Del Potro Pulls Greatest Upset in U.S. Open History

Del Potro shocks tennis world, rallies twice to down Federer.

Roger Federer enjoyed 2,200 days of undefeated tennis at the U.S. Open – That streak ended on Monday as 20-year-old Juan Martin Del Potro shocked the world by coming back not once, but twice against the mighty Roger Federer to beat him in five glorious sets, 3-6, 7-6, 4-6, 7-6, 6-2.

During the first 19 games of the match, Del Potro looked nervous and lost as if the occasion had completely overwhelmed him. His shotgun serve was shooting blanks and his blistering forehand was missing in action.

But something strange happened around 5-5 in the second set; Del Potro began to believe in himself. Suddenly the booming serve was finding its mark and the forehand began to do its damage. Del Potro evened the match and seemed ready to take down the five-time U.S. Open Champion.

But disaster struck for the young Argentine when he hit two consecutive double faults to throw away the 3rd set. But Delpo would not go softly into the night. He actually seemed invigorated by the loss.

He found his game once again and began dictating the points. Federer began to lose his cool and even pulled a Serena, using audible expletives in front of a national television audience while berating the chair umpire.

Delpo took the fourth set tiebreaker and handled Federer easily in the fifth set. The giant killer blasted Nadal in yesterday’s semifinal and stole the king’s crown tonight. So many great players have tried to knock off Federer during his five-year win streak, but it was bull from Argentina that finally humbled the number one player in the world.

Having followed the exploits of Juan Martin Del Potro all summer long – I was honored to pick Delpo as the man who would end Federer’s long reign of power at the U.S. Open when the tournament began on August 31, 2009.

Here’s a brief list of articles and links chronicling his run through the 2009 U.S. Open Championships:

Monday, August 31, 2009
Beware the Dark Horse from Argentina

Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Murray Melts Down, Del Potro Hungry for More

Saturday, September 12, 2009
Nadal-Federer Final? -- Don’t Count on It: 20-year-old Del Potro prepared to shock the tennis world

Sunday, September 13, 2009
Look for Del Potro to Derail Federer’s Win Streak

Teen Sensation Melanie Oudin into the Quarters - No More Russians Left to Play

Melanie Oudin takes out four Russian players, one in each round.

Teen sensation Melanie Oudin has taken the U.S. Open by storm this year with a dazzling combination of fire and ice. Her spirit and intensity blends beautifully with her ability to manage her emotions under pressure.

Oudin seemed overwhelmed by the occasion and the Labor Day crowds as soon as she stepped onto the court this afternoon. Melanie had shown maturity far beyond her 17 years during the past week and it all seemed to be catching up to her.

13th seeded Nadia Petrova came out firing, breaking the teen at will and running away with the first set by a score of 6-1. Oudin was on the ropes, down a set and oh-so-close to falling behind 5-3 in the second.

But after stunning wins over Elena Dementieva and Maria Sharapova, people are learning that you can’t count the teen from Georgia out. She’s displaying the fierceness of a Rafael Nadal with the compact stature of a Justine Henin.

Petrova and Oudin traded punches until they found themselves in a second set tiebreaker. Petrova had a look of disbelief that the match had come this far. That shred of uncertainty coupled with Oudin’s killer instinct resulted in a convincing 7-2 win for the American in the breaker.

With the match tied at a set-a-piece, Oudin began to assert herself over the stunned Russian. She finished off Petrova, tossed her racquet into the air and raised her hands in triumph. There were no tears this time from Oudin – she was already thinking about the next round.

She advances to the quarterfinals where she will face another Russian-beating teenager, 19-year-old Caroline Wozniacki from Denmark. The 9th seeded Wozniacki gutted out a tough 4th round match under the lights upsetting the 6th seed and final Russian in the tournament, Svetlana Kuznetsova: 2-6, 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-3).

The two teens are both first time grand slam quarterfinalists and will have a day to rest before they mix it up for a spot in the semis.

Melanie Oudin Slays Another Tennis Giant

Melanie Oudin continues her assault on the tennis world.

Add Maria Sharapova to the list of top women knocked out of the grand slam tournaments by giant-killer, Melanie Oudin. The 17-year-old Georgian continues to serve notice at the U.S. Open Championships that she is for real after her 3-6, 6-4, 7-5 3rd round win.

Moments after knocking out Sharapova, Oudin told the packed house of well-wishers, “I don’t even know what to say right now, thank you so much for cheering for me.”

That kind of humility and innocence is winning her fans worldwide.

With her left thigh tightly wrapped, and her underdog status firmly in place, Oudin strode into Arthur Ashe Tennis Stadium and picked up right where she left off when she beat Elena Dementieva in the second round.

At first, the blistering pace from Sharapova seemed to be too much. Oudin fell in the first set by a score of 6-3. But If Sharapova sensed that victory was near, Oudin had other ideas. Sharapova was being pressured in every service game – and finally, the wheels started to come off.

The double faults began piling up and before the crowd knew what hit them, Oudin claimed the second set.

With the match even, Oudin quickly went up another break in the 3rd set when Sharapova made a strategic call to the trainer. Surely that would cool off this little upstart. And for one game, this possible display of games-womenship paid dividends. Sharapova broke back leveling the match at 3 games a piece in the third.

But the fiery Melanie Oudin is quickly establishing a record of mental toughness. She’s more than scrappy, she’s a true pitbull. She dug deep and broke Maria right back, punctuating the win with a fist pump and a “C’MON!!”

Each woman continued to trade breaks until Melanie the Lionhearted slammed the door on Sharapova in the third and took her rightful place in 4th round.

Look out world, this kid is here to stay.