Anyone like Tennis?

Venus Williams re-entered the top twenty today becoming the second ranked US player behind her sister - 16 years after entering the tour.

Belatedly glad for Venus.

Meantime, the Federer Monfils match is something else. Federer has been out of it, off and on, and Monfils both good and entertaining. Fed held the fourth set by the skin of his teath, and now we're going to five. I will say that if Federer has to lose, one guy I am getting to like is Monfils.

Monfils is a clown....maybe when he grows up a little bit.

Part of why I kinda like him, plus the athletic ability along with athletic intuitiveness. He's very emotionally volatile, but in a way, so are Federer and the others. His control of that is a problem. Federer was in a pit of despond and worked himself out.

I say all this like I watched it - no, I read it on the SI site. I mean to go and check the Guardian's play by play - their sports writers are a tad different that ours. I generally appreciate both types of writing. Last evening the difference was close to funny - I was reading SI website live blog (terse, straightforward) with the other window open to the Guardian's freelancer writing about the Seahawks and Packers plays.

Just before the match I was trying to find a game cast or blog for the Open online, but I can't watch some of them (my adobe flash problem, need new computer one of these days) - and the Guardian's blog hadn't shown up yet on their website. I can watch yahoo gamecasts, but they didn't have the open happening.

Anyway, it'll be fun for me to read the G'd'n on it today.

http://www.theguardian.com/sport/live/2014/sep/04/gael-monfils-vs-roger-federer-us-open-quarter-final-live

I haven't read that writer before -- we'll see.

Assuming you get your flash problem fixed, you can watch all the US Open matches online at USOpen.org.

Monfils's problem is he doesn't balance the clown with the athlete very well. Just about every between the leg shot could also be hit traditionally with a higher likelihood of success. Monfils will go for the tweener every time. Entertaining yes, maybe not as good tennis as possible and you don't win the big ones playing low probability tennis. It is going to catch up to you.

We are definitely lining for another Fed/Djokovic match-up. The two best match-ups in tennis right now are Fed/Djokovic and Djokovic/Nadal so let's hope the semis run to form. Lots of interesting stories on the Women's side as well. Serena playing well going for her 18th slam against hard hitting Makarova who's been playing very well and has the tools to hurt Serena. Resurgent Wozniacki against giant killer Peng on the other side. (I saw two of Peng's matches live last week and was very impressed.) The US Open people have to be very happy with where the tournament is going.

I know, engineer, I looked there. I won't get the problem fixed until I buy a new computer and I'm picky, I want a new used Imac, and I'm a low income person.

Meantime, I can suddenly see many youtube videos via links given by others, after a couple of years of not being able to - somehow they don't know it's me, unless I try to post a comment. Not always though - it's still catch as catch can, but much much better than it was.

I can watch videos on the NFL site - but not on Sports Illustrated. Some news sites and not others. It's one of the reasons I like the Guardian - I can see all their videos.

This time he did the tweener when he had 'given up' in the fifth..
maybe getting this far might generate maturity change, or maybe not.

Agree re your open comments in general. I don't know Peng except reading her name lately; a little about Azurenka (sp?) and Makarova. I'm actually surprised Wozniaki has improved to this extent, and glad.

Hopefully you've heard a lot about Azarenka. She and Serena were locked into a bloodmatch for number one for a while in late 2012, early 2013. She's been out with injuries, but I really expected an Azarenka/Williams semi.

Wozniaki has been on a role. Her fitness is outstanding (she wants to run the NY marathon later this year) and she's flattened out her shots and gotten more aggressive. She clearly beat Sharapova on fitness and just crushed Errani on shot quality. Hoping she makes the final.

I don't know what I think yet.. (you know me, ms. slug)

Kei Nishikori beat Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals of the US Open - amazing tennis! I don't follow tennis as closely as many here, so the name Nishikori is new to me, but I'm fascinated by him - great to see a (to me) newcomer do so well.

The real story of the semi finals was that two of the big three were beaten - didn't get injured, didn't have an off day - by two up and comers. 38 straight slam finals - almost ten years - featured Federer, Nadal or Djokovic. The new guys are finally making a move. If I'm televising this, I'm devastated. This guys don't have any Q factor, just good tennis.

PS. I got Cilic's autograph after his second round match, so I have to pull for him.

I've heard of both, but that's all, didn't know anything about them. Read somewhere yesterday that so and so (maybe that guy who runs the school in Florida) had been predicting that Nishikori was about to break into the top ranks.

Serena wins number 18 without dropping a set the entire tournament.

OK, then, excellent.

She did well! Glad she's back on form.

So the half-final in Shanghai just started ... Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer in the rematch of their Wimbledon final

Thanks, I'll go check it out.

Very confusing at various sites online. I'll wait for your report.

It was a rather easy two set win .... for Federer.