Court Six: New York Tennis Magazine’s Gossip Column (November/December 2012)
Celebration!
After his U.S. Open triumph, Andy Murray and 30 of his guests went to the trendy New York restaurant, Hakkasan, and racked up a sizeable bill of $6,448. The drinks alone contributed $1,408 to the total bill, and out of all those fancy drinks, including "Green Destinies" and "Zesty Martinis," the only thing Andy drank was the $6 lemon soda!
It’s over
Maria Sharapova has revealed that she has broken off her engagement to former NBA guard Sasha Vujacic. “It was obviously a challenging decision from both of our ends. It was a really nice period of time for both of us, but our career schedules just made it extremely difficult to see each other with the traveling,” said Sharapova. Vujacic, formerly with the Lakers and Nets, has been playing basketball overseas. “He wasn’t home one time during the 10 months that he was in Turkey, so that made it extremely difficult. But we have a tremendous amount of respect for each other. We spent really great years together.”
Andre loves NY
On the very court where he played the final match of his storied career in 2006, Andre Agassi was inducted into the U.S. Open Court of Champions at this year’s U.S. Open. The humbled Las Vegan told the New York fans that the reason he never skipped the event over a 21-year span “quite honestly, is you.”
Goodbye Cardinals
Stanford standout Mallory Burdette, who, in her freshman year, provided the clincher in the Cardinals’ 4-3 win over Florida in the national championship match, advanced to the third round of the 2012 U.S. Open in Flushing Meadows and subsequently turned pro, forgoing her senior year. “I am very sad to leave my coaches and teammates at Stanford, but excited to build upon my recent summer success,” said Burdette.
Baby on the way
Seven-time Grand Slam tennis champion Justine Henin is expecting her first child. The retired Belgian player announced that she is pregnant and the baby is due in March. Henin said she and her partner Benoit Bertuzzo ”have some nice news to announce. Yes, soon there will be three of us.”
Moving on
In addition to the departures of Andy Roddick and Kim Clijsters, another former number one, Juan Carlos Ferrero, said he will retire after playing in his hometown Valencia Open in late October. The 32-year-old Spaniard moved to the top of the rankings in 2003 after winning the French Open and reaching the U.S. Open final, where he lost to Andy Roddick. In 14 years as a professional, he won 15 titles and helped Spain win two of its five Davis Cups.
Williams Sisters set for South African safari
U.S. Open champion Serena Williams and sister Venus will play each other in an exhibition match on a visit to South Africa in early November. Organizers say the Americans will also attend a coaching clinic in the Soweto township when they travel to the country in support of a women’s charity.
Good sportsmanship recognized at U.S. Open
U.S. Open men’s doubles champions Bob & Mike Bryan and 2011 women’s champion Samantha Stosur were the first recipients of the Grand Slam tennis tournament’s sportsmanship award. The USTA sportsmanship award comes with a $5,000 donation to the charity of the winner’s choice.
Fashion Week
Venus Williams debuted the latest collection of her clothing line EleVen by Venus at New York Fashion Week. Williams, who has an associate degree in fashion design from the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale, stuck to her sporting roots by having several athletes model her clothing line. "I really don’t know why all of us athletes are doing [this]. I just know that I went to school and I love design," Venus said. "I try to make a difference in things. This is a big show, but I wasn’t nervous."
Tweets from the tennis pros
►Andy Roddick (@andyroddick): 1-0 in fantasy football!! … How do you win a game when your QB throws one TD and no position players score? I’ll take it!
►Justin Gimelstob (@justingimelstob): Beautiful day in Central Park.
►Maria Kirilenko (@mkirilenko): Finally, I’m back home and having some rest!
►Victoria Azarenka (@vika7): It’s been an amazing three weeks in #NYC … I will always love you and will always come back :)))
►Caroline Wozniacki (@carowozniacki): Kindles are so smart … don’t need to carry heavy books on the road! Great gift from your parents @mcilroyrory.
►Melanie Oudin (@melanie_oudin): Such a fun day shopping!
►Lindsay Davenport (@LDavenport76): Congrats to Liezel Huber who adopted a beautiful baby boy this morning.
►Ryan Harrison (@ryanharrison92): At the airport, Headed to China! Watched Rush Hour 2 last night … perfect preparation!
►Serena Williams (@serenawilliams): Ummmm … I’m kinda obsessed with "How I Met Your Mother!"
►Venus Williams (@venuseswilliams): I can’t believe #GREYGOOSE created a drink named after me! The guests at my EleVen by Venus Williams presentation seemed to love The MaVen!
►Bob Bryan (@Bryanbros): Up early on Davis Cup Day 1. Need a double shot to jump-start my day, but I doubt I’ll find a Starbucks in this ghost town.
