Hello, everyone! I am Xavier Samuel, the part-time tennis writer for The SoBros Network. If you know anything about tennis, then you would know that the US Open started on Monday, August 26th, and I went!
Qinwen Zheng (7) vs. Amanda Anisimova
My father and I started the day off strong at Louis Armstrong Stadium seeing Olympic gold medalist, Qinwen Zheng! The match started off tense with Anisimova winning the first set. Both players were hitting with immense power. Fortunately, our Jersey girl, Amanda, won the first set 6-4. Qinwen was a powerhouse in the second and third set with her serves being 111 MPH! That is a really powerful serve for a women’s tennis player! There were some crazy points like when Anisimova touched the net on game point when trying to hit an overhead shot! In the end, Queen-Wen won 4-6, 6-4, 6-2.
Ben Shelton (13) vs. Dominic Thiem
Next stop, Arthur Ashe Stadium! The energy was ecstatic for an American showman and a former US Open Champion at Arthur Ashe! Shelton’s serve was already on fire. It was hard to see the ball it was so fast! It was amazing seeing Thiem’s one handed backhand! It was the best I’ve ever seen! Shelton’s strategy was amazing. He was going up to the net a lot and was hitting to every corner almost every point. It was beautiful to see Theim retire – he had a great grand slam career. USTA gave him a picture album with all his great moments.
Gaël Monfils vs. Deigo Schwartzman
Grandstand has to have one of the most modernized exteriors for a tennis court in the entire earth. It’s GORGEOUS! Anyways, I was overjoyed to see the showman of tennis, Gaël Monfils, and Diego Schwartzman! The match started with Monfils acing almost every single point. Both players had done amazing tweeners during the first set. For Diego’s height, he was playing unbelievably. They were both putting immense power on all of their shots no matter what. Diego had won the first set in a quick tiebreak. The rallies throughout the whole match were so long, I was shook! In the end, Monfils won 6-7, 6-2, 6-2, 6-1. USTA did the same thing for Diego Schwartzman at the end and gave him a photo album and congratulated him on his amazing career.
Alexei Popyrin (28) vs. Soon-wooKwon
Just in time for Canadian Open champ, Alexei Popyrin! We got there to see the second half of the second set, but it was still great to see. Both players had a very unique style of serving, but they were still so powerful. Alexei’s forehand was on fire. Kwon had an exceptional slice. In the end, Popryin ended up winning 7-5, 6-2, 6-3. Plus, I got an autograph from Popyrin who later went on to beat Novak Djokovic!
Extras
As soon as we got off the very uncomfortable train, we took lots of pictures and I was overjoyed to see the magic and great vibe of the US Open. We headed over to see Matteo Berrettini over on court 11 to practice. Surprisingly, it wasn’t very crowded. Berrettini was on fire. His forehand and backhand had huge spin and power on them. His serve was incredible. I got his autograph too!
After the Zheng and Anisimova match, we went to get lunch at San Matteo Pizza. I had the margarita pizza and it was SO GOOD! It was so cheesy unlike most margarita pizzas and the sauce, forget it, it was the best pizza sauce EVER! Unlike other margarita pizzas, you can actually taste the basil which was so nice to actually taste basil on a pizza. If you are planning to go to the US Open, I would recommend San Matteo or Eataly.
