U.S. Open Notebook No. 3: NYC boos Medvedev, Evert woos Medvedev, Gauff and McNally win again, Federer dances, Serena limps & juniors wow

NYC fans seeing red over Medvedevil

What a jerk off! Daniil Medvedev, the 6’6” Russian, has engendered the scorn of American tennis fans everywhere by his recent conduct in the City That Never Sleeps. After getting booed by the raucous crowd on Friday night as he willingly played the villain against fan favorite Feli Lopez, the Russian was greeted Sunday night by the crowd in Louis Armstrong Stadium with hoots and catcalls usually reserved for villains in professional wrestling. After all, the Russian had incurred total fines of $19,000 from his boorish behavior in his previous match, and the American crowd would take no prisoners. The crowd strongly backed Tulane grad Dominic Koepfer, but the tall Russian was just the better player, taking the German out of the Round of 16 in four close sets. His jaunt around the stadium after the match riled up the crowd yet again, and for those who were hoping to root on an underdog they now get their chance, as Medvedev will be the favorite going into his quarterfinal match with Stan Wawrinka. Look for the NYC fans to get behind Stan the Man and support him with all their energy in the quarters.

More Chissie Whatevert

Speaking of Medvedev, announcer CHRISSIE Evert, who used to be known as Chris Evert, offered an interesting post-match comment. She noticed that Medvedev readily accepted the role of “bad-boy” and remarked that she wanted to cook a nice dinner for him. Considering that the former tennis great was known to have an affection for bad boys, maybe all boys, during her playing days, was Evert thinking about a candlelight meal or just making a meal of Medvedev?

The Open is loco for McCocco

Now that Katy McNally and Coco Gauff are both out of the women’s singles, they are both concentrating on making a deep run in the women’s doubles. And what a team they are! In a packed Louis Armstrong Stadium, the two teenagers teamed to take out Kveta Peschke and Nicole Melichar, the 9th seeded team, in straight sets, before their adoring and vocal fans, and followed up their win with a great chest-bump and a terrific on-court interview. These young ladies can play, and given their talent, they’ve got a chance to challenge for this title right now. I can’t think of anything better for American women’s tennis.

Fed Chairman

World #3 Roger Federer dominated 15th seed David Goffin 6-2, 6-2, 6-0 in little more time than it takes to grab an In-N-Out Burger. Federer was close to perfect, only giving up 39 points in three quick sets, and setting himself up for a quarterfinal clash with the resurgent Grigor Dimitrov. Acknowledging how great all of the ATP Tour pros are, what makes Federer so special? They all hit shots, but Federer is one of the best all the time, year in and year out, and looks beautiful as he dissects his opponents. I’d say it’s his absolutely phenomenal footwork. He never seems to be late, off balance, or in a bad position for a shot, and therefore seems so efficient. It almost looks like Federer’s matches are choreographed; his movement is that beautifully succinct.

Serena Rolls (Her Ankle)

When Serena got to match-point against Karolina Pliskova at this year’s Australian Open, she accidently rolled one of her ankles as she prowled the baseline. She promptly lost five games in a row and went down to an incredibly improbable defeat that she is still trying to live down. Well, on Sunday afternoon, in the beaming afternoon sun, as she was dominating Petra Martic, Sweaty Serena did the same thing. Smartly, this time she asked for a medical timeout and got her ankle rewrapped to help support her through the rest of her romp. She looked no worse for the wear, but it’ll be interesting to see how the ankle holds up after a night of sleeping. If she wakes up to a swollen, black-and-blue ankle, she might have some difficulty moving on it, and it could be very painful. Rolling your ankle is no picnic, and the pain can often be more severe than a break. But my money’s on Serena to give it a shot no matter what. She’s a gamer.

See tomorrow's pros today

For those who have gotten a special kick out of watching teenagers Coco Gauff and Katy McNally, the U.S. Open Juniors get their start today, and there’s a lot of action to watch. Former Junior Boys champions, in a tournament that began in 1973, include Pat Cash, Stefan Edberg, Leander Paes, Marcelo Rios, David Nalbandian, Andy Roddick, Richard Gasquet, Jo-Willie Tsonga, Andy Murray, Grigor Dimitrov, Borna Coric, Taylor Fritz and Felix Auger-Aliassime. This year’s American Boys participants include Zach Svajda (who just played in the Open main draw), Govind Nanda, Toby Kodat, Martin Damm, Alex Bernard, Brandon Nakashima, Blaise Bicknell, Ronan Jachuck and Tyler Zink, among others. For Junior players who are looking to play national tournaments and college tennis, watching these guys, who are your age, may help you tweak your own game. For those who want more personal, hands-on attention, I recommend that you contact John Falbo at FalboKnowsTennis. You want to know what it takes to win? This guy will help you, no matter where you live.

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