A sad day in tennis

The look on his face and the tears in his eyes say it all in this picture.  After having to wait overnight to finish his match against Juan Martin Del Potro, Andy came out playing great tennis, winning the 1st set tiebreak handily.  Things were going along great in the 2nd too, but when they got to a tiebreak the general consensus was that whoever took the set would win the match, and that certainly turned out to be true.  You could see the energy begin to drain out of him when he lost that breaker, and with Delpo playing increasingly better he was just outmatched.  I had expected this wouldn't be a match he would win, but there was a little hope with the first set win.  With his final service game I was trying to imprint in my mind his quirky service motion I have gotten so familiar with, the way his body position is when he hits his forehands, and his interesting straight-armed backhands, all of which make him Andy Roddick on the tennis court.  

In the end, though, everyone knew one of he matches this week would be his last.  The emotions on court and in the stands were both heartbreaking and touching at the same time.  The tears came for me watching his wife Brooklyn break down.  I will miss his quick wit and the fun he brings to the tour, but I wish him the best in the life he is now looking forward to starting.

And, of course, it was a sad day for other reasons too.  While I felt nervous about this Berdych match from the start when I saw the draw, I still really expected him to pull it off.  He had been playing so well lately!  And he started off great with a break.  If only he could have held onto that, the whole result could have been very different.  But with his first serve not being very effective and spraying forehands all over the place, things just weren't working in his game, and Berdych was coming on strong.  I did think, when he pulled off the 3rd set, that maybe things were going to turn around with another 2-set-down victory.  It simply wasn't to be, though.  Of course I'm disappointed, but I'm not gutted as I have been in past losses (like a year ago).  Getting the Wimbledon title was huge, as was getting back to #1.  To keep winning every major at the age of 31 would be almost a miracle, so I am going to be happy with what has been accomplished this year, which has been so much, and try not to let it get me down.  I do think he will win at least one more major still (not sure where) and everything he wins now is so exciting!  So hang in there Fed fans through the ups and downs.  Though he sounded pretty disappointed in his press conference, he will rebound as he always does and come back to win more titles to thrill us all!

And in the meantime, I wouldn't mind if someone new were able to step up and win this thing, though obviously Djokovic is the heavy favorite now.