* !Picby Pete Bodo*
It was the perfect antidote to the dispiriting experience of watching Nicolas Mahut drum Andy Roddick out of the French Open the other day. Roddick, we all know, is the last American male to be ranked No. 1 as well as the last to win a Grand Slam title (2003 U.S. Open).
Nine Americans—three men and six women, won singles matches Monday in Paris. Sure, you can point out that they were first-round singles matches on what is traditionally the first day of the two-week competition (we'll ignore that wretched Sunday start business). All I can say is, it beats a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.
Check that.
All I can say is that the results were particularly noteworthy because many of them were truly "quality wins," and thus perhaps indicative of brighter days ahead for the USA. Out of the 10 Americans in action Monday, only one lost—and even that was a quality loss.
That shortcoming involved Ryan Harrison, who left the court cursing the gods for the turn of fate they ordained in his match with No. 11 seed Gilles Simon, an accomplished clay-court player performing for his home crowd. Simon subdued Harrison, 3-6, 7-5, 6-4, 6-1. The scores eloquently tell the how the air went out of the match for Harrison after Simon contrived to escape from the deficit of a set, and a break, and a double second-set point for the American.
Doesn't it sometimes seem that the those selfsame gods are bent on putting Harrison through every possible wringer as he impetuously flings himself at the ramparts of career? That's kind of what you get for wanting it that badly, it seems—and it turns out that Ryan not the only one in the family with that affliction. He has a younger brother, Christian, who's a highly promising junior. As Ryan said, "He (Christian) wants it so bad. It's so good to see. You know, I get a three?page text message from him before I can even check my phone about what he thought about the match (today) right after I finish."
But let's not dwell on the might-have-beens. Harrison lost a tough match to a terrific player, and in some recent years that alone might have constituted a good Roland Garros for the USA. Today, though, it was the only dim bulb on the tree. And the scores put up by some Americans were just as impressive as the names alongside them. Note that they with the exception of Harrison, not one of them lost a set today:
Brian Baker d. Xavier Malisse, 6-3, 7-6 (1), 7-6 (5): Baker's story, one which has by now become very familiar to anyone who hasn't spent the last month living under a rock, just keeps getting better and better. There was something poignant in this battle, as both men were once highly touted prodigies. Malisse, now 31, No. 77, and playing some of the best tennis of his life, more or less got lost in the fun-house and never did fulfill his promise; Baker's aspirations were killed off by his series of injuries.
Jesse Levine d. Benjamin Becker 7-5, 6-2, 6-4: Another qualifier, Levine was up against a salty, 30-year-old veteran in Becker. That can be a tough assignment for a guy like Levine, who's been on the cusp of the direct-entry elite for a long time now (he's presently No. 131), because players like Becker, who's No. 157, know full well how valuable those early-round ranking points can be, and how much tougher it is to get them from, say, a Novak Djokovic.
John Isner d. Rogerio Dutra Silva, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4: Silva is ranked No. 121 and he earned his way in via qualifying. Barring a meeting at some Challenger with, say, Ivo Karlovic, I'll bet Silva has never seen anything quite like that serve of Isner's. Now he can return to Sao Paolo, Brazi, and tell his friends that he's been to see the elephant.
Unlike some Americans, Isner is taking his sojourn on clay in stride. He said, "Well, for me, personally, I don't mind clay. I don't care what surface I'm playing on. I don't care if it's mud . . . My serve is my serve. I like to think I'm gonna hold serve a lot. Whether it's clay, grass or hard, I'm always gonna have that on my side."
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And now for the women:
Not long after Christina McHale and Sloane Stephens won their matches, they huddled in the locker room, excited about having won, eager to know: What next? As Stephens explained, "I was like, 'Who do you play (next)? She's like, 'I play Lauren Davis.' I'm like, 'Oh my God. I play Bethanie (Mattek Sands).' So all the Americans are playing Americans. But it's good that we'll have people in the third round. That's always nice."
Let's not worry about that for now, or wonder who's going to take a bullet for the team. Let's just look at the winners:
Christina McHale d. Kiki Bertens, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4: A 20-year-old from the Netherlands, Bertens is No. 89. Given that McHale is No. 35, the final score may be a little surprising, but look at it this way: McHale is now a force on the tour, and she just turned 20. She's living with pressure that some of her less accomplished countrywomen known nothing about to this point, and McHale seems to be managing it well. Surviving a scare like this is a ritual of passage for all Top 25-type players, and it will probably carry a confidence dividend over to the next round.
Lauren Davis d. Mona Barthel, 6-1, 6-1: This was a real stunner, mostly because of the borderline inconceivable score. Barthel, after all, is No. 32, and in the midst of what might be a career year (although she's still just 22), one she launched with a win at Hobart. Davis is just 18 and only 5'2", but she has a big, big heart. This was a terrific win that nobody would have dared predict.
!PicVania King d. Galina Voskoboeva, 6-4, 6-2: The 23-year old-doubles expert King is locked in a fascinating race with Venus Williams and Varvara Lepchenko—the prize being the fourth and final berth on Team USA for the upcoming Olympic Games in London. This was a winnable match, given that at No. 48 Voskoboeva is just eight places ahead of King in the singles rankings. But that only made the assignment that much more nerve-wracking. Venus also won her first match, as did Lepchenko, so the race continues unresloved.
Sloane Stephens d. Ekaterina Makarova, 6-4, 7-6 (6): Makarova is No. 37 in the world, Stephens No. 79. But it amounted to yet another convincing, straight-sets upset by an American. Stephens loves the clay, even though her familiarity with it is limited. She's just 19, and a real live wire with a big, carefree personality. That could serve her well in the days to come, as the pressure begins to ramp up.
Varvara Lepchenko d. Ksenia Pervak, 2-6, 6-7 (6), 6-4: Lepchenko was born and spent her early years in Uzbekistan, but is now an enthusiastic American citizen. She's making a mighty push to earn a place on the Olympic team (see above) and this win keeps her hopes alive. She's got to be feeling good after losing the first set and surviving an 8-6 tiebreaker. Perhaps it will free her up to swing from the heels in her next match.
Bethanie Mattek-Sands d. Sabine Lisicki, 6-4, 6-3: Bubbly, irrepressible, 27 but still a little goofy (but in a good way), Mattek-Sands is down to No. 167 and coming off a long struggle with a back injury. This is something the woman she vanquished knows a lot about, having overcome a serious, career-threatening episode (ankle) herself. This one ranks right up there with Davis's destruction of Barthels as an eye-brow raiser, but for the women of the USA, it was all in a day's work. On a very special day at Roland Garros.