Tonight the crowd at the US Open showed that they could be passionate, that they could give standing ovations, that they could carry a player when he was in danger of losing. They showered love on Federer. Federer lost the first two sets to Monfils, but came back to win the match.
Personally, I don't mind Federer. He's not my favorite male player (Nadal and Djokovic are), but I respect him because he's so good. He's a beast! as my daughter is fond of saying. Well, he was a beast; he's not as explosive as he once was.
He's also blessed. He has two home courts: here in the US and home in Switzerland.
"How huge was the crowd for you tonight," Federer was asked after the match. "It was unbelievable. It was incredible," he responded.
The crowd roared in response.
Serena, on the other hand, has no home court. I'll be watching Serena's game tomorrow and I'll be thinking of the enthusiasm that I saw tonight. The thunderous applause. You can bet your bottom dollar that the crowd will find some reason - some reason probably provided by Mary Carillo - as to why they just must support Wozniacki.
See USA Today's headline:
Caroline Wozniacki is your new non-Serena US Open favoritehttp://ftw.usatoday.com/...
What did I tell you? By the time they get around to game time, Wozniacki will be the crowd's favorite. I have seen this story played out so many times before. It was Hingis, Clijsters , it is always Sharapova, and on and on. What more can Serena give, I ask you?
I am still taking bets about tomorrow. Any takers? Anyone?