Salvaging Black Monday for American Tennis

ROCKY DAY FOR AMERICAN TENNIS DAY 1 AT THE BIG W

June 25, 2012 was referred to as Black Monday for American tennis.  Donald Young struck the first ball of Wimbledon and had as disappointing a loss as you'll ever see, blowing a half dozen points to go up two breaks and a set on the imploding seed Mikhail Youzhny.  In the next few games Young went from a confident player strangling a seed on a Wimbledon showcourt, to a rank amateur, getting whisked away in what Brad Gilbert described as "15 minutes."  The U.S.T.A. will not appreciated this adjective, after all the treasure they have sunk into Young's ill-fated career, but Young's performance was embarrassing. It was his 12th consecutive tour loss.  "Shocking to me and people around me." The guy who used to be the poster child for American tennis development is shattered right now.  And that was only the beginning.

Good guy James Blake, now a brittle 32 year old, lived out the exact same script as Young, only an hour later. Up a set and a break with several chances to lock up the second set with another break. And he, too, failed.  Flip the Direct TV feed over to Court 2, and there was gentle Venus, the flip side of the coin to her intimidating younger sister, falling in straight sets. Her loss, the worst in her Wimbledon career, was caused at least as much by her medical condition as it was by the skills of young Russian Elena Vesnina.  They say that since Court 2 has been remodeled, it isn't necessarily the same ol "Graveyard of Champions."  Watching 5-Time Wimbledon champion Venus Williams--yes 5, the combined totals of Evert and Connors--slog through a straight-set drubbing at the hands of a heretofore unknown player is as big a scalp as the old Graveyard ever had.  It was reminiscent of another Great Champion's final match at Wimbledon.  33 years ago Arthur Ashe, plagued by heart troubles, was ushered out of his Wimbledon playing life here on Court 2. Does anyone think Venus will return to the AELTC after her Olympic obligations are over?  We have all learned a bit about Sjogren's Syndrom thanks to Venus, along with grace and humility in her loss.  And to those who say "good riddance" because of her guilt by sibling association? You are revealing your ignorance.  Venus Williams' was a role model for grace under pressure, exiting Wimbledon with a wake of class and dignity. It bears repeating, a five-time Wimbledon singles champion.

American sports fans who wait until lunch to catch up on their sporting news were in for a shock this Monday.  Three of the biggest names in American tennis, had been vanquished from the All-England club before dessert and coffee.   What about Melanie Oudin, she of the stunning grand slam debut as a 17-year old at the 2009 U.S. Open? Having just turned 20 she is now pulling herself together professionally after the inevitable letdown. Leading up to Wimbledon Melanie did something Americans haven't done in decades, she actually won a tour event on English grass.  The 2012 Birmingham champion was facing an unknown on a court without TV cameras.  Unless you were in Southwest London with a precious ticket, you were forced to watch the drama on a computer screen.  This was a three-set thriller, one in which the eye-witnesses reported that she fought bravely, but even on the small screen the numbers were painful to absorb. Broken in the 8th game of the critical third set, little Melanie's Grand Slam comeback was shut down before it began.

What about Wimbledon Marathon Man John Isner? Involved in a 5-setter on Court Three against a Colombian clay courter? That's gotta be money in the bank.  No dice.  The #11 Seed, USA's best shot to go deep into week 2, dead in the water on Court 3.  Black Monday indeed.

Yet like so many of those lengthy days in London, some light seeped through the wall of dark clouds.  That battlin Cajun Ryan Harrison of Louisiana gutted out a 4-setter.  Another Ryan, 24 year old Ryan Sweeting, a U.S. citizen born in the Bahamas, claimed his match after his opponent retired in the second set. Teenager Sloane Stephens won her match, and suddenly there was restored pride in the Red White and Blue. Young players with shiny futures were replacing the aging champions and contenders from a previous era.  The good news continued to roll in as the Centre Court crowd slipped off for dinner.  22 year-old Jamie Hampton entered Court Three moments after the shattered Isner exited.  She proceeded to grind out a spirited straight-set victory over the seeded Slovak Daniela Hantuchova.

The American tennis equivalent of Rocky Balboa, 34 year old qualifier Michael Russell from Detroit, collected his second Wimbledon match victory of his pock-marked career.  5 shiny pennies from a day that had dealt out 6 numbing losses.  As the longest naturally lit tennis day of the year came to a close, there was that irrepressible Jersey girl, Teaneck's Christina McHale, simply refusing to cave to the Britain's Johanna Konta and all her fans flocking about Court 17.  She stubbornly forced the decisive third set into "overtime," and daylight finally failed, the match to be continued on Day 2.

For the American players, 6 ushered out and 6 survive to fight another day. For the fans, it's time to learn some new story lines.  There is talent is out there wearing red, white and blue, and best of all, there is hope.