By Dylan Butler
Andre Agassi, Martina Hingis, Lindsay Davenport and Serena Williams all played at the colossal Arthur Ashe Stadium on opening day of the U.S. Open at the National Tennis Center Monday.
But while many of those watching the tournament on television saw stars of the sport lose just one set in the five matches at Arthur Ashe Stadium Monday, most of the fans who crowded the outer courts saw some memorable matches featuring some of the future and former stars of the sport.
“The matches in the main stadium are pretty boring,” said Greg Sandler from Manhattan. “They’re very short matches. On the outside courts, it’s very competitive. You get to see the speed of the ball and the power behind the players shots up close and personal.”
“We almost never go [inside the stadium],” said Greg’s father, Mike Sandler. “I don’t think I’ve seen what my seats look like in five years.”
The 11 outer courts at the National Tennis Center offered tennis fans a chance to see a bevy of high quality matches in an intimate setting that only a select few in the corporate world get at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
“It’s unlikely we’re going to travel to Row Z for our seats in the stadium,” said Theresa Haberle from New Hampshire. “I’m here primarily to watch the outer courts. I like to catch the up-and-comers.”
Just how competitive was some of Monday’s opening round matches on the outer courts? Of the 15 men’s singles matches, only five were determined in straight sets, including Nicolas Keifer’s match against Rainer Schettler on Court 11 in which Keifer had to retire after the two split the first two sets. The remaining four matches all featured the exciting tiebreaker in one of the three sets.
Of the 25 women’s matches Monday, nine went the maximum three sets including one upset, as 13th-seeded Amanda Coetzer fell to Barbara Schwartz, 1-6, 6-4, 6-4 on Court 7.
“To be able to stand right next to them and to hear them groan and grunt was great,” said Laura Bergquist from Wichita, Kan. “It’s how we used to play in high school, with people watching you real close. It takes a lot of grace for them to play on top of their game with people that close.”
The match of the day was on Court 11, as former Open champion Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario defeated Petra Mandula, 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (7-5) in a thrilling two-hour match in front of an overflow crowd. During the third set tiebreaker the crowd swelled so much that there wasn’t an inch of room between Court 11 and 12.
“I’ve always been playing on the big courts, but not being American, I know I’m not going to be on the big courts,” Sanchez-Vicario said. “But I like the atmosphere of Court 11. The fans were definitely closer and they really helped me today.”
Reach Associate Sports Editor Dylan Butler by e-mail at TimesLedgr@aol.com or call 229-0300.
