After a decade between US Open appearances, the 27-year-old is finally putting it all together – and still putting off 9-to-5 lifeA few hours after her inspired first-round victory under the US Open night lights against 2004 champion Svetlana Kuznetsova, 27-year-old American Kristie Ahn was scrolling through congratulatory messages on Instagram when one arrested her attention. It was eerie. At the 2008 US Open, Ahn was 16, ranked 758th and unknown to most when she burst unexpectedly from qualifying and into the main draw. In the first round, Ahn fell to Dinara Safina in straight sets. Eleven years later, there Safina was congratulating her on her first ever victory at a major tournament.“It’s funny because she reached out to me...
World No 30 accused ATP of corruption before clarifying his comments but he owes tennis after a series of misdemeanoursAt some point, Nick Kyrgios will surely get bored being more famous for being an idiot than a very fine tennis player, but his latest outburst, which could earn him a year’s suspension, suggests that day is not at hand.It is likely that when the Australian time bomb called the Association of Tennis Professionals “corrupt” after winning in the first round here on day two he had little regard for the consequences, or even meant what he said. Related: US Open 2019 first round: Nick Kyrgios beats Steve Johnson in straight sets – as it happened Continue reading...
The winner of 23 major singles titles blamed all and sundry after falling foul of the rules and losing to Naomi OsakaThe turmoil that enveloped Serena Williams and Carlos Ramos during the final of the 2018 US Open had little or nothing to do with racism or sexism as it was widely portrayed at the time and is lingeringly perceived.However, from the player’s perspective it did have distant roots in prejudice and struggle, which exist beyond tennis. Also, it was made possible by an uneven battle of wills, the lauded and entitled champion bumping up against the inconvenience of authority, which is part of the culture of modern sport. Related: Serena Williams’s US meltdown was handled badly all round, says...
The US Open winner has the tools to win repeatedly but Serena Williams’s example shows the hurdles that may lie in her wayYou can have different views about the merits of booing at a sporting event. For some it is one of the few tools available to make your displeasure known: you’ve paid the money, you have the choice to moan like a disgruntled cow should you wish. For others, a group that may be classified as “decent human beings”, it is a bit mean-spirited and should be saved for when you come across David Cameron in the street.Another thing about booing is that it is indiscriminate. However clear a motivation may be in the mind of the boo-er, by...
Leading players must take responsibility for guiding the sport through good times and bad during this period of changeMany fine things happened at the 50th US Open, none better than Naomi Osaka’s dignified arrival and Novak Djokovic’s mighty return, none worse than Serena Williams’s meltdown. Nevertheless the sport overall is in rude health on court, even if some of the people who run it would struggle to get a start organising lifeboats on the Titanic.There were many surreal moments at Flushing Meadows – as there invariably are in this crazy business – from the way umpire Mohamed Lahyani got down from his chair to comfort Nick Kyrgios in full tank mode to the composure of his colleague, Carlos Ramos, who...