U.S. Open
It was one of the most unlikely of U.S. Open women's finals today, as Flavia Pennata defeated her compatriot and friend, Roberta Vinci, 7-6, 6-2, to capture her first, and apparently only, major championship title.
I say her last, because after securing the surprisingly convincing and easy victory, Pennata announced her retirement from the sport.
Such was the odd ending of an odd tournament that will likely best be known for what the loser of this match managed to do to reach the Final, which was also her first ever Grand Slam final, as well.
Vinci got there, of course, by pulling off one of the biggest upsets in recent sports history, as she overcame a first set loss to heavily favored Serena Williams to win the last two sets and shock the tennis world. The result was considered one of the biggest upsets in tennis history, and on the televised broadcast, they were comparing it to other major sports upsets in recent decades, from the Giants defeating the undefeated Patriots in the Super Bowl, to Mike Tyson being knocked out by Buster Douglas, Villanova shocking Georgetown in the 1985 March Madness tournament, and the "Miracle on Ice" victory by the U.S. National Team over the Soviet Union in the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics.
I would also add the Jets victory over the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III, and Muhammad Ali's victory over Sonny Liston in 1964 to win the heavyweight title. Also, I think Duke's shocking victory over previously unbeaten UNLV qualifies, as well. Perhaps the Denver Nuggets shocking the Seattle Supersonics in the first round of the 1994 NBA Playoffs, something that I remember well. There may be others which are eluding me at the moment.
But the circumstances were amazing. Everyone had penciled Serena in for a calendar Grand Slam, and she had dominated in such a manner as to suggest she would probably easily win the last two matches. When she raced out to a dominant start in dispatching with Vinci in the first set, it looked like things were going very much according to the script.
Then, rather inexplicably, Vinci stepped up her game, and started playing some inspired tennis, overcoming a second set break to get back to even, then eventually to take the set.
In the third, she managed to do it all again, and eventually wore Serena down, culminating in a huge upset.
She showed some class after the win, apologizing to the American fans who were hoping for Serena to succeed, but saying it was her day.
Today, however, belonged to Pennata, who is the U.S. Open champion of 2015, and goes out of the sport the best way that anyone could: on top.
MLB
I have been quite impressed with the Toronto Blue Jays this season, and wish them the best. It looks like they have a good chance at winning the division, which would be wonderful, especially for fans north of the border.
Also, the Mets look like they might actually win the division! What a year in MLB!
NFL
Is it really a surprise that the Patriots defeated the Steelers in the opening game on Thursday night?
The Patriots looked fired up, perhaps particularly Tom Brady. After a tumultuous offseason, in which they probably were not able to enjoy their Super Bowl title as much as most champions usually are, they seem ready to make a statement this year.
Brady threw four touchdown passes, although again, his detractors will probably go right to their fall back position of assuming that he is cheating.
I recently heard some fan suggest that all of the Patriots Super Bowl titles are tainted, that it was the result of a mixture of them cheating, and luck.
However, I will repeat, there is no fluke to them winning those Super Bowls. Close or not, the fact of the matter is that since 2001, the Patriots have qualified for six Super Bowls, and won four of them - both easily records during that stretch that no other team can even come close to. Luck could be a part of it, and maybe the cheating happened, although I think it is overstated.
Love them or hate them, the Patriots are the legitimate champions of the league. Deal with it.
So, here are my predictions for Week One:
NY Jets defeat Cleveland
Miami defeats Washington
Carolina defeats Jacksonville
Buffalo upsets Indianapolis (tight game, could go either way)
Green Bay defeats Chicago
Seattle defeats St. Louis
Kansas City defeats Houston (tight game, could go either way)
Tampa Bay defeats Tennessee
Cincinnati defeats Oakland
Minnesota defeats San Francisco
Baltimore defeats Denver (tight game, could go either way)
San Diego defeats Detroit
Arizona defeats New Orleans
Dallas defeats NY Giants
Philadelphia defeats Atlanta (tight game, could go either way)
Boxing
Mayweather won in a fight that many people felt was a sham, and received very little press coverage. I did not even realize he was fighting until the day before the supposedly big fight.
Now, he has officially retired, which would allow him to retire matching Rocky Marciano's unblemished 49-0 record.
Still, as far as I am concerned, he should be remembered more for the hits he landed outside of the ring than inside of it. He has been guilty of domestic abuse, and deserves to be in jail, as far as I am concerned.
No comments:
Post a Comment