Sock and Kudla Vie For U.S. Open Boys Title; Gavrilova and Putintseva of Russia Will Decide Girls Champion Sunday

©Colette Lewis 2010--
Flushing Meadows, NY--

Back in 2004, Jack Sock and Denis Kudla shared a special moment, when as 11-year-olds, they won their first gold balls, taking the doubles championship together at the USTA Clay Courts 12s.

On Sunday, they will have another memory of a lifetime, but there will be only one winner when they play for the U.S. Open boys singles championship.

Sock, an unseeded wild card, and Kudla, the No. 10 seed, produced the first all-American final since Andy Roddick beat Robby Ginepri in 2000, when in Saturday's semifinals they took out the past two junior slam winners. Sock defeated No. 2 seed and Wimbledon boys champion Marton Fucsovics 6-3, 6-4, several hours after Kudla had already ousted No. 8 seed and French Open boys champion Agustin Velotti 6-3, 6-2.

Against Velotti, Kudla got his first break with Velotti serving at 3-4. Serving for the set, Kudla faced two break points at 15-40, but at that juncture his improved serve proved invaluable. From that stage through the end of the four-deuce game, Kudla got 9 out of 10 first serves in, saving three of the only four break points he faced in the match with two service winners and an ace.

"We've been working on it, and it's been helping me so far," Kudla said. "I haven't been broken too many times. I'm keeping it at a high percentage, knowing that I'm not going to serve bombs left and right. So I'm just trying to stay solid on my serve, and in my last two matches, I don't think I've been broken."

In the second set, Kudla dominated the 18-year-old from Argentina, at one stage early in the set winning 11 points in a row. Velotti made a slew of unforced errors, but his uneven play didn't affect Kudla, who hit through the ball with authority. It did take him three match points to seal his place in the final, but the relative ease of his victory was unexpected.

"He kind of surprised me with his level today," said Kudla. "I know he didn't play his best tennis. I didn't play my best tennis either, but I played all right and I'm glad that I got off the court quick and will have all my energy left for the final."

If Kudla was hoping that Sock would have a lengthy struggle with Fucsovics, he was disappointed. Sock didn't face a break point in his match, and Fucsovics was constantly under pressure on his serve. Unable to hit more than two or three ground strokes before missing, the 18-year-old Hungarian was ineffective despite the ideal conditions, with light breezes and temperatures in the mid 70s.

Sock, who has yet to lose a set in the tournament, has played Kudla only once, losing 6-4 in the third in the Kalamazoo 16s quarterfinals in 2008. Kudla said on Friday that he had hoped to play Sock in the 18s final at Kalamazoo last month, but those hopes were dashed by Bob van Overbeek, who saved three match points to beat Kudla in the semifinals.

"It was a tough loss for him, and a good comeback for Bob," said Sock. "I haven't played Denis for a long time and I was looking forward to maybe playing him there, but he didn't get through. Tomorrow will be a good match."

Kudla is also looking forward to his first junior slam final, which will be his last junior match.

"I came into this tournament with no pressure," Kudla said. "Just enjoying it, knowing it was my last tournament, just have some fun. Knowing that I'm in the final, it's pretty special to know I'm one match away from winning a junior grand slam. And knowing if I do do that I'm the first American winner since Roddick. Following in those footsteps is pretty special."



The last Russian girls champion was Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in 2006, and on Sunday, either top seed Daria Gavrilova or unseeded Yulia Putintseva will join her and Maria Kirilenko as US Open girls champions this century.

The 15-year-old Putintseva has played better with each match, and although her serve was a bit off, and she and her opponent, unseeded Ons Jabeur of Tunisia, held serve only once total in the second set, Putintseva's competitive fire was intact in her 6-4, 6-3 victory.

Gavrilova, like Putintseva a student at the Moratouraglu Academy in France, eliminated the U.S. hope for a junior championship singles sweep when she outlasted No. 15 seed Sloane Stephens 7-5, 1-6, 7-6(4) in a contentious match that took over two-and-a-half hours to complete. Stephens was the clear favorite of the crowd gathered around Court 7, whether it was due to Gavrilova's ball-striking shrieks, slow play, or simply her nationality.

In the third set, Stephens was up a break twice, at 2-0 and 4-3, but she lost both. She was in the difficult position of serving at 4-5 and 5-6 in the third set, but had no problems in that position. She started slowly in the tiebreaker, however, falling behind 4-0. Stephens won the next three points but Gavrilova hit a perfect drop volley winner to make it 5-3. The next point was a huge one, but Stephens couldn't handle the moonball Gavrilova gave her, attempting to flatten it out, only to see it find the net. Stephens saved one match point when Gavrilova hit a backhand wide, but the match was over on the next one, when Stephens' forehand volley went long.

Stephens was frustrated by the style of play Gavrilova employed, especially after having defeated the 16-year-old Russian in straight sets this year at Wimbledon.

"She didn't hit one ball, she pushed the entire match," the 17-year-ol Stephens said. "At Wimbledon she was trying to hit. Obviously everyone hits on grass because it's grass, but today she was pushing, pushing, pushing and then she'd try to hit one. The way she was playing today was so in and out, so sporadic that it was hard to see what she was going to do."



Stephens may have had a disappointing finish to her year in junior slams in singles, but she ended 2010 three for three in junior slam doubles titles. She and Timea Babos of Hungary captured the U.S. Open girls championship when An-Sophie Mestach of Belgium, half of the team with Silvia Njiric of Croatia, was unable to compete due to injury. Babos and Stephens, who played together for the first time in Paris, won at Roland Garros, Wimbledon, and now New York.

"It's awesome," Stephens said. "With Timea, we're really good friends. On the court, we're good together and off the court we're good together. Last year I had such bad luck with doubles partners, but this is a pretty good payoff, and I'm happy."


Stephens and Babos are not the only multiple junior doubles slam winners this year. No. 3 seed Duilio Beretta of Peru and Roberto Quiroz of Ecuador, who won Roland Garros this year, did not drop a set on their way to the U.S. Open boys doubles title. On Saturday, they defeated No. 4 seeds Oliver Golding and Jiri Veseley of the Czech Republic 6-1, 7-5.

The singles finals are scheduled simultaneously for noon on Sunday, at courts 7 (girls) and 11(boys). I will primarily be covering the boys final. A grounds pass is available for $5.00.

For complete draws, see usopen.org.

Tags: junior tennis, US Open Junior Championships, Jack Sock, Denis Kudla, Daria Gavrilova, Yulia Putintseva, Roberto Quiroz, Duilio Beretta, Sloane Stephens, Timea Babos, US Open Junior Championships, Colette Lewis

Kudla, Sock and Stephens Still in the Hunt for U.S. Open Titles

©Colette Lewis 2010--
Flushing Meadows, NY--

The cool and cloudy conditions that have settled over New York the past two days are a reminder that the change of seasons is underway. But Americans Jack Sock, Denis Kudla and Sloane Stephens are not quite ready to make the same exit that summer has made, with all three reaching the semifinals of the U.S. Open Junior Championships.


Stephens, the No. 15 seed, defeated Australian Open girls champion and No. 6 seed Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 to earn a meeting with top seed Daria Gavrilova of Russia. Gavrilova was tested by American qualifier Robin Anderson in their quarterfinal match, but she prevailed 6-4, 6-4 in an entertaining and well-played match between two of the quickest players in the field.

Stephens and Pliskova started out slowly, with Stephens looking particularly tense. Serving at 2-3, Stephens gave Pliskova the break without requiring the tall Czech to hit the ball.

"I was really nervous at the beginning. I double faulted three times in a row in one game," said the 17-year-old, who is originally from Florida but now lives in Southern California, and trains at the USTA West Coast Center in Carson.

Pliskova served out the set, and when Stephens lost the opening game of the second set, her prospects dimmed. But in what was to become a pattern, Pliskova was unable to consolidate the break, and it was then that Stephens began to hit more freely, using her forehand to force errors. Pliskova made a series of errors of the unforced variety serving at 3-4, but Stephens couldn't finish the set despite one set point. Serving at 4-5, Pliskova had two game points at 40-15, but Pliskova chipped in a couple unforced errors, and Stephens stepped up with a well-executed backhand volley winner followed by a forehand that Pliskova couldn't get a racquet on. When Pliskova made a forehand error on the next point to give Stephens the set, she gave her racquet a angry fling and received a racquet abuse warning, just as Stephens had during the first set.

In the third set, Stephens was again broken to start the set, but she didn't panic.

"Even though I got broken in the opening game--I double faulted twice in that game too--I knew I could break her. I knew we were switching ends, it was windy and I thought she'd have trouble with the wind."

Stephens was right, as she got the break right back and then broke Pliskova again. Serving at 4-2, Stephens got up 40-15, but it turned into a four-deuce game, and again double faults, two of the nine Stephens had, played a role. Pliskova got the break, but she never got even, as Stephens broke right back to serve for the match.

Stephens allowed no room for hope, and Pliskova showed minimal resistance, barely putting a ball in play as Stephens served it out at love.

Stephens and partner Timea Babos of Hungary, the third seeds, later won their semifinal doubles match 6-2, 7-5 over top seeds Gavrilova and Irina Khromacheva of Russia. When asked about the relative importance of a third consecutive junior slam doubles title or her first junior slam singles title, Stephens replied that they were "equally important."

"I've found a good partner, and I enjoy playing with her," said Stephens. "It's not like it's hard to go out there. We play well together and if we play aggressive like we have, we have a good chance."

Stephens and Babos will play the unseeded team of An-Sophie Mestach of Belgium and Silvia Njiric of Croatia in Saturday's girls doubles final. Stephens and Babos already own a victory over their finals opponents, a straight-set win in the Wimbledon quarterfinals.

Stephens also beat Gavrilova at Wimbledon in the second round of the singles before falling in the quarterfinals to eventual champion Kristyna Pliskova, Karolina's twin.

The other girls semifinal will feature two unseeded players, Yulia Putintseva of Russia against Roland Garros finalist Ons Jabeur of Tunisia. Jabeur downed unseeded Caroline Garcia of France 6-2, 6-4, while the 15-year-old Putintseva continued her string of upsets by defeating No. 5 seed Monica Puig of Puerto Rico by the same score.



In the boys quarterfinals, Sock continued his impressive play with a 6-3, 7-6(4) win over No. 13 seed Victor Baluda of Russia. Sock, a wild card, has not lost a set in his four victories, and is 3-0 in tiebreakers.

Against Baluda, Sock took an early 3-0 lead, and although he was broken serving at 3-1, he got the cushion right back and served out the first set.

Both players held to start the second, but serving at 1-2, Sock was broken at love. Again however, Sock got the break right back and each player held serve in the remaining games. Sock seemed less determined to hit his forehand on nearly every shot, using his two-hander and slice backhands more.

It might not have been much more than luck that kept Sock from a third set however, as in the tiebreaker he got two let cord winners, one to put him up 4-0 and the second to take a 6-2 lead. An understandably depressed Baluda saved two match points, but at 6-4, Sock got a first serve in and slammed a forehand winner into the corner to earn his spot in the semifinals.

"It was a little bit more calm than yesterday and the day before," Sock said. "I felt good out there. He played well, I played pretty well and it came down to the wire in the second set, and I got the W, so that was good."

Sock's next opponent is Wimbledon boys champion Marton Fucsovics of Hungary, the second seed. Fucsovics went to a third set for the third time in four matches against American Dennis Novikov, yet once again got the win, 6-2, 4-6, 6-3. Because Sock has played so few ITF events, he doesn't know much about the international juniors.

"I don't know anybody outside the Americans here, because I don't play ITFs," Sock said. "I watched him play a couple of games after my match and my coach watched him play for about half the match, but I really don't know much about him, so we'll see how it goes. I don't know many of the guys, so I'm just going out there and playing, trying to play my game. It's worked pretty well so far, so I'm going to just keep doing that."

Fucsovics does recall seeing Sock at last year's Orange Bowl, but isn't really familiar with his game.

"I heard he's playing very well, is playing Futures and Challengers, but I don't know anything about how he plays," said the 18-year-old Wimbledon champion, adding that winning a second junior slam is very important to him. "I haven't seen him play here, but we are in the semifinals, so I think he's playing pretty well."



While Sock's match got tougher as it progressed, Kudla's match with unseeded Filip Horansky of Slovakia got easier, with Kudla taking a 7-5, 6-1 decision on a near-empty Louis Armstrong Stadium.

"At 6-5 I told myself I need to be more aggressive," said the tenth seed, who has now reached his first junior slam semifinal. "So I broke and won the first set. This is a change, this is different," deadpanned Kudla, who had lost the first set in his first three matches and said if he didn't have a two-setter this week, he would be forced to do laundry.

"Then in the second set, I just kind of cruised. I was looking for the early break because when I broke him in the first set, just moving forward worked way easier."

Against No. 8 seed and French Open champion Agustin Velotti of Argentina in the semifinals, Kudla is looking to continue the aggressive play that contributed to his last two wins.

"He's such a fighter, obviously he won the French Open, so you know he loves long points. Luckily I train with Mitchell Frank, who plays similar to that, doesn't miss a ball."

Kudla and Velotti have split their two previous meetings in 2008 and 2009, ironically with Velotti winning on hard courts and Kudla on clay.

The chance for an all-American final is motivating for both Sock and Kudla.

"It would be great if we would play each other in the final. I felt like in Kalamazoo, it should have been the final," said Kudla who had three match points in his semifinal loss to Bob van Overbeek. "But to see each other in the final would be great. He's been going through the tournament a lot easier than I have, but today I think we both showed we belonged in this round."

"It's good that we have two guys in the semis," said Sock. "Half the guys left are American, so that's good and I hope we can both get through and have an all-American final. That'd be nice here at the U.S. Open. Credit him, and hopefully I'll see him in the final."

In the boys doubles, French Open champions and No. 3 seeds Duilio Beretta of Peru and Roberto Quiroz of Eucador will go for their second junior slam title Saturday against Oliver Golding of Great Britain and Jiri Vesely of the Czech Republic, the No. 4 seeds. Beretta and Quiroz won their fourth consecutive straight-set match over Guilherme Clezar and Tiago Fernandes of Brazil 6-0, 6-3. Golding and Vesley advanced to the final with a 7-6(6), 6-7(6), 10-6 win over Baluda and Alexander Rumyantsev.

For complete results and draws, as well as Saturday's schedule, see usopen.org.

Tags: junior tennis, Jack Sock, Denis Kudla, Sloane Stephens, US Open Junior Championships, Colette Lewis

Anderson's Run Continues with Win Over Robson; Stephens Beats Roland Garros Champion; King and Kudla Enjoy Final Junior Tournament

©Colette Lewis 2010--
Flushing Meadows, NY--

On a mostly cloudy, cool and breezy day that produced brisk sales in U.S. Open sweatshirts, qualifier Robin Anderson of New Jersey scored the biggest win of her junior career, defeating No. 8 seed Laura Robson of Great Britain 6-3, 6-2. She is joined in the quarterfinals by No. 15 seed Sloane Stephens, who ousted No. 4 seed and Roland Garros girls champion Elina Svitolina of Ukraine 6-4, 6-0.

Anderson admitted after the match that she was "very nervous" serving out the match against the powerful 16-year-old left-hander from London, but it didn't show in the final game. Down 0-30 after Robson's two winners, Anderson was able to get in back to 30-30 even though she had yet to get a first serve in. Robson had her chance to put pressure on Anderson after another forehand winner, but the unforced errors that plagued her throughout the match reappeared. With Anderson out of position, Robson hit a forehand wide for deuce and on the next point, a backhand error gave Anderson a match point.

Robson controlled it, but Anderson's court coverage and superb defensive skills eventually gave her the advantage, and with a forehand winner she earned a spot in the quarterfinals of her first junior slam.

Asked to compare her win to that of her first round victory over No. 11 seed An-Sophie Mestach of Belgium, Anderson said:

"In the first round I felt she hit the ball much bigger, but also she made a lot of errors. Laura, today she did make a lot of errors, but not quite as much, and I also thought I played a little better in this match than I did in my first match."

Stephens was frustrated by the gusty winds, but felt she handled it better than her opponent.

"She was having trouble with the wind and her ground strokes," said Stephens, who still considers herself a Florida girl, despite living and training at the USTA Center in Carson, Calif. "She would hit some, and the wind would take it, and I could see she was losing a little bit of confidence after a couple of shots went out. I just tried to stay focused on what I was trying to do, and it worked."

Anderson will play top seed and Youth Olympic gold medalist Daria Gavrilova of Russia in the quarterfinals, while Stephens is up against Australia Open girls champion Karolina Pliskova, the No. 6 seed, of the Czech Republic.

Puerto Rico's Monica Puig, at No. 5 the only seed remaining in the bottom half, will face unseeded Yulia Putintseva of Russia for a place in her first grand slam semifinal. The other girls quarterfinal will feature Caroline Garcia of France, who beat American Sachia Vickery 6-4, 6-4 on Thursday, against fellow unseeded player Ons Jabeur of Tunisia.



Three of the seven U.S. boys playing Thursday advanced, with Denis Kudla outlasting his close friend and rival Evan King 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-4. Down a set and facing two break points at 3-4, 15-40 in the second, Kudla wriggled out of that precarious position when King just missed a volley on the first break point, and Kudla hit an ace. Kudla broke King at love in the 12th game to even the match, and continued to approach the net to end points in the third set, which featured just one break of serve.

"It wasn't my strategy before the match, but it turned into my strategy," said Kudla. "I saw I was trying not to miss, it was windy, and I thought he was trying to do the same thing, and he was staying with me. So I said, okay I have to do something else, I've got to win these points. So instead of hitting 500 balls down the middle I tried to come to the net, and luckily I volleyed really well today, and it helped me."

In their joint press conference, the pair talked about the experience of playing on Louis Armstrong Stadium in front of a live Tennis Channel audience with the radar guns and the Hawkeye challenge system.

"I enjoyed it," Kudla said. "Unfortunately and fortunately, I got to play Evan, but it's definitely something I'll remember."

"I loved it," King said. "When I saw the schedule I was pumped up, because 1, we had a radar gun, and 2, we had the challenge system, which I probably used a little too much," King said, producing laughter among the reporters present. "It was just a great experience...how many times will you get to play on the biggest second court in tennis, and I got to play my bud on it. Those are good times."

Kudla will play unseeded Filip Horansky of Slovakia in the quarterfinals. The other top half quarterfinal will pit No. 4 seed Jiri Vesely of the Czech Republic against No. 8 seed Agustin Velotti of Argentina.

Wild card Jack Sock had lost in the third round to top seed Yuki Bhambri of India on Louis Armstrong Stadium at last year's U.S. Open junior championships, but he erased all bad memories on that court with a 7-6(4), 6-3 victory there Thursday over No. 5 seed Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia.

Up an early break in the first set, Sock lost it in what he called a "loose game" at 4-3, and serving at 5-6, Dzumhur had two set points. Sock saved the first with a forehand/backhand combination that the Bosnian could not handle and the second with a perfectly executed forehand winner. In the ensuing tiebreak, Sock took control early, and kept the momentum by breaking Dzumhur in the second game of the second set. Although Dzhumur, the ITF Canadian Open champion, had several more chances to get the break back, Sock was able to repel them all, and there was no drama in the final game, with Sock serving it out at love.

Sock will play No. 13 seed Victor Baluda of Russia, who upset No. 3 seed and Australian Open champion Tiago Fernandes of Brazil 6-4, 4-6, 6-3. Dennis Novikov defeated Yasutaka Uchiyama of Japan 7-5, 6-3 in a battle of unseeded players, but the opportunity for an all-American quarterfinal was dashed when No. 2 seed and Wimbledon boys champion Marton Fucsovics of Hungary beat No. 16 seed Mitchell Frank 6-4, 6-1.

In the doubles, there is just one American remaining--Sloane Stephens, who with Hungarian partner Timea Babos has won the last two junior slams. On Thursday, Babos and Stephens, the No. 3 seeds, beat unseeded Nicole Gibbs and Kyle McPhillips 6-2, 6-2. Anderson and Monica Turewicz lost to the Chinese team of Hao Chen Tang and Ran Tian 1-6, 6-2, 11-9.

The last remaining boys team from the U.S. lost in Thursday's quarterfinals. Sock and Andrea Collarini were defeated by Baluda and Alexander Rumyantsev 4-6, 6-7(2), 10-5.

For more coverage of the U.S. Open, see collegeandjuniortennis.com. For complete results and order of play, see usopen.org.

Tags: college tennis, junior tennis, Sloane Stephens, Evan King, Denis Kudla, U.S. Open Junior Championships, Colette Lewis

Seven American Boys Reach Round of 16 at U.S. Open Juniors

©Colette Lewis 2010--
Flushing Meadows, NY--

With straight-set victories on a warm and windy Wednesday, wild cards Jack Sock and Daniel Kosakowski gave the United States two more boys in the round of 16, bringing the total to seven.

Sock defeated unseeded Peter Heller of Germany 6-1, 6-3, and has drawn a lot of attention from the media after his matches, but told a group of radio, video and news reporters that it wasn't affecting his approach to his tennis.

"I felt very good out there actually," said Sock. "I feel like I have a lot of energy, am well-prepared, well-rested and ready to go."

Sock looked particularly confident against Heller, and as he had done in his opening match, came out in dominating fashion. He rifled forehands past the German with regularity and made few errors. Sock did not play as cleanly in the second set, losing his serve once, but he finished the match before there was any really stressful situation. Sock will play No. 5 seed Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia on Thursday. Dzumhur won the Grade 1 Canadian Open last week.

Kosakowski gave his serve much of the credit for his 6-3, 6-2 win over Joris De Loore of Belgium.

"I served really well," said Kosakowsi, who had eight aces. "I don't think I faced a break point."

The UCLA freshman, who starts school in two weeks, has played only eight ITF matches this year and has won them all. After winning the Grade 1 International Spring Championship in April, Kosakowski didn't play another until Sunday, when he took the court at a junior slam for the first time.

"I just told myself when I went out on the court not to look around," Kosakowski said. "I'd be overwhelmed. So I just thought stay focused, remember that it's just a tennis match and play my game."

Kosakowski said he was happy to have received the wild card and to have an opportunity to play at the top junior level.

"I've always had belief, but I haven't had the chance to show my game, and now I'm getting a chance. The USTA gave me a chance to play, and I'm grateful for that."

Kosakowski will play No. 8 seed Agustin Velotti of Argentina, the Roland Garros boys champion, on Thursday.

Other U.S. boys in action on Thursday are No. 10 seed Denis Kudla and Evan King, who play each other on Louis Armstrong Stadium, Dennis Novikov against Yasutaka Uchiyama of Japan, Andrea Collarini against Filip Horansky of Slovkia, and No. 16 seed Mitchell Frank against Wimbledon boys champion Marton Fucsovics.

In girls play on Thursday, No. 15 seed Sloane Stephens joined Sachia Vickery and Robin Anderson on the U.S. roster of second round winners, along with Puerto Rico's Monica Puig, the No. 5 seed.

Stephens defeated Ran Tian of China 6-3, 7-5, avoiding a third set with a break at 5-6. Tian matched Stephens' pace and hit several shots that had the 17-year-old Californian exclaiming "too good," but Tian didn't serve well on crucial points. It could have been the gusty wins, nerves or a lack of experience on the big stage that led the 16-year-old to fail to execute in that final game. Stephens will play Roland Garros girls champion Elina Svitolina of Ukraine, the No. 4 seed, who beat wild card Ellen Tsay 7-6(3), 6-0.

On an adjacent court, Krista Hardebeck was serving for the match at 5-4 in the third set against No. 9 seed Gabriela Dabrowski of Canada, but she was broken at love. Dabrowski came up with the winners in the last two games, hitting an ace to save a break point at 6-5, and then hitting two backhand winners at 30-30 to take a 7-5, 2-6, 7-5 decision over the 15-year-old wild card from California.

Puig got off to a slow start, but recovered quickly for a 6-3, 6-0 win over Anastasiya Vasylyeva of Ukraine. Puig will play Dabrowski Thursday.

Other U.S. players in action Thursday are Sachia Vickery, who plays Caroline Garcia of France, and Robin Anderson, who plays No. 8 seed Laura Robson of Great Britain.

There were several more second round upsets on Wednesday, with Yulia Putintseva of Russia defeating No. 2 seed Timea Babos of Hungary 7-5, 6-3, and Veronica Cepede Royg of Paraguay taking out No. 10 seed Jana Cepelova of Slovakia 6-4, 4-6, 6-2.

The upsets continued in doubles as well. Anderson and Monica Turewicz advanced to the quarterfinals with a 7-5, 7-6(5) win over No. 6 seeds Cepede Royg and Christina Dinu of Romania, and Nicole Gibbs and Kyle McPhillips beat No. 8 seeds Dabrowski and Eugenie Bouchard of Canada 6-3, 6-2.

Boys top seeds Fucsovics and Mate Zsiga of Hungary were upset by Guilherme Clezar and Tiago Fernandes of Brazil 6-3, 6-7(6), 10-4.

Sock and Collarini are the only Americans left in the boys doubles. Trailing 8-5 in the match tiebreaker against France's Mathias Bourgue and Great Britain's George Morgan, Sock and Collarini used a combination of good play and good luck to win the final five points of the match. At 8-8, Morgan hit an excellent second serve to Collarini, who mis-hit a return that ended up being a lob winner on the baseline. Sock then hit an unreturnable second serve to claim the victory.

For the complete results and schedule, see usopen.org.

Tags: junior tennis, Daniel Kosakowski, Jack Sock, US Open Junior Championships, Colette Lewis

Novikov Upsets No. 7 Seed To Join Four Other American Boys in Round of 16

©Colette Lewis 2010--
Flushing Meadows, NY--

The five wins by American boys in Tuesday's second round action ran the gamut. There was a 38-minute blowout, a come-from-behind victory, a second set reversal, a long two-setter and a retirement.

Dennis Novikov was leading No. 7 seed Duilio Beretta of Peru 2-6, 7-6(5), 4-1 in the final set when Beretta retired.

"In the third set, I got up pretty quick, broke him first game, held, then at 4-1 deuce, he retired due to cramping," Novikov said, admitting to a little surprise when Beretta could not continue. "In the third set he was kind of slowing down a little bit, not getting to as many balls as he did in the first and second sets."

Novikov, who recently began training at Bollettieri's Academy in Bradenton, put his level of play at 8, on a scale of 1 to 10.

"I didn't play my best. In the first set, my first serve wasn't great, but I picked it up in the second and third, served really well."

Prior to the match, the 16-year-old received some advice from the legendary coach who is now overseeing his training.

"He said don't be so nervous, and play for fun," Novikov said. "Last year I played here and lost a tough match to (Tiago) Fernandes, but this year I'm better, doing better, playing well, so I'm here to win even more matches."

He will play unseeded Yasutaka Uchiyama of Japan in Thursday's third round.

Evan King had the quick match, with the unseeded wild card beating Mate Delic of Croatia 6-0, 6-0. No. 10 seed Denis Kudla came from behind for the second straight match, this time defeating Kevin Krawietz of Germany 4-6, 6-4, 6-2. The longtime friends and junior tennis rivals will play in the the third round on Thursday.

Mitchell Frank, the No. 16 seed, took the first set from the powerful but erratic Oliver Golding of Great Britain 6-4, but Golding looked more determined to eliminate the unforced errors at the start of the second set. He broke Frank, and serving at 2-1, had a 40-0 lead, but he lost that game and the next four in a row. Frank will now play No. 2 seed and Wimbledon boys champion Marton Fucsovics of Hungary, who for the second straight match, lost the first set but pulled out a win. Fucsovics ended the run of qualifier Alexios Halebian 3-6, 6-1, 6-3.

Andrea Collarini again needed nearly an hour for each set, but unlike Monday, when it was three sets, the U.S. wild card beat unseeded Guilherme Clezar of Brazil on the Grandstand in two, 7-6(1), 6-3. He will play Filip Horansky of Slovakia on Thursday.

The only two U.S. girls advancing on Tuesday were those who played a compatriot. Qualifier Robin Anderson beat wild card Kyle McPhillips 6-3, 6-0, and wild card Sachia Vickery defeated qualifier Brooke Austin 4-6, 6-3, 6-2. Wild card Caroline Price put up a spirited fight against No. 1 seed Daria Gavrilova of Russia, but came out on the losing end of a 6-2, 2-6, 6-1 score.

Qualifier Chanelle Van Nguyen had the opportunity to play on the Grandstand court against No. 8 seed Laura Robson, but she fell short of extending the 2008 Wimbledon girls champion to a third set, losing 6-3, 7-6(3). Anderson is Robson's third round opponent.

Although the U.S. girls couldn't pull off the upsets, there were two big ones today. 2010 Wimbledon girls champion Kristyna Pliskova, the No. 7 seed from the Czech Republic, lost to Caroline Garcia of France 7-5, 6-4. Ons Jabeur of Tunisia, the 2010 Roland Garros girls finalist, repeated her win in Paris over No. 3 seed Irina Khromacheva of Russia 6-3, 6-3.

It wasn't a good day for No. 2 seeds in doubles. Seconds seeds in the girls draw, Kristyna and Karolina Pliskova, were defeated by (and this will take me a while--thank goodness I don't have to pronounce it, just type it) Ganna Poznikhirenko of Ukraine and Zarah Razafimahatratra of Madagascar 7-6(4), 6-3.

Boys No. 2 seeds Renzo Olivo and Agustin Velotti of Argentina lost to the unseeded U.S. wild card team of Collarini and Jack Sock 6-2, 6-0. Collarini and Sock have never played doubles together prior to today.

For Tuesday's complete results and order of play for Wednesday, see usopen.org.

Tags: junior tennis, US Open Junior Championships, Dennis Novikov, Colette Lewis

Transcript of Patrick McEnroe and Jose Higueras Player Development Conference

Here is a link to Monday's Player Development news conference. I obviously would like to do more with this, but it might be a few weeks before I'll have a chance. Comments, with a name provided of course, are welcome.usopen.org.

For those who would rather read the transcript, it can be found here.

Tags: college tennis, junior tennis, Patrick McEnroe, Jose Higueras, USTA Player Development, Colette Lewis