Shortly before 2 pm on Saturday 2^nd September the Auther Ashe Stadium court was alive with the sound of shutterbugs. "Rodapova" was splitting the court, and to the bored, wet fans starving for action, it would amount to splitting hairs to disclose that Andy Roddick and Maria Sharapova were not actually exchanging ground strokes.
     The closest they came to a rally was when Sharapova hit a serve wide and Roddick returned it. For the entertainment-starved crowd, it wsa enough that the two players, who have stated repeatedly that they are just good friends (tabloid reports to the contrary), were close enough to occupy the same frame of a photographer's viewfinder.
     That was especially true during a two minutes period when Roddick changed ends so he could practice serving from the same side of the court as Sharapova, whose shirt read "Love is in the air."
      If the 20-minute session amounted to a date, it was well chaperoned, Sharapova's father,Yuri, hovered nearby as she hit with her pratice partner. Roddick was being observed by his coach, Jimmy Connors, and his brother/coach, John Roddick.
     Roddick repaired to the players lounge upstairs, where he engaged in a spirited game of table tennis with his good friend and former high school teammate, Mardy Fish, in front of a sizable audience of bored players and their weary entourages. Sharapova was not there physically, but judging by the way Roddick grunted with nearly every sho, as Sharapova does, she would seem to have been there in spirit.

- Courtesy TOI

From video game to the real thing....
Agassi-Beater Beacker Makes A Name For Himself

     A few days ago, Benjamin Becker wandered into Arthur Ashe Stadium, hoping to watch a match. The guards kicked him out.
     He didn't have a ticket. Besides, they didn't recognise him-hardly anyone outside the tennis world did, actually.
     That changed on Sunday.
     The 25-year old German, who rarely makes it through a ay without being asked if he's realted to Boris Becker-he's not, never even met him-made a name for himself in the history books. He became the last player to beat Andre Agassi, sending him into retirement with a 7-5 6-7 (4) 6-4 7-5 victory in the third round at US Open.
     Ranked 112th in the world, the 2004 US college champion figured he could rely on his big serve. That is, until he faulted on his first try.
     A the match got going Becker said he went from seeing himself playing Agassi in a video game to playing a real life opponent who could be beaten. Becker kept reminding himself to concentrate on winning the match, rather than what it would mean.

- Courtesy TOI