U.S. Open: Federer is still the king

The greatest one-man show in sports rolls on, from continent to continent, major to major, deterred by neither immense expectation nor human frailty.

Its latest stop came Sunday in Flushing Meadows, where Roger Federer made history at the U.S. Open by earning a record $2.4 million, and proving again he is not only the world's best tennis player, but also the most resilient big-moment athlete on the planet.

In winning his 12th Grand Slam and becoming the first man in more than 80 years to capture four consecutive U.S. titles, Federer, 26, got by the hugely talented Novak Djokovic 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-2), 6-4 in as gripping a straight-set decision as you will see. He did it by escaping five set points in the first set, and two more in the second, and three break points in the third.

t's no reach to say that but for a point here and there, Djokovic, ranked No. 3 and the first Serbian to reach a Grand Slam final, could have been the one to win in three. He's widely viewed as the next mega-talent in tennis, and the future nearly arrived in the dusk of Arthur Ashe Stadium.

"I've played better matches, no doubt . . . but all in all I am very happy with my performance," Federer said. "He had his chances today, many of them. You can sing a song about them."

Federer picked up his third Slam title of the year, and is two behind Pete Sampras' career-best 14. The last time he lost in New York was 27 matches ago, to David Nalbandian, in the Round of 16 in 2003.

"New York has definitely grown on me the last few years," Federer said.

Technorati tag(s): US Open, Roger Federer

Man O' War Stakes Promises to Be a Battle

Seven horses will be battling for the $500,000 purse that could propel them from the bubble to the field come the end of October.

The morning line favorite is Todd Pletcher trained Sunriver, who came in 4th at the Arlington Million last month. "I thought he ran well in the Million," Pletcher explained. "We were a little unfortunate to catch a soft turf course, which (jockey Garrett Gomez) felt he didn't handle as well as firm ground. He ran hard and wasn't beaten far." The present weather forecast for Belmont on Saturday calls for clear skies.

Four mid-range favorites for the Man O' War are European entries Shamdinan (FR) at 7-2, Doctor Dino (FR) at 3-1, Grand Couturier (GB) at 6-1 and Yellowstone (IRE) at 4-1. Calvin Borel will be atop Grand Courtier who has been trained by Robby Ribaudo, "We realized there would be a couple of good Europeans in this race, but we're going to have to meet them sooner or later."

The Man O' War Stakes (from Wikipedia)
The Man o' War Stakes is a Thoroughbred horse race at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Raced annually on the second Saturday in September, it is a Grade I event offering a purse of $500,000 and is open to horses three-years-old and up. Run at one and three-eighths mile on the grass, the race sometimes attracts top European horses such as Fantastic Light and Daylami. The top finishers in the Man o' War Stakes often go on to run in the Breeders' Cup Turf.

The inaugural running of the Man o' War took place in 1959 at Aqueduct Racetrack where it was also held in 1961, plus from 1963 to 1967, and again in 1987. Run as the Man o' War Handicap in 1959 and 1961, it is named for the great Man o' War, selected as No.1 in the Blood-Horse magazine List of the Top 100 U.S. Racehorses of the 20th Century. The race was won in 1973 by another legendary horse, Secretariat.

Man dies after 9-story fall from hotel by NFL celebration

A man fell from the ninth-story deck of a downtown hotel overlooking Monument Circle, where the NFL was putting on a free concert that drew thousands Downtown before the Colts-Saints game.

“It’s apparently a suicide, but we’re still investigating,” said Joseph McAtee, Area II commander of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.

The man’s identity was not immediately released, but a police report several hours later said he was a 32-year-old from Indianapolis. It was unclear whether his family had been notified. He was believed to have been taken to Wishard Memorial Hospital about 7:15 p.m.

His body was found in an alley between the hotel, 31 West Ohio St., and the headquarters of WellPoint on Monument Circle.

He was described as a white male wearing swimming trunks or shorts. McAtee said the man left his belongings, including his wallet, on a table near the pool, but he left no identification.

McAtee said none of the witnesses who spoke to police knew the man. The hotel has an outdoor pool surrounded by a patio area on the 9th floor. The part of the patio that borders the alley is surrounded by a cement ledge and metal fencing about 5 feet high.

Hotel officials who were present at the accident scene after police left declined to comment on the incident.

Technorati tag(s): nfl, Colts

US Open: Federer beats Roddick

Top ranked Roger Federer edged Andy Roddick 7-6 (5), 7-6 (4), 6-2 in the quarterfinals Wednesday to move two victories away from a fourth consecutive U.S. Open title.

Roddick played nearly flawlessly against Federer, serving brilliantly, returning well and giving tennis' top player a tough time. To Roddick's dismay, it all added up to yet another loss.

Both came out wearing black shirts and shorts, Roddick adding a baseball cap, and Federer his trademark bandanna. The outfits matched and so did the level of play, right down until late in the third set, when Federer finally earned his first break points _ allowing him to improve to 14-1 against Roddick over their careers.

This rematch of last year's U.S. Open final was hardly the mismatch one might have expected.

"I tried to hang in there," Federer said. "It was a tough match, I thought. Andy was serving out of a tree."

Technorati tag(s): Andy Roddick, Roger Federer

Roger Federer vs. Andy Roddick

Federer heavily favored to beat Roddick again
Like shooting rubber bands at Superman, the best players that international tennis has to offer take their pitiful turns at trying to bring down Roger Federer. And now it's Andy Roddick's turn again tonight. - newsday.com



Read Head to Head Analysis of Federer vs. Roddick

Technorati tag(s): Andy Roddick, Roger Federer

Ferrer Defeated Nadal in US Open

Third-seeded Serb Novak Djokovic survived his fourth-round match with Argentine Juan Monaco, while second- seeded Rafael Nadal fell to fellow Spaniard David Ferrer at the U.S. Open on Tuesday.

Nadal, the reigning three-time French Open champ and two-time Wimbledon runner-up, won a first-set tiebreaker with Ferrer, seeded 15th, before dropping the next three and losing 6-7 (3-7), 6-4, 7-6 (7-4), 6-2 at Ashe Stadium on the grounds of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

Nadal, who was hobbled by injuries, has not advanced past the quarterfinal round of the U.S. Open. Ferrer advances to take on Argentine slugger Juan Ignacio Chela.

Although Ferrer/Nadal's match lasted three hours and 28 minutes, Djokovic's 7-5, 7-6 (7-2), 6-7 (6-8), 6-1 win over Argentine Juan Monaco topped that at just under four hours.

Djokovic reached the semifinals at the French Open and Wimbledon and captured Masters Series titles in Miami and Montreal this season. Up next for Djokovic is 17th-seeded Carlos Moya, who got past rising Latvian teenager Ernests Gulbis 7-5, 6-2, 6-7 (5-7), 6-4.

On Wednesday, American Andy Roddick will square off against world No. 1 Roger Federer. Federer is the reigning three-time U.S. Open champ and also holds the Wimbledon and Aussie Open titles. The 11-time major titlist Federer is 13-1 lifetime against Roddick, with Roddick's lone victory coming four years ago. Federer beat the 2003 titlist Roddick in last year's finale here.

Technorati tag(s): US Open, Roger Federer