when it hits the court and even the temperature of the court.

“During warm days, the court actually changes size as it heats up or cools down,” Hawkins said.

When the ball flight data is fed into the computer model, the result is a system that is so precise it’s difficult to measure.

“The published stuff says 3.6 millimeters, but our system is actually more accurate than that,” Hawkins said.

But perhaps the biggest key to its acceptance among officials is that it matches an existing appeal process in the rules. On clay, the ball leaves clear marks where it strikes the court        [ THIS IS A TENNIS MYTH! The ball can strike the line , but leave the footprint after the line], and the umpire is allowed to use that mark to overrule incorrect calls. Hawk-Eye brings that same procedure to grass and hard courts.

One big positive for officials has been to show that they are right the vast majority of the time. Only about 30 percent of instant-replay appeals result in overruling of the original call.

NY TIMES

and your humble obedient servant.

RDC DRILL- ROMANIAN DAVIS CUP DRILL

LEANDER PAES - STROKE AND VOLLEY TRAINING

In this exercise, you again see tennis specific movement patterns being performed with the use of elastic tubing or bands. This is an example of an exercise that would make an excellent dynamic warm-up. Typically, this exercise is not necessarily recommended for strengthening, as these muscles are already very strong in tennis player, because they are used every time we play tennis. Rather than be used for strengthening, this exercise provides a way to warm up or prepare the body for tennis play. He is using both forehand and backhand movements at multiple heights, and he is also is using a lot of lower body bending to use the whole, entire body in this type of warm-up.

 

DJOKOVICI???

Marko Djokovic, the younger brother of World No. 3 Novak, will make his ATP debut in Bangkok this week after receiving a wild card into the main draw of the Thailand Open.

The 17-year-old right-hander has been drawn to meet fifth-seeded Finn Jarkko Nieminen in the first round, while this season’s Australian Open champion Novak will compete against Julien Benneteau of France or a qualifier after receiving a first round bye.

The pair has obtained a wild card into the doubles draw and will meet Frenchmen Fabrice Santoro and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the first round.

Marko, currently No. 1734 in the South African Airways ATP Rankings, has made three appearances on the ITF Futures circuit this year. In July, he received a wild card into the qualifying competition of the Studena Croatia Open Umag but lost in the first round to World No. 310 Italian Francesco Piccari in three sets.

SHANGHAI QUALIFIERS

GOLD INSPIRED FEDERER

 

Winning an Olympic gold medal helped Roger Federer turn around his difficult year.

"I think it has definitely inspired me," Federer said Tuesday as he prepared to lead Switzerland in a Davis Cup playoff against Belgium this weekend.

Federer won the men's doubles title in Beijing with Stanislas Wawrinka on Aug. 16. Even though he lost in the Olympic singles quarterfinals to James Blake, the doubles gold was a turning point in a season that had passed without a major title.

"It helped me to stay positive and be motivated for the U.S. Open and not maybe be too disappointed," said the 27-year-old Swiss, who won his fifth straight title at Flushing Meadows last week.

"I'm happy that I've got an Olympic gold now in my pocket and that I've also got a U.S. Open trophy, so it couldn't be better right now."

Visibly lifted by the doubles victory in Beijing, Federer carried that momentum into New York and claimed a 13th Grand Slam singles crown. He dominated Novak Djokovic in the semifinals and Andy Murray in the final to reassert his dominance.[AP]

USTA HIRES HIGUERAS

Roger Federer's part-time coach, Jose Higueras, was hired by the U.S. Tennis Association on Tuesday as director of coaching for elite player development, a program that aims to identify future champions.

"Jose is one of the greatest minds in coaching today," said Patrick McEnroe, the U.S. Davis Cup captain and general manager of the development program. "His understanding of the sport is unrivaled, and his familiarity with American tennis makes him an invaluable asset and important addition to our staff as we continue to develop the skills of the brightest young talents in tennis."

Higueras will work at USTA training centers in California and Florida.

As a player, Higueras won 16 ATP singles titles and was ranked in the top 10. As a coach, he helped Michael Chang and Jim Courier win Grand Slam titles, and he also worked with Pete Sampras, Jennifer Capriati, Todd Martin and Robby Ginepri.

Higueras began working off and on with Federer this season and was at the U.S. Open this month when the Swiss star won his 13th major singles championship. [AP]

REPORTS OF FED'S DEMISE MUCH EXAGGERATED

Federer 6 -2, 7 -5, 6 -2.

Federer danced past the 21-year-old Murray in the opening set, outlasted his rundown opponent in the second and briskly put an end to Murray's dreams of a first Grand Slam title in the third.

By the time the second set was over, obituary writers could sense that their copy was not going to appear in the next day's paper. In the face of headlines prematurely announcing his imminent decline, Federer, who was without a Grand Slam title this late in the year for the first time in four years, allowed his eminence to emerge.

MURRAY BEATS A BURNED-OUT NADAL

Rafael Nadal hunched over, his chest heaving, his hopes of reaching his first U.S. Open final fading fast.

No one ever seems to run Nadal ragged.

Andy Murray managed to do just that.

Exhibiting precisely the sort of winner-vaporizing, opponent-demoralizing defense new No. 1 Nadal usually employs, Murray reached his first Grand Slam final by completing a stunning, rain-interrupted 6-2, 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-4 upset of the Spaniard on Sunday.

BLOWIN' SMOKE

Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic advanced to the semifinals of the U.S. Open, where they'll meet in a rematch of last year's final.

Federer defeated qualifier Gilles Muller of Luxembourg 7-6 (7-5), 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) at the National Tennis Center in New York to continue his quest for a fifth straight U.S. Open title. Djokovic was a 6-2, 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (7-5) winner over Andy Roddick, who was the last American left at the year's final Grand Slam tournament.

He's absolutely the favorite,'' Djokovic said of Federer in a televised courtside interview. ``I lost to him last year. For him it's a big challenge to go back to the No. 1 spot in the world.''

More BS from Djokovic!

Everyone, who's watched Roger this tournament, realizes that the man on court is an imposter.

Jim Courier commented that Roger is playing poker with us and he's bluffing. Eventho' he declares himself fit, mono still saps his strength.

Djokovic, in my eyes is the overwhelming favourite.

Djoker in 4 sets.

Get well, Roger!

The men's semifinals may be disrupted by rain from Tropical Storm Hanna, said the U.S. Tennis Association, which has contingency plans for alternate schedules in case of bad weather conditions.

NADAL GAFFS?! FISH --

NEW YORK (AP)—It sure took a while, but Rafael Nadal is a U.S. Open semifinalist.

The No. 1-ranked Nadal beat unseeded American Mardy Fish 3-6, 6-1, 6-4, 6-2, getting past the quarterfinals for the first time in six trips to Flushing Meadows with a victory that ended with the scoreboard showing 2:10 a.m. Thursday, making it the third-latest finish in tournament history.

“This is one of the things that we players discuss all the time. There should be a limit on when to start. But we know that the TV rules in this,” Nadal said.

“I think I’m going to end up sleeping at 5 a.m. I’ve got to go eat. With all the attention on the match, it takes a while to unwind. There’s nothing else you can do.”

Fish took the opening set on the strength of a 23-6 edge in winners, some gutsy serving and one service break. But Nadal never faced a break point the rest of the way.

They approached the latest finish in the tournament’s history—Mats Wilander defeated Mikael Pernfors at 2:26 a.m. in 1993.

“It’s not ideal starting that late, but I was ready,” Fish said. “The first set couldn’t have gone better for me.”

Nadal, who has won four titles at the French Open and one at Wimbledon, now will face first-time Grand Slam semifinalist Andy Murray. The No. 6 seed beat No. 17 Juan Martin del Potro 7-6 (2), 7-6 (1), 4-6, 7-5.

MEN'S SEMIS

TENNIS ECONOMICS

At the end of August, a half-million tennis fans will pour into northeastern Queens, N.Y., for the U.S. Open--one of America’s biggest, and most profitable, sporting events.

A full two weeks of backhands and forehands, as well as its international status, gives the tennis classic more in common with the Olympics than with other American sporting landmarks like the Super Bowl or the Indianapolis 500.

The money-spinning competition generates an estimated $195 million, about 85% of the United States Tennis Association's (USTA) revenue for the year, the rest of which comes largely from membership dues. Across the Atlantic, the French Open brings in a little less--an estimated $175 million last year.

Half of the U.S. Open’s revenue comes from sponsorship deals and broadcasting rights, another $80 million from ticket sales, and the rest from other sources like concessions and merchandise.

Cutting into its profits are the $21 million in prize money the USTA doles out to the hundreds of players who participate in the Open--$1.5 million to the each of the winners in the singles tournament, and half a million to each of the winning teams in the doubles tournament.

Among the USTA’s other costs are a $13.4 million annual marketing bill, $2.4 million for insurance and $1.2 million worth of promotional items and gifts.

The Billie Jean King National Tennis Center is no backyard tennis court, either. Host to the U.S. Open since 1978, it is the world’s largest public tennis facility and costs $5.5 million a year to staff. In 1998, as part of an effort to keep the Open from moving to San Diego, a $254 million stadium was added with room for 23,000 fans (the old one had room for 18,000).

Arthur Ashe Stadium is now the world’s largest tennis-only venue.

The USTA leases the land for the Tennis Center from New York City. In addition to $400,000 a year in rent, the city gets one penny of every revenue dollar over $25 million (including money from broadcasting, sponsorship and concessions). That's about $2 million a year pocketed by New York--not counting the economic impact on the community of hosting the USTA’s signature event.

ARGENTEEN

 

Rafael Nadal isn’t the hottest player on tour. That distinction goes to Del Potro, who’s strolling through the summer on a 22-match win streak. The Argentine has won four tournaments since July – becoming the first player to win his first four titles in four straight tournaments.

As a reward, Del Potro has rocketed up the rankings. In July he was No. 65; by the start of the US Open, he had reached a career-high of 17. Along the way he has notched wins over Andy Roddick and Richard Gasquet.

Del Potro, from the small city of Tandil, five hours south of Buenos Aires, hardly looks the part of a newcomer. The lanky 6-foot-6 right-hander, nicknamed “Enano” (Dwarf) and “Palito” (Twig), has an imposing game of forceful groundstrokes and a big, 130-mph-plus serve. The Argentine takes a massive windup on his forehand and crushes the ball deep into the corners. Unlike most of his compatriots (of whom there were 10 in the draw at the start of the US Open), who are more at home on clay, Del Potro prefers hard courts (even though two of his titles this summer were on European dirt).

After his 3-hour, 47-minute third-round victory over Gilles Simon, another player who’s had a personal-best summer, Del Potro said: “It was punishing, a battle. At the end, neither of us had anything left.”