US Open 2006 So Far

Hope everyone enjoyed their Labor Day. Lately I’ve been watching a lot of tennis. Agassi’s farewell was so emotional. I’m pretty much rooting for Federer, Roddick, and Blake (in that order). I’m not a front-runner because I root for Federer – I just have a lot of admiration for people who can reach the top, stay there, and dominate the competition like that. It’s not that easy – I remember Pete Sampras saying something like people don’t realize how hard you have to work to stay #1 for prolonged periods of time in tennis. So give Federer credit where it’s due, this guy is amazing.

I’m not a big fan of women’s tennis because it’s just not as entertaining. The games are shorter and ball velocity is just lower. On the women’s side I was rooting for Ana Ivanovic but she lost to Serena Williams (who lost today to Mauresmo, who I call the Man – only kidding) so now I’m rooting for Sharapova.

And is it just me or does it seem like Federer’s getting a pretty easy ride so far in the Open? None of his opponents seem be much of a challenge so far. I don’t know if he’s just too good or the other people suck. I’m looking forward to watching the Federer v. Blake in the next round though. That match isn’t guaranteed but it looks like they’ll meet next round if they defeat their respective opponents.

Aside: Today I just realized I’m really out of school. If I were going back to Cornell this semester, I’d have packed my bags and took a 5-6 hour bus ride back to Ithaca over a week ago. I noticed classes started on August 24. Man, I’m so glad I don’t have to go to class anymore. I don’t think I ever will again unless I decide to go for an MBA, which doesn’t seem likely right now.

Update: So Federer and Sharapova won the championships. Federer is just too good – he can literally hit anything at any angle and do it extremely well. I think he’s well on track to beating Pete Sampras’ 14 grand slam titles, I mean he’s only 25 years old – he’s got at least 5 good years of dominating Wimbledon and the US Open. Any other slam is just gravy – I think the only other thing he has to prove is winning on clay. I can just imagine his opponents getting demoralized after a crushing set. You can play your absolute best and still be helpless against this guy.