US Open Semifinals - Tennis News

US Open Semifinals
By Rich Carlson
Posted: 6:30 am PDT 2006-09-09

The 2006 US Open tennis tournament has been dominated thus far by two main story lines: the retirement of Andre Agassi and the persistent rain showers which have backlogged the playing schedule well into the second week. With Agassi out of the tournament, organizers are hoping the rain stays away from the entertaining men and women's semifinal matches that are scheduled to begin on Friday.

Let's take a closer look at each semifinal matchup:

Men's semifinal No. 1: (9) Andy Roddick vs. Mikhail Youzhny (WagerWeb.com line: Roddick -325)
With the help of new coach Jimmy Connors, Roddick has rediscovered his game, and his early round results at the US Open prove it. After a tough five set victory over No. 22 seed Fernando Verdasco in the 3rd round, Roddick easily dispatched Benjamin Becker, the slayer of Agassi, in three sets, and followed that up with a resounding three-set victory over No. 15 seed Lleyton Hewitt 6-3, 7-5, 6-4. Roddick's path to the semifinals was made much easier with the early round departure of No. 6 seed Tommy Robredo and the quarterfinal loss by No. 2 seed Rafael Nadal. However, with Roddick back on his game, it may not have mattered if those two seeds had faced Roddick. His groundstrokes are deep and punishing, his serve is booming, and he is showing a lot more patience than in recent tournaments.

Youzhny has come out of nowhere to wreak havoc in his half of the men's draw, beating four seeded players on his way to the semifinals, including No. 19 seed Dominik Hrbaty, No. 11 David Ferrer, No. 6 seed Robredo and No. 2 seed Nadal. Most impressive were his 6-2, 6-0, 6-1 destruction of Robredo in the 4th round, and his 6-3, 5-7, 7-6, 6-1 victory over Nadal in the quarterfinals. Youzhny's powerful groundstrokes and aggressive play have served him well thus far in the tournament, and he will need to be at the top of his game to keep up with Roddick.

Roddick and Youzhny have played each other four times previously, with each man winning two matches. Roddick has won the last two encounters, including a 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory in the quarterfinals of the ATP Masters Series tournament in Ohio in 2005. Both players can pound the ball off both sides, and this should be a very entertaining match. Roddick's newfound confidence and patience should be enough to push him through to his second career US Open final.

Men's semifinal No. 2: (1) Roger Federer vs. (7) Nikolay Davydenko (WagerWeb.com line: Federer -1600)
As is the case in most Grand Slam tournaments, Federer has put on a clinic, dropping only one set on his way to the semifinals. Federer has reached his 10th straight Grand Slam semifinal, which ties the Open-era record set by Ivan Lendl from 1985-1988. Federer's precision serve, penetrating groundstrokes and brilliant defense are perfect matches for the quick hard courts at Flushing Meadows, and all the other players know it. If you're an opposing player, your only hope is that Federer has an off day, and even then your chances of winning are slim at best.

Davydenko is the ultimate road warrior of the men's tour, having played 76 matches in 2006. After dominating No. 17 seed Andy Murray in the 4th round 6-1, 5-7, 6-3, 6-0, Davydenko rallied from two sets down to overcome No. 14 seed Tommy Haas 4-6, 6-7, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4. The fatigue from playing such a grueling match could definitely hurt Davydenko against Federer, who has faced a much easier road to the semifinals.

Much of Davydenko's success has come from his ability to get a lot of balls back and wait for his opponents to make errors. Unfortunately for Davydenko, Federer rarely beats himself, so it will be up to Davydenko to hit clean winners and put pressure on Federer.

Federer and Davydenko have played each other seven times before, with Federer winning all seven matches. Their last matchup came in the 2006 Australian Open quarterfinals, which Federer won 6-4, 3-6, 7-6, 7-6. Davydenko has proven that he can hang tough with Federer, but hanging tough simply isn't good enough. Federer is rested and on top of his game, while Davydenko's stamina could come into question after a tough quarterfinal match. Federer is a solid bet to reach the finals on Sunday afternoon.

Women's' Semifinal No. 1: (1) Amelie Mauresmo vs. (3) Maria Sharapova (WagerWeb.com line: Mauresmo -138)
The top-seeded Mauresmo has suffered a couple of minor lapses during the tournament thus far, dropping a set to Mara Santangelo in their 3rd-round match, and getting bageled by Serena Williams in the second set of their 4th-round match. But when the chips were down, Mauresmo's newfound confidence pulled her through, as she was able to regain her composure and pull the matches out. From this point on, Mauresmo cannot afford to suffer such lapses if she hopes to win her third Grand Slam tournament of 2006.

Sharapova has played worthy of being the tournament's No. 3 seed, as she has not dropped a set. However, the level of her competition has not been very high, as the high seeds in her half of the draw (Nadia Petrova and Anastasia Myskina) were defeated early on in the tournament. Sharapova was extended to two tiebreakers in her quarterfinal victory over Tatiana Golovin, which was her closest match of the tournament thus far.

Mauresmo owns a 3-0 advantage over Sharapova in their head-to-head matches, with the last victory coming in this year's Wimbledon semifinals, 6-3, 3-6, 6-2. They have played twice before on hard courts, with Mauresmo winning both matches without dropping a set. If Mauresmo can stay mentally tough and not suffer any lapses in concentration, she should advance to the finals.

Women's semifinal No. 2: (2) Justine Henin-Hardenne vs. (19) Jelena Jankovic
(WagerWeb.com line: Henin-Hardenne -600)
The biggest surprise of the 2006 US Open is the presence of the young Jankovic in the women's semifinals. Jankovic, seeded No. 19, has been a giant-killer in her side of the draw, beating No. 9 seed Nicole Vaidisova in the 3rd round, No. 6 Svetlana Kuznetsova in the 4th round, and destroying No. 4 seed Elena Dementieva 6-2, 6-1 in the quarterfinals. Jankovic showed a lot of poise in winning three tough three-set matches, and should not be intimidated in her first trip to a Grand Slam semifinal.

Henin-Hardenne has been on a roll early on in the tournament, dropping only one set and a grand total of 24 games in five matches. After dropping the first set to Ai Sugiyama in the 3rd round, Henin-Hardenne roared back to win the next two sets 6-1 and 6-0. She followed up that performance with a 6-1, 6-0 demolition of No. 21 seed Shanar Peer, and a solid 6-4, 6-4 victory over No. 10 seed Lindsay Davenport. Henin-Hardenne was treated by the trainer a couple of times in her match with Davenport for an apparent back ailment, which is cause for concern.

Henin-Hardenne and Jankovic have played once before, in 2005 at the Charleston clay court tournament, with Henin-Hardenne winning 5-7, 6-4, 6-3. Jankovic is entering the match with a lot of confidence and with absolutely nothing to lose, and could pose some problems for Henin-Hardenne. Henin-Hardenne is a veteran player who will not look past Jankovic, and should advance to her fourth Grand Slam final of 2006.

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