A night to remember

On Monday, the 4th of September, I took the subway (#7) to Flushing Meadows. The subway was on a local schedule, meaning it stopped at every station, and it kept getting fuller at each stop. People of all ages and sizes - some in tennis gear, some just carrying tennis paraphernalia, others carrying just cameras (like me) - rubbed shoulders with baseball fans (the NY Mets were also playing a night game at Shea Stadium which is located by the same station as the USTA National Tennis Center…I mean …the newly re-named United States Tennis Association Billie Jean King National Tennis Center (try saying that rapidly three times in a row!)).

The excitement in the air was palpable and as my friends and I got off the train station onto an elevated walkway we could clearly see in the distance the entire tennis facility. As we approached the center the crowd seemed to be in no particular hurry to get anywhere.

The reason is that while about 20-odd thousand get to see the games inside Arthur Ashe Stadium (the biggest tennis arena in the world) the rest of the folks just hand around the sprawling complex taking in the sights, having an extended picnic and catching all the show-court games on big screens located at strategic points. We did not get a chance to see the famous globe, up close and personal, but we did get a good look at it while taking the escalator to the upper-deck. (Those of you that watched "Men In Black" will remember these structures from the fight sequence at the end of the movie).

Having paid big bucks for our tickets we ventured into the arena and climbed all the way to the top – our seats were in Row Z in the upper-most tier of the stadium! The view from there was quite awe-inspiring.

While you can easily follow the progress of the ball and the players themselves can be seen clearly, you cannot discern their faces all too well. Not to worry, two giant screens located at opposite ends let you follow the action as it unfolds, and also shows replays of the exciting points.

The first match, at 7pm, was between Serena Williams and Amelie Mauresmo. With fake French accents, my friends and I lustily cheered on Amelie as she shrugged off a 6-0 shellacking in the second set to prevail over the visibly out-of-breath younger Williams sister. Around this point in time the stadium was filled to the brim and sometimes the view could get obstructed (but with so many lovely ladies to look at instead, it did not matter one bit!).

The second match of the day featured Lleyton Hewitt and Richard Gasquet, the 19 year-old Frenchman (Frenchboy does not roll off the tongue as easily). For the first two sets Hewitt’s quickness was just too much for Gasquet and he easily won 6-4, 6-4. Anticipating a quick finish, many members of the crowd began to leave and something magical happened. The noise level increased as the audience that was left behind was interested in watching more tennis.

Gasquet looked a different man with the crowd thoroughly behind him and began to display some of the magic that have people talking about him as the next big thing to hit tennis. The USTA prides itself on being “fan-friendly”, a phrase that gets thrown around a lot, but I think in this case they actually mean it. As the crowd dwindled with each passing set, the officials started letting people in the upper reaches of the stadium move down and occupy the lower levels (more likely to ensure that the television coverage did not show too many empty seats in the crowd). So we bid adieu to our lofty perch, and moved down to the second tier of seats and got more engrossed in the match.

Gasquet continued his resurgence and forced a fifth-set. More people left probably as it was approaching midnight, and they had to go to work the next day. We moved further down and sat really close to the action. The intensity in the player’s faces was clear and sitting this close to the action one thing stood out more than anything else – the speed. I have watched tennis on TV for years, played off and on for decades, but none of that prepared me for the pace at which the ball goes back and forth and the speed with which the players cover the court.

Hewitt glides across the court, retrieving balls that would have been winners with most other players. I have read reports that talk about his counterpunching prowess, alluding to a lack of attacking ability. Those reports do not do justice to the guy. He hits winners just as frequently as the other players. It is just that in his case he has to play a long point to set it up, as he does not have the variety some of the other players do. When he sees an opening he is quick to pounce on it and pound a winner.

But this day Hewitt had his hands full. If Gasquet can have a long career he will definitely win majors, and if he has an upper-echelon career graph, his backhand will be admired for decades. His backhand, for want of a better word is exquisite. He has three variations – the traditional slice when the ball keeps low, a top-spin thrust when the ball bounces above the waist and a flat slap-like hit when the ball is at waist-height, reminiscent of the fierce square-cuts that Sehwag likes to hit. At one point I was involuntarily yelled, “C’est magnifique” after a stunning on-the-run top spin backhand winner from off the court. The Aussie fans in the row ahead of me turned around and agreed, saying, “Oui”!

In the end, as would be expected, the superior conditioning of Hewitt won over. Gasquet started cramping and his mobility was severely hampered. He gamely fought on but the writing was on the wall. He still found the reserves to pull off some desperate winners but in the end Hewitt prevailed, closing out the match after losing some match points.

It was close to 1am in the morning when we trudged out of the stadium, but on our way out we stopped to soak in the sights, taking pictures of past champions, paying tribute to the Center. By the time I reached my friend’s house the sun was beginning to rise but it was worth the lack of sleep.

I shall return to the US Open next year and spend at least a whole day at the complex, not just a few hours. I look forward to that experience.