New USA Career-High Rankings, August 18, 2014

Each week I will endeavor to bring you a list of USAmerican players who have reached a new career-high ranking. This list is not exhaustive but will cover most players in the Top 1000. 

New ATP career-high rankings, August 18, 2014

Player name	New CHR	Last wk *= pvs CHR	+  from last wk	Pvs CHR If prior to last wk	Date achieved If prior to last wk
Steve Johnson	49	55	+6	54	7/21/2014
Jack Sock	55	56*	+1
Chase Buchanan	158	172*	+14
Jared Donaldson	305	308*	+3
Dennis Nevolo	409	412*	+3
Connor Smith	482	490	+8	489	8/4/2014
Mitchell Frank	508	601*	+93
Alexander Sarkissian	680	681*	+1
Peter Kobelt	698	717*	+19
Collin Altamirano	837	842*	+5
Raymond Sarmiento	865	869	+4	867	7/28/2014
Spencer Papa	891	895	+4	893	8/4/2014
Martin Redlicki	949	1168	+219	1086	6/9/2014
Tom Fawcett	1983	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a

UPDATE! I totally forgot Ernesto Escobedo, #509 (previous high #511 set 8/11/2014)! And he'll rise after today's first round qualies win at the US Open!  Also forgot Nicolas Podesta, #1570 (previous high #1572, set 7/28/2014).  Sorry guys!

Welcome to the Top 50, Steve Johnson!  It seemed inevitable back in May that he'd reach this spot, given his rise into the Top 65 and few points to defend the rest of the year, but as we know we can't take *anything* in this sport for granted (other than Sharapova losing to Serena).  So it's great to have him here following straight-set wins over Paire and Gulbis in Cincinnati; even if he does drop down in the coming weeks, one suspects one hasn't seen the last mention of him on this list. 

Buchanan, meanwhile, had a triumphant entrance into the Top 160 with a solid run in Cincinnati qualifying.  Like Johnson, he was thwarted from rising even higher this week by a third-set tiebreak loss to a much higher ranked player (in his case, João Sousa; in Johnson's, Milos Raonic). Unlike Johnson, he does have a fair number of points to defend over the next couple of months - three futures wins and a challenger semi - so depending on how his USOpen goes (he drew top seed Malik Jaziri in the first round of qualies) it may take him a while to inch back up.

Mitchell Frank may not have the type of game most American kids idolize but through hard work, smarts, and determination the UVA rising senior put himself on the verge of the Top 500 and secured himself a wildcard to USOpen qualies, where he'll face none other than Stefan Kozlov.  Meanwhile, two Illinois kids off to the Pac 12 made some noise: Martin Redlicki (UCLA) rode his semifinal run in Edwardsville to a top 1000 debut while Tom Fawcett (Stanford) got his first ATP point by beating University of Illinois' Tim Kopinski after qualifying for Edwardsville.

New WTA career-high rankings, August 18, 2014

Player name	New CHR	Last wk *= pvs CHR	+  from last wk	Pvs CHR If prior to last wk	Date achieved If prior to last wk
Taylor Townsend	103	125*	+22
Grace Min	105	106*	+1
Nicole Gibbs	136	141*	+5
Sachia Vickery	142	143*	+1
Louisa Chirico	212	217*	+5
Asia Muhammad	290	291*	+1
Bernarda Pera	321	336	+15	329	7/21/2014
Danielle Lao	379	386	+7	383	7/21/2014
Tori Kinard	388	395	+7	392	7/21/2014
Denise Muresan	422	425*	+3
Jennifer Brady	538	540*	+2		8/4/2014
Alexa Guarachi	604	651*	+47
Josie Kuhlman	634	636*	+2
Anamika Bhargava	643	652	+9	651	7/28/2014
Alexandra Riley	770	807	+37	800	7/21/2014
Nadja Gilchrist	869	1032	+163	1028	8/4/2014
Maria Smith	1007	1115	+108	1110	8/4/2014	8/4/2014

Cincinnati was kind to two of our habitual CHRers: Taylor Townsend and Nicole Gibbs both qualified in front of my own two eyes (and thanks in no small part to my urgent cheers, I'm sure) with Townsend making the biggest jump of any player in the Top 500.  Her prodigious gifts and tremendous spirit portend many more mentions of her as we get into the fall months.  As for Gibbs, the highest-ranked former collegiate in the WTA singles rankings, a good draw in New York could lead to a Top 100 debut of her own (she is currently 137 points away).

Speaking of the US Open, it's interesting to see that Bernarda Pera, who has played a total of 4 pro tournaments in the US in her career, received a wildcard to US Open qualifying.  Her incipient Top 300 entry could take place very soon indeed.

Other big movers: Guarachi (for qualifying for Bogota $100K+), Gilchrist (for qualifying for Landisville $25K and winning a round), and Smith (for winning two qualifying rounds at Bogota).

Congrats to all, and let me know what you think of the new table format!

I cried during water polo

It was so weird.  This afternoon, after taking in a couple of Gay Games water polo matches at the Veale Natatorium at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, I started crying.  Not for very long, mind you.  I'm really not much of a crier.  But it was right after the West Hollywood team had defeated the Atlanta team.  Everyone was getting out of the pool and shaking hands and even though it wasn't a medal game I flashed back to my gold-medal-winning match a few hours earlier and the tears just came.

At the time the gold medal was clinched, I was exuberant.  Perhaps a bit too exuberant: I actually threw my racquet in the air as high as I could and let out a HUGE roar before I jogged to the net and embraced my opponent.  I had done a good job of keeping my emotions in check throughout the match, which isn't like me.  Sure, I had a few "HIT THE BALL!!!" moments after yet another weak forehand was dumped into the bottom of the net and at least one "CALL THAT SHIT!!!" after a ball from my opponent landed just wide on break point (at least I think it was wide - in retrospect I wasn't 100% sure and so I'm glad I didn't call it).  But I was really nervous all match long.  Even though this was "just" gay tennis - just D-level gay tennis at that - it felt like something massive was at stake.  Honestly, in a way, it was massive.

I entered the world of gay tennis somewhat haphazardly.  Exactly ten years and one day ago, I was at a bar on the north side of Chicago with my then-boyfriend and his friend Mark (who would later become my good friend and roommate).  We were watching the opening ceremonies of the Athens Olympics and I commented to Mark that the Gay Games 7 were going to be in Chicago two years hence.  We had previously both discussed that we played tennis and in the haze of a couple of beers, agreed that we would team up for the event.  The next day, I looked up Second City Tennis and that fall we joined their Friday night indoor doubles league.  For two seasons we played and honed our skills and then a few days before the tournament began Mark looked at his schedule and it turned out that his cheerleading competition (don't judge) conflicted with the tennis and so I had to contact the organizers and beg them to find me a partner.  And they did - a guy named Will whom I met on the first day of competition, in 100F weather the night after an electric opening ceremonies at Soldier Field.

Will was a big hitter and, from what I remember, pretty much carried me during those games.  We were lucky that most of the Europeans went to Montreal for the Outgames (this was the year of the Great Gay Sports Split - read your history books, kids) and so the competition was primarily guys our level.  We got to the final, securing ourselves a silver medal, and it was a real rush.  For the first time in my life I had experienced something akin to elation in my own sporting success, not just teams or players I'd rooted for.  It felt big.

The next day, we were awarded D doubles gold medals by default, as our opponents (after much complaining by other players) were ruled to be sandbaggers by USTA judges who watched one of them playing his singles match - confirmed by their USTA results back home in Puerto Rico - and were disqualified from competition.  Naturally it didn't sit well with them - and it left a little bit of a hollow feeling for me as well.  But there it was, a gold medal.  I've cherished it ever since.

But that was doubles.

In those Gay Games I won two D singles matches and then lost the third round to a guy named Kevin (who a few years later would become a friend).  I kept working on my game, playing GLTA tournaments and in Chicago's gay league.  Then in my 6th GLTA event, I won the D division singles in Indianapolis in 2007 and declared myself henceforth and forevermore a C player.

That was seven years ago.

Since then I've played soooooo much tennis.  I've taken lessons, hit around, played matches, played tournaments - GLTA, USTA - participated in clinics, read books ... but the C-level wins never came.  A couple of times I won one match in a tournament,  but never two.  Part of the problem, I decided, was my fitness (tennis was the only physical activity I did) so leading up to Gay Games 8 in Cologne in 2010, I joined a gym, put myself on a workout regimen and got as fit as I'd ever been.  I arrived in Europe full of confidence and ready to surprise everyone with a deep run in C singles (I played D doubles because I could and I wanted to hedge my bets).  First round, I played an American guy who in all honestly would have struggled in D. I trounced him. And then came the second round, where I faced an Irish guy with steady strokes who just didn't miss.  And I got trounced.  (My Dutch partner and I also got trounced in the 2nd round of D doubles. In fact we were double bageled - i.e., we lost 6-0 6-0.  Ouch.)

And it never really got better.  I kept thinking of myself as a C player and yet I kept losing first round, lucky to get 3 games in most matches.  It was one continuous blow to the ego.  Normal people get better at something they put so much time and money and emotional energy into.  But not this guy.  This guy just keeps on sucking the same.

So with almost no GLTA points to my name, I swallowed my pride and decided to play my real level.  I registered for Gay Games 9 in D singles and C doubles (I had had enough success in doubles (although again, never more than one win in a tournament) that I couldn't register in D if I'd wanted to).  And I showed up with some lessons under my belt, a reworked slice serve (double faults have been my bete noir for years), and a lot of hitting time over the past couple of years with my boyfriend, Adam, who is a really really good player.

My first round matches in both singles and doubles were scheduled for Tuesday so after my stint in Kalamazoo, I sped down to Cincinnati to watch a couple of days of the Western & Southern Open.  Well actually it turned out that late Sunday night they had changed the draws and I got a call on Monday afternoon, after watching Taylor Townsend beat Klara Koukalova in a thrilling three-set match, asking where I was since my match time had been 10 minutes prior.  I panicked but fortunately they were able to rework the schedule and I arrived for my first round doubles match Tuesday morning at the same indoor courts that Lauren Davis started playing tennis.

And promptly lost 3-6 7-5 0-6.

Immediately I knew that in addition to poor play and a negative attitude, one mistake I'd made was for asking for new balls after the second set.  You see, our opponents (one of whom played B singles) liked to strike the ball hard and flat, and in the first set we were always on our back feet.  Once the balls wore down in the second, we were able to keep rallies going longer and let them make some errors.  But then as soon as they got new balls, I really struggled, especially on backhand returns.

But the good news was that I was plenty warmed up for singles.  And wouldn't you know I played the best match of my life against a really good young guy from Youngstown who hit the hell out of the ball but who was inconsistent and who, I noticed, didn't hit as well on the run.  So I was for once *tactical* and mixed in various spins and just kept the ball in play to the extent possible and moved him around.  And amazingly I wasn't nervous.  And I won 6-3 6-3.  (It also helped that the match was indoors - I just tend to play cleaner, better tennis without the sun and the wind and the squirrels bothering me.  I think it's related to my ADD.)

Because the D draw was so small (11 players!) that meant I was already in the semis, guaranteeing a bronze medal at least, or so I'd heard.  I was ready to play the second match indoors when I got an email Wednesday morning informing me that the aforementioned Lauren Davis courts had flooded overnight due to massive rain and that instead we'd be playing outdoors at Cleveland State.  That match started disastrously, as I was very nervous and my opponent hit a combination of good shots that went in and bad shots that went in THANKS, WIND.  And I hit nothing that went in.  He went up 3-1 in about 5 minutes.  But I got myself together and by force of will (and VERY heavy topspin) won 6-3 6-1.

So then came today.  Gold medal match.  Me against the young, muscle-bound guy who had blasted me off the court in doubles on Tuesday - also playing D singles.  Me against my nerves.  Me against seven years of futility.

It started off as bad as you can possibly imagine.  My opponent played focused, confident, powerful tennis and I couldn't keep up.  Worse, a number of times he dinked it to my forehand and I didn't step into the shot, do a "unit turn" of my shoulders, lead with the butt of the racquet, hit the ball in front of me, or follow through across my body.  I just dumped it into the net or hit it several feet wide or long.  I had two pieces of good news, though: one, I wasn't double faulting much and two, I knew that every match my opponent had played that week had gone three sets, with him winning the first then losing the second.

So in the second set I was able to step up my game and kept the ball in play more.  I mixed in more variety and improved my first serve percentage.  And most fortunately for me, he tightened up.  I went up 5-1 and eventually held for 6-3.

And this time I was smart.

When he went to the bathroom between sets, I walked around a bit.  But I didn't ask for new balls.  I knew that that would only help his flat-hitting, high-velocity game.  So we played the third set with the same balls we started with, now worn and torn.  And it worked.  After he went up an early break for 3-1, I stayed calm and won three games on the trot.  Sliced the ball to his forehand. Brought him to the net then lobbed and passed.  And before I knew it I was serving up 4-3.  After a lengthy game in which I had one game point, he broke me and I was afraid my chance had passed.  But then a funny thing happened.  I actually loosened up, started hitting out on my returns, and broke him! And this time when I served for the match, he wasn't able to sustain his level and I won.  Yell, racquet throw, embrace - you know the rest.

It felt like all the disappointments I'd had over the past seven years of tennis had just disappeared.  And it wasn't until water polo that I realized how much of a weight had been on, and was now off, my shoulders.  Who knows, I may never win another tennis match.  I may choke next time I try to close out a rollercoaster three-setter.  But this time, on this day, that didn't happen.  So what if it was a level lower than I'd promised myself back in 2007?  So what if I only had to play three matches to get the gold?  I won.  And I was content.

And that's when I cried.

New USA Career-High Rankings, August 11, 2014

Each week I will endeavor to bring you a list of USAmerican players who have reached a new career-high ranking. This list is not exhaustive but will cover most players in the Top 1000. 

New WTA Career-High Rankings - August 11, 2014 (previous highs & date achieved in parentheses)

CoCo Vandeweghe: 38 (41 - 7/14/2014)
Shelby Rogers: 86 (104 - 7/14/2014)
Grace Min: 106 (108 - 8/4/2014)
Madison Brengle: 115 (118 - 8/4/2014)
Taylor Townsend: 125 (127 - 8/4/2014)
Nicole Gibbs: 141 (142 - 7/21/2014)
Sachia Vickery: 143 (145 - 8/4/2014)
Louisa Chirico: 217 (218 - 7/21/2014)
Asia Muhammad: 291 (292 - 8/4/2014)
Denise Mursean: 425 (427 - 7/21/2014)
Tornado Alicia Black: 566 (574 - 8/4/2014)
Josie Kuhlman: 636 (638 - 7/28/2014)
Alexa Guarachi: 651 (671 - 8/4/2014)
Ellie Halbauer: 699 (700 - 7/21/2014)
Karina Vyrlan: 744 (749 - 7/28/2014)
Kelly Chen: 866 (867 - 8/5/2014)
Natalie Suk: 1090 (1110 - 8/5/2014)

The biggest news of the week is easily Shelby Rogers, who made another really nice run in Montreal, beating 3 top-60 players (including Genie Bouchard in what was supposed to be something of a homecoming party) to enter the Top 100 for the first time.  Shelby has 115 points coming off from her ITF $75K win in Albuquerque and then that's it for the year.  She only has 100 points to defend until the grass season of 2015 so as long as she doesn't have another lull, we will likely be seeing a few more mentions of her on this blog down the road.

CoCo Vandeweghe entering the Top 40 is also a big story.  She won five matches in Montreal, including back-to-back three-set wins over the two top-10 Serbian players.  She was a set away from practically assuring a seed at the US Open.  Due to her run, she had to miss Cincinnati but she'll be back next week in New Haven and then at the Open, where she has 160 big points to defend.  We're hoping for a nice draw.

Finally, just another thumbs up to Madison Brengle, who just keeps on truckin'.  She'll fall a bit next week when her 2013 Landisville $25K champion points come off.  This week she'll find out whether she's got that coveted USOpen wild card. If she doesn't, she'll at least be seeded for the qualies and ... who knows ... maybe this is her time!

New ATP Career-High Rankings - August 11, 2014 (previous highs & date achieved in parentheses)

Jack Sock: 56 (60 - 7/28/2014)
Chase Buchanan: 172 (174 - 8/4/2014)
Jason Jung: 286 (288 - 5/19/2014)
Jared Donaldson: 308 (309 - 8/4/2014)
Dennis Nevolo: 412 (417 - 8/4/2014)
Marcos Giron: 432 (435 - 8/4/2014)
Ernesto Escobedo: 511 (514 - 7/28/2104)
Sekou Bangoura: 535 (538 - 8/4/2014)
Mitchell Frank: 601 (606 - 8/4/2014)
Alexander Sarkissian: 681 (682 - 8/4/2014)
Peter Kobelt: 717 (733 - 8/4/2014)
Collin Altamirano: 842 (846 - 8/4/2014)

Peter Kobelt's climb has slowed a bit since his breakout results in Israel but he still reached a quarterfinal at a Futures in Lithuania a couple of weeks ago. He should go up again a bit next week with another quarterfinal in Finland last week.  $10K quarterfinals are frustrating for a player because they're only 2 points, whereas a semi is 6 points - a threefold increase that is huge to anyone with a total of 20-40 points.

Sock's big jump came via his win over Jurgen Melzer in Toronto.  Then for the FOURTH time this year he came up against his nemesis, Milos Roanic.  Each time has been in the first two rounds of the tournament.  Each time he's come up juuuust a bit short.  It's getting a little absurd, people.  But he's still at a career high and that's awesome.

Last note is about Jason Jung.  I just think it's always cool when a new career high doesn't come one or two weeks after the previous one.  His gap - since May - was the biggest we had this week on either tour.  Those are situations to celebrate because, with the exception of the #1 player in the world, you never know if you're at your career high.  Points come off, draws get ridiculously tough, injuries occur, new phenoms join the tour, life happens.  Rankings are in so many ways so arbitrary but a player still carries that number around with him or her forever: career-high ranking.  It becomes something that partly defines your identity as a person, not just a tennis player.  My goal here is not to do that - it's simply to celebrate achievement.  So let's celebrate: JASON JUNG, YOU HAVE A NEW CAREER-HIGH RANKING!  CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Who's going to make it among the Excellent Eight

Apologies to all for this abbreviated post, from the America's Best Value Inn, Dayton Ohio. I will have a more substantial post on Day 2 of my Zoo trip once I get through with this mini-road trip; more timely, I need to be in Mason soon to see the final round of qualies at the Western & Southern Open. I need to.

In the meantime, just read Colette Lewis, whose comprehensive Saturday summary is right on the money.

The purpose of my trip to Kalamazoo was to be able to watch six of the Excellent Eight*, the top junior boys in the country who make up what some are saying is the most potential-laden group of Americans in decades. I missed the first two quarterfinal matches on Thursday, but knew I could see the two winners of those matches in Saturday's semifinals, along with the other four young men in Friday's semifinals. In all, I was able to see seven of the eight, thanks to a consolation match. I missed only Ernest Escobedo, whom I've watched on Livestream so I'm 100% able to pass judgment on him too.

While we were watching the first set of Altamirano/Kozlov, Colette observed that the speculation around which of the Esteemed Eight** will "make it" is a parlor game.  But of course, so much of tennis fandom is made up of such games: Who is the GOAT? How will a given draw play out? Which player is an arrogant jerk whom I haaaaaaaate and which one is super nice and down to earth and I'm sure would be my bestie if I somehow found myself in the right situation?  Games are the best!

So here we go: who is going to make it, based on witnessing them play between six and 35 games of tennis?

Who Is Going to Make It, According to On the Rise (a tennis blog)

They've all made it already.

Okay, that's super trite.  It's completely unfair to you, the reader, who came to this post with an unprecedented level of anticipation for my learned and objective speculation so that you, too, will have foreknowledge of the professional careers of eight people born between 1995 and 1998.

Fans of American men's tennis are, of course, desperate for That Guy. Surely one of the Elevated Eight*** will become #1 in the world, a multiple-major champion who can include his profile photo on the mythical Wall of Awesome Americans about whom, even if we didn't completely adore or fully appreciate them during their remarkable careers, we can wistfully look back and reminisce: remember back when American tennis didn't suck?

I could do an entire white paper on what such desperate need among fans of American tennis means about our collective psyches; our insecurities; our demanding natures. But as I mentioned, I really do have to get on the road. You see, Chase Buchanan is playing his second and final round of qualies of the Western & Southern Open against Tim Smyczek. Two former junior tennis players who reached the Top 20 of the junior rankings and who, although they've reached the top 200 and top 100 of the ATP rankings, aren't That Guy (see previous paragraph). But to me they're superstars, exceptionally talented athletes who are grinding the grind, doing their best to make a decent living in this unforgiving landscape of world tennis. 

There's no question in anyone's mind that at least one of the Ermahgerd Eight**** will contend for a major title some day. There's just too much talent there. But to me, becoming one of the top 8 junior players in this big nation is a remarkable accomplishment for which they should all be exceptionally proud. I'm not trying to lower expectations or suggest that they should be satisfied with being a good or great junior tennis player (heaven forfend anyone be satisfied with their achievements, ever!). 

I'm just saying that whatever happens from here on out, they'll always have the 2014 Zoo.  They made it to the quarterfinals of their junior national tournament in a memorable year for American junior tennis.  They got the world (okay, a small corner of the world but still) to take notice of them through hard work and natural talent and circumstances and a driven parent or two.  Putting expectations or pressure on them over the next 15 years is fine but life happens.  Injuries happen.  The rest of the world happens.

So just consider this post a sincere appreciation of Collin Altamirano, Jared Donaldson, Ernesto Escobedo, Taylor Harry Fritz, Stefan Kozlov, Michael Mmoh, Noah Rubin, and Frances Tiafoe. Whatever happens from here on out, you've made a huge statement this year. Well done. You made it!

(All that having been said, Fritz was the biggest revelation for me. What that kid can do at 16 is goose-pimple-causing.)

(Also, there are quite a few other guys in the tournament with real talent who also have a huge amount to be proud of, and on whom y'all should keep an eye: I saw Deiton Baughman, Logan Smith, Walker Duncan, Tommy Paul, and Henrik Wiersholm, all of whom impressed in their own ways. I missed Reilly Opelka, Trevor Johnson, Aron Hiltzik, Nathan Ponwith, and several others. Nothing I write here is meant to diminish these guys in any way.)

Now seriously, I need to get to Mason.

* Not sure about this nickname

** Yeah, probably not

*** It has a ring to it, no? No.

**** Yeah, we should go with this one

Welcome to The Zoo

The Zoo - the sobriquet of the USTA Boys 16s and 18s National Championships in Kalamazoo, Michigan - is aptly nicknamed.  Like a zoo, it's in a bucolic setting and is for all intents and purposes a show - a chance for civilized people to view seemingly docile creatures who are in fact wild animals ready and able to attack at any moment. Probably the only difference between The Zoo and a conventional zoo is the fact that the animals in the former are, to a great extent, going to go to college and/or play professional tennis, while the latter are pretty much going to stay in the zoo forever.

I arrived this morning from Chicago for my first-ever tournament as a credentialed member of the media (yes, On the Rise fans, this counts as media) hella excited for what was to come. The highlight was to be two quarterfinals in the 18s (pretty much all American players 18 and under are eligible) that were breathlessly awaited by aficionados of junior tennis, particularly of the American variety. In one, defending 18s champion Collin Altamirano faced Jared Donaldson in a rematch of last year's final (although more pressing to Altamirano, a rematch of the quarterfinals at the Oklahoma City Futures tournament in June at which the Ocean Stater trounced him 62 61). Donaldson has progressed leaps and bounds since last year's final and is the highest ranked on the pro level of all the participants (nearing #300). In the other match, Junior Wimbledon runner-up Stefan Kozlov faced huge serving, big hitting Taylor Harry Fritz, himself a Junior Wimbledon semifinalist. Kozlov, the #4 seed, was the favorite, but the match was sure to be close given big Taylor's prodigious gifts.

Thank goodness that wasn't all on the menu, because those were two bummer matches.

This is a big deal tournament for many reasons - I mean, shucks, it's the national championship - but one prize is most newsworthy: the winner gets a wildcard to the main draw of the US Open. THE US Open. So yeah: big deal. You want to be at the absolute top of your game coming in because there's a real possibility (although we hope it's not ever the case) that the winner will play their sole career main draw at any grand slam event.

So it really sucks that Fritz hurt his ankle yesterday in his win over Daniel Kerznerman and that Donaldson seemed to have started today's match with an ab injury - three games into the match he called for the trainer and after double faulting on the first point while serving up 4-2, he Catholic(?)-crossed himself, walked toward the net, and retired. EVERYONE WAS LIKE DAYUMMMMM THIS SUCKS! Even Altamirano clearly wanted a full match.  (For a full recount of today's action, check out Colette Lewis' excellent overview. But to sum it up: Kozlov will face Altamirano in Saturday's semis.)

This was my first time in anything resembling a media room (actually the open-air second floor of the "famed Fischer Tower" overlooking the ten or eleven lovely courts at Kalamazoo College) and my first time interviewing any player. It's not like there was a gargantuan media presence today. There was me. There was Colette (who was a godsend for this blogger, and I'm not even joking). And there's Pam, the woman who covers the event for the local paper. The paucity of coverage is strange, in my opinion, given the pedigree of the eight highest seeds among the 18s. Five of them were in the Junior Wimbledon quarterfinals and the other three have ATP singles rankings of 309 (Donaldson), 515 (Ernesto Escobedo), and 846 (Altamirano); Donaldson & Escobedo are among the Top 30 teens in the entire world.  It's a really impressive group. Anyway it seems to me that this tournament should have been packed with reporters, tennis TV personalities, celebrity hangers-on, and the like. And while there was a terrific crowd of spectators, there were no ESPN cameras, no New York Times, no Tennis magazine. There was Colette, Pam, and me.

So now I'm THE MEDIA. It's pretty intoxicating, to be honest. I'm not even joking. And here's my first question. Are you ready?  Okay, here it is: "I'm coming from Chicago, I'm just wondering, how you think the Chicago tennis scene plays out compared some of these other regions ... other areas of the country that you've seen?" God, I suck.

The question was directed to Burr Ridge, Illinois, 16s competitor Gianni Ross. Ross was the best part of this excellent day for me. For one, it's always good when a homie gets a win (although as a member of THE MEDIA now, I am not allowed to root for players in tournaments I'm covering, and for one good reason: it's not cool to interview a player after cheering for her or his opponent. Especially at small tournaments it's a dick move); for two, his match against Tulsa's Zeke Clark was quite compelling; and for three, I sat in front of his adorable Polish grandparents during the match and got lots of dirt on him.

Here are five things you should know about Gianni Ross, courtesy of his adorable Polish grandmother:

1) His mother's (married) name is Diana Ross.
2) They have a dog named Rafa.
3) His full name is Gianni Mac Ross and he was named after Johnny Mac, aka John McEnroe.
4) I mean, seriously?
5) His dad can't handle watching his matches and so was pacing the grounds during the match.

Anyway, Ross' answer to my question was that Chicago has a lot of really good players, in particular Tom Fawcett and Martin Joyce. He cut his answer short, saying he was just really happy to get the win but really he was trying to watch the other quarterfinal, featuring top seed & Ross' doubles partner John McNally vs far less heralded #6 seed Sam Riffice (honestly, all the media, all three of us, were very interested in that match as well, as it was entering a third set tiebreak, McNally coming back from a bagel down and 0-4 in the third to force said tiebreak. It was, per Lewis, the match of the tournament).

My second-ever player interview was with McNally, the eventual victor, who will face Ross on Saturday. I asked a couple of outstanding questions and McNally answered thoughtfully and thoroughly but then I erased the recording. Rookie mistake.

In any case, the quality on display in the 16s was fantastic. Even with the best 16-year-olds (Kozlov, Frances Tiafoe, and Michael Mmoh) playing 18s, there was excellent ball striking, athleticism, all-court play, strategy, and drama. was having back issues, Ross had to get a cut on his knee taken care of, McNally and Riffice had an exceptionally tense match... there were solid backhands, forehand blasts, even some good net play.  These kids? Can play.

I also got to interview Altamirano (a very respectful and charming fellow) and Kozlov (whose intensity, coupled with his exceptional feel for the game, will take him far). I don't really have many exciting things to report from either interview other than that my hilarious question about Kozlov's Nike shirt, which has been worn by a bunch of young guys taking the ATP by storm this summer, got a good response: "It started with Zverev I guess; my friend Zverev had a good week in Hamburg - no one knows how he did it - I don't know. Just a new shipment of shirts. When I put it on I think I can beat anyone, too. My Superman shirt."

Also, Kozlov is trying to finish the year #1 so in addition to futures & challengers he'll play as many junior events as he needs to (hopefully) make that happen. Altamirano will be playing some futures and challengers in California after the US Open. He's glad not to have to travel so much.

The day ended with some wonderful doubles play, especially among the 16s.  Ross and McNally teamed to win a quality match against the #3 seeds Alex Phillips and Robert Loeb, 7-5 in the third, to make the final in what may have been the most well-played match of the day. Kozlov and Rubin took care of Tiafoe and Mmoh in 2 tight, frustrating (for Tiafoe fans especially) sets. And Altamirano teamed with taller-than-I-realized Deiton Baughman to beat an overmanned but exceptionally skilled team in Henrik Weirsholm and Tommy Paul. Whoever wins the Kozlov/Rubin//Baughman/Altamirano match will get a wild card to the US Open doubles event. The regular one, not the juniors one. I kind of want to stay for that 18s final.  We'll see.

All in all, an amazing day for me at The Zoo. I'll have more in future posts about the tournament and what it's like to "cover" tennis. It's wayyyyy tougher than I thought it would be. Part of me loved the access and the sense of importance that came with the credential. And part of me just wanted to be the loud, obnoxious, partisan fan that I usually am, tweeting away with no self-imposed deadlines.. I think I'll continue to try both, for a while at least, and see which fits better.

Your thoughts, as always, are sincerely appreciated.

The case for a Bryan-less Davis Cup squad

Even as a kid I was never able to do flips in gymnastics class - something so disorienting about the whole thing - yet somehow, upon learning that Davis Cup was coming to the Chicago area next month, I spontaneously performed a backhandspring-double twist-punch front-Arabian handspring-full layout combo on Michigan Avenue without even dropping my phone. You guys: I was excited.  I am excited.

I went to Fed Cup in St. Louis back in June and had an absolute blast making up my own chants, cheering double faults, snatching shirts being thrown to the kids in the crowd... anyway, it was a memorable weekend. I'm certain I've never had as much fun at a match as I did watching Madison Keys come back from way down to upset an ailing Alize Cornet. I'm sure you can hear me on the video of the match, although I haven't watched it. (Note: I'm nowhere near as loud as the French fans.)

But there's something about Davis Cup's history, best-of-five sets, three-day format, and much bigger international buzz (even if it is partly because of sexism) that, when added to this tie's proximity to my home, makes me a bit more over-the-top obsessive about it.

Soon after the US Open, the USA team will face the Slovak Republic in a "playoff" round - really, for us, a relegation tie. The winner will be in the 2015 World Group with the other 7 playoff winners and the 8 teams that won ties in February (including Great Britain, which beat USA). Only those 16 teams will have a chance at winning Davis Cup 2015. The loser will be OUT of the World Group. For the USA, this would be a bit ignominious, as such relegation hasn't happened since 1987 when a 19-year-old Boris Becker won two five setters (the first against John McEnroe in a 6-hour-38-minute epic and the second against Tim Mayotte) to help West Germany upset USA indoors in Hartford. 

Please note that I think the USA could be highly competitive in the Davis Cup World Group in 2015 and so I have my eyes set both on avoiding ignominy and making sure we have a chance to compete for an actual title ASAP.  Plus I want to leave Allstate Arena feeling happy feelings rather than sad feelings, so my entire interest is in USA winning three rubbers, however they can.

I think USA should put forward a team with players other than Bob and Mike Bryan.

This may come across as kind of a mean post, but please know that I don't mean it as such. Certainly the idea has proved highly controversial on Twitter tonight. I write this from a place of incredible respect for those two amazing tennis players - to me, the greatest doubles team of all time. Their service to Team USA in Davis Cup and the Olympics has been stellar, and their Grand Slam record and weeks spent at #1 are quite simply remarkable. Crucially, they've been through Davis Cup many times in the past, and you can't discount experience when forming a squad. I haven't done the research but I'm guessing it will prove that experience tends to beat greenness (although don't tell that to James Ward).

I also think the Bryans still have a lot of brilliant wins ahead of them (particularly once they get over the 100 titles hump). Nonetheless, I think USA will be better off next month with a different group. Here are my reasons.

1) Math

There are five matches in a Davis Cup tie, and four players on a Davis Cup squad. Having two of those players capable of playing only one of the matches gives you extremely limited options in the other four matches. Both singles players have to play singles and reverse singles. What happens if one of them (particularly the best one) gets injured on Day 1, or if their form is exceedingly poor? The fact is - no other team in the 2014 World Group has two doubles-only players on their roster. Part of that is because no other country has a team that plays at the highest level all year round. But part of that is because they would lose flexibility. And the truth is that the best singles players in the world can hang with the best doubles players on any given day, while the reverse is not true.

Plus, do you really trust John Isner to stay healthy through Atlanta, DC, Toronto, Cincinnati, Winston-Salem, the US Open, AND two five-set Davis Cup rubbers?

2) Recent Results

a) The Bryans. It is not a secret that the Bryan Brothers have struggled in 2014. After their monster run following Wimbledon 2012 (Olympic gold and a non-calendar Grand Slam), they have reached only one final of the last four majors: this year's Wimbledon, where they lost to Jack Sock and Vasek Pospisil - two singles players. On summer hard courts they lost in DC to two more singles players (Sam Querrey and Steve Johnson) and just today in Toronto, they lost their first match of the Rogers Cup to a singles-doubles combo in Marin Cilic and Santiago Gonzalez. They are simply not dominating like we are used to them dominating.

Then there's the fact that the tie will be indoors. The brothers have struggled in the great indoors: they haven't won a World Tour Final since 2009, they've only won 2 of their last 10 indoor tournaments, they've had several head-scratching losses indoors (Benjamin Becker?), their Wimbledon loss was under the roof, and most crucial of all the last two Davis Cup matches they've played indoors have been losses. Home losses. 

Read that again: The once unbeatable Davis Cup duo are 1-2 in their last 3 matches, with both losses (to Brazil and Serbia) coming indoor at home. And 3 of their 4 career Davis Cup losses have been on indoor hard courts in the USA, the other in 2008 vs France in Winston-Salem. The fact is they are not a sure thing to win next month's doubles rubber and all thinking about the formation of the team has to reflect that.

b) Jack Sock, Steve Johnson, and Donald Young. These three guys have had some mighty nice wins between them this year.  Just in the last month they've beaten John Isner (twice), Kevin Anderson, Ivo Karlovic, Denis Istomin, Julien Benneteau, and Lukas Lacko (SVK). No Top 10 wins but a lot of decent scalps. All three guys are now solidly in the Top 60 and (as of this writing) in the Top 50 of the Race to London.  Two of them, as mentioned, have doubles wins over the Bryans. Johnson's college results have shown he's a great team player. I also think there's evidence to suggest that Sock plays his best in higher intensity matches (3-0 in major finals, including his US Open Mixed Doubles championship with Melanie Oudin and his Junior US Open crown).  Unfortunately for Young, the jury is still out on his Davis Cup potential, as he lost in San Diego to one of the best players in the world in Andy Murray (on DY's worst surface); while Sam Querrey's collapse against James Ward robbed him of the chance to show his mettle against someone more beatable.  But his confidence justifiably is high right now and I think he deserves another shot (certainly over Querrey after what happened in San Diego).

3) Future Results

Yes, all attention should be focused on next month's tie as 2015 won't matter if we aren't in the World Group.  We have to put our best team on the court, period. But given the fact that it's no longer clear who our best team is, there is something to be said for prepping these guys for future ties. Who knows, all three guys could be in for a Ryan Harrison-like fall from grace next year but for several reasons (talent, athleticism, even mental toughness to some extent) I think they'll be in decent shape. I think those three guys plus Isner could make an absolutely formidable team for years to come and yes, I think they could challenge for a Davis Cup title in 2015. And I think laying the foundation for 2015's team now can only benefit the squad overall.

Look, I could be dead wrong about this. Two alternate timelines already exist, if my understanding of quantum physics is correct (hint: it's probably not), that show me to be an utter idiot: one in which the Bryans play and USA wins, and one in which the Bryans don't play and USA loses.  Given Captain Courier's commitment to Bob and Mike, I think the latter is far more likely to come to take place.  In other words: I think we will likely win Davis Cup Chicago with or without the Bryans.  So why mess with a good thing for a gamble that could blow up in our faces?  And that could understandably piss off two players who we could end up needing in the future?

The bottom line is this: the USA has won just ONE Davis Cup title in the Bryan Brothers era, and are now facing a dire situation in which relegation is a real possibility. The Slovak Republic is a beatable team but with Klizan, Lacko and two out of Mertinak, Martin, Mecir, and Gombos they have some real talent and are not to be taken for granted.  The USA needs to put its best team forward.  I believe that team includes John Isner, Jack Sock, Steve Johnson, and Donald Young.  And unfortunately, not the Bryan Brothers.*

Okay, now have at me.

*Note: I actually might be okay with one Bryan Brother, a la 2008 when Mardy Fish played doubles in Spain with Mike Bryan and the two beat Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco in 5 sets.  For the records, USA lost the tie 4-1 with Roddick losing to Nadal and Ferrer and Querrey also losing to Nadal.

New USA Career-High Rankings, August 4, 2014

Each week I will endeavor to bring you a list of USAmerican players who have reached a new career-high ranking. This list is not exhaustive but will cover most players in the Top 1000. 

New ATP Career-High Rankings - August 4, 2014 (previous high & date achieved in parentheses)

Steve Johnson: 54 (63 - 6/9/2014)

Chase Buchanan: 174 (177 - 7/28/2014)

Jared Donaldson: 309 (326 - 7/28/2014)

Dennis Nevolo: 417 (420 - 7/28/2014)

Marcos Giron: 435 (445 - 5/19/2014)

Connor Smith: 489 (506 - 5/19/2014)

Sekou Bangoura: 538 (553 - 7/21/2014)

Mitchell Frank: 606 (622 - 2/13/2012)

Alexander Sarkissian: 682 (690 - 7/28/2014)

Kyle McMorrow: 698 (708 - 7/28/2014)

Peter Kobelt: 733 (742 - 7/21/2014)

Colin Altamirano: 846 (847 - 7/7/2014)

Spencer Papa: 893 (918 - 7/28/2014)

Ronnie Schneider: 1025 (1194 - 7/28/2014)

At #54, Johnson is the highest "NCHer" on the ATP since starting this series back in June.  He got there thanks to a couple of wins over big servers in DC (Karlovic, then Isner), saving match points in each. Unfortunately, he had the misfortune to run into eventual champion Milos Raonic, who wasn't losing to anyone last week, in the quarterfinals.  While it's frustrating that his is the only name in the Top 150, there were a few other substantial jumps, most notably Chase Buchanan, who has his fourth NCH in five weeks after his first round win in Vancouver (losing to eventual champion Baghdatis); Mitchell Frank, who collected his Futures points from Godfrey, IL and jumped 62 spots on top of his 166-spot jump last week; and Ronnie Schneider, whose run to the Godfrey semis from qualies was a huge result from the Tarheel.

Speaking of Futures, check out this excellent article on the penultimate round of qualies yesterday at the Edwardsville Futures event.  It's rare to see an article that in-depth about any tournament, let alone qualies of a futures. LOVE IT!

New WTA Career-High Rankings - August 4, 2014 (previous high & date achieved in parentheses)

Victoria Duval: 87 (90 - 7/14/2014)
Grace Min: 108 (109 - 7/28/2014)
Madison Brengle: 118 (128 - 7/28/2014)
Taylor Townsend: 127 (143 - 7/28/2014)
Allie Kiick: 137 (138 - 7/28/2014)
Sachia Vickery: 145 (178 - 1/27/2014)
Asia Muhammad: 292 (294 - 4/7/2014)
Katerina Stewart: 526 (528 - 7/28/2014)
Jennifer Brady: 539 (588 - 8/12/2013)
Tornado Alicia Black: 574 (718 - 7/28/2014)
Alexa Guarachi: 671 (688 - 7/28/2014)
Kelly Chen: 867 (1266 - 7/28/2014)
Alexandria Stiteler: 892 (894 - 7/28/2014)
Michaela Gordon: 932 (964 - 7/28/2014)
Marie Norris: 938 (945 - 7/28/2014)
Emma Higuchi: 953 (961 - 7/28/2014)
Nadja Gilchrist: 1028 (1030 - 7/28/2014)
Natalie Suk: 1110 (1114 - 7/28/2014)

Sachia "Fierce" Vickery (not sure if she's ever used that nickname but it works!) is the big story of the week, with her dream run through qualies to the Stanford quarterfinal was amazing to follow.  Her one-week jump of 48 spots put her in 20th place among USAmericans; the fact that she's still only at 145 gives the US the highest 20th-place American since, I believe, April 11, 2005* when Kelly McCain was ranked #140. (Serena Williams was #4 then and Venus Williams was #8.)

Vicky Duval, of course, continues to amaze. She tweets about her treatment for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and the support she's getting. She rose due to others not defending points (she is defending nothing until the US Open and so could appear here again this summer).  Black's points were from her qualifying for DC's WTA event - her first such qualification - while Chen's came from her Ft. Worth, Texas $10K win.

Finally, all respect to Madison Brengle, who came within a few points of a HUGE jump as she twice served for the final in Vancouver vs. Jarmila Gajdosova but who is still up to an impressive 118. Although she'll be losing a bunch of points coming up from her win last year at $25K/Landisville 2013, she's now in a position to get some better tournament entries or seedings and if somehow it works out, there's an ever-so-slight possibility that she would actually get a direct entry into a major someday, which, given her issues in qualies, would be the best thing ever.

*Based on a survey of TennisForum.com's semiregular listing of Top 20 USA players plus a little legwork of my own.  If anyone finds something different, please let me know!