Black Tennis Pros

There's really not much to say here. American Serena Williams took her third U.S. Open Championship Sunday night in the Arthur Ashe Stadium by defeating Serbian Jelena Jankovic 6-4, 7-5. It was a well contested match on both sides.

When asked which title was the most exciting, Serena said "every one is so exciting, believe me. This is cool because I'm at No. 9. I'm pushing the doors closer to double digits, which of course I want to get to."

"I think this title meant more to Serena than any title she's ever won," her father and coach, Richard Williams said.

At the net, Serena said to Jankovic, "I'm sorry I got so excited."

The photos say everything else.

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I see that Ms. Mouth All Mighty Tongue Everlasting Sarah Palin can stick and move when she's surrounded by her crew, but she won't sit her moose hunting behind down in a chair with the rest of the candidates on Sunday morning and discuss all of the smack she laid out last Wednesday evening at the RNC.

Put up or shut up Sarah Palin!

I'm not in love with John McCain, but at the very least he'll look you in your eye when he fantasizes.

The Los Angeles Times "Top Of The Ticket" wrote the following post:

Sarah Palin will be missing from action Sunday a.m.

As is The Ticket's custom, a post listing the entire roster of appearances on this Sunday's interview programs will pop up Saturday at noon PDT (3 p.m. EDT).

But here's an advance heads up, in part because of who WON'T be found on any of the chat shows.

Three of the four now-official candidates on the major-party presidential tickets are scheduled to sit down for questions: Democrat Barack Obama on ABC's "This Week," his running mate, Joe Biden, on NBC's "Meet the Press" and Republican John McCain on CBS' "Face the Nation."

Absent from this list, of course, is the GOP's star of the moment, the not-so-long-ago obscure governor of Alaska who is McCain's running mate, Sarah Palin.

Since she was thrust onto the national stage a week ago, her appearances on it have been tightly regulated by the McCain campaign: a few side-by-side campaign stops with him and, of course, her big speech to the GOP's convention Wednesday night.

Today, top McCain aide Rick Davis indicated the campaign isn't in any hurry to slot Palin for a Sunday show appearance -- and will do so only if he and other strategists determine it serves the ticket's purposes, not because some may view it as a required initiation for a major political player.

Appearing on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" show, Davis said, "I'd never commit to anything in the future. ... Our strategy is in our hands, not the media's. We're going to do what's in our best interests to try to win the election. If we think going on TV news shows are [sic] in our best interests, we'll do it. If we don't, we won't."

Palin still will be busy this weekend. She'll campaign Saturday with McCain in two key states -- Colorado and New Mexico -- and she'll deliver his campaign's weekly radio address. That's one of those trappings of the presidency McCain has borrowed (notwithstanding the barbs his forces like to sling at Obama along these lines).

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Tropical storm Hanna has had her way with quite a bit this weekend. One thing in particular is the scheduling of U.S. Open events. The Women's Singles Final featuring American Serena Williams and Serbian Jelena Jankovic has been rescheduled for Sunday, September 7, at 9 p.m. in the Arthur Ashe Stadium.


Since we were not able to watch the final this evening, how about we check out sisters Venus and Serena Williams and their significant others. The ladies know how to prepare for a tournament don't they? Snazzy outfit...check; racquets...check; family members for box...check; significant other...check check; incognito look while with significant other...check check check!

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Thunderous applause from the spectators in the Arthur Ashe Stadium could not compare to the leaps of joy by American Serena Williams when she defeated Russian Dinara Safina 6-2, 6-3, at the U.S. Open on Friday.

Serena is now into the Womens Single's final of the 2008 U.S. Open. It's been a while and it's a joy to see her in the upcoming final.

"It's so awesome," said Serena.

"You know, it's been just an awesome summer you know, I'm just happy to be, you know, finally back in the finals for once, you know, an American in the finals here, so...I'm really excited."

The former and potentially upcoming world no. 1 proved to be a seasoned pro. To accommodate a very windy day, Serena slowed down her power game and played a very controlled match. Safina, not quite so seasoned yet, seemed to want to play her regular game and consequently, with an assist from the wind, sprayed balls everywhere.

When asked about combating the wind and keeping her unforced errors to a minimum, Serena said, "I don't know, you know I thought okay, if it's so windy then I'm not gonna you know, go for as many winners and just stay out here and do what I can."

Marat Safin's younger sibling became very frustrated with her inability to play as she has been over the rest of the tournament. So much so, that when one of Serena's shots hit her in the chest, she appeared to call Serena a female canine. Serena attempted to apologize, but Safina wasn't trying to hear it at that point. But it was all good at the end of the match. Serena again apologized during their handshake at the net and Safina appeared to genuinely accept it. Phew! With the world no. 1 on the line a lady can get hostile!

No worries Safina, your day will come.

Serena is now set to play Serbian Jelena Jankovic in the final. When asked about the match up, Serena said, "you know I think she's playing really well and she's just having so much fun...she has nothing to lose, and neither do I, so it'll be a really good match."

Serena had friends and family in the stands supporting her, including quarterfinal opponent sister Venus Williams.

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Longer Off-Season • 30% increase in off-season (7 to 9 weeks, with season to end in October) Streamlined Calendar Structure • 20 Premier events featuring top players (reduced from 26 Tier I/II events): - 4 Premier, mandatory, $4.5 million equal prize money combined events anchoring calendar in Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid and Beijing - 15 other Premier events, including $2 million events in Dubai, Rome, Cincinnati, Toronto and Tokyo, and other top events in Paris, Charleston, Stuttgart, Stanford, Los Angeles, Sydney, Berlin, Eastbourne, New Haven and Moscow - Season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships in Doha, featuring equal prize money of $4.45 million • 30 International tournaments, culminating in season-ending Commonwealth Bank International Tournament of Champions Healthier Calendar • Longer off-season, more in-season breaks for players (eg. post-Wimbledon) • Player commitment reduced by 23%, from 13 to 10 tournaments for top players • Limitation on top player ability to play events outside of 20 Premier events Record Prize Money • 39% increase in Tour prize money from 2006 to 2009 Equal Prize Money • Equal prize money at 4 Grand Slams, 4 Premier cornerstone events (Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid and Beijing), Dubai and season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships Record Investment • $710 million in new stadium facility investments, including world-class new stadiums in China and Madrid • $84 million in season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships deals in Doha 2008-2010 and Istanbul 2011-2013 More Combined/Back-to-Back Events • 31% of events will be combined men/women • 46% of events will be either combined or back-to-back in 2009 Revenue Sharing • Tennis' first ever revenue sharing to see players share in tournament revenue growth, and link player commitment to increases in prize money China • Major Tour presence and expansion into China market, with China Open as one of the four cornerstones of the calendar, and a new Asia-Pacific Tour HQ in Beijing New Ranking System • Best 16 results and more directly linked to the Tour's top events by awarding of "zero pointers" for any missed Premier commitment tournament, Grand Slam or the Sony Ericsson Championships Stronger Penalties/Suspensions • Suspension system for Top 10 players who miss Premier commitment tournaments and increased withdrawal fines Click here to see the 2009 Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Calendar. The 2009 Tour calendar features 54 tournaments (inclusive of the four Grand Slams) across 31 countries and record prize money of over $86 million. The international breadth of tournaments includes 25 events in Europe, 15 events in the Americas and 14 events in the Asia-Pacific region. Seventeen combined events include Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid, Beijing, Sydney, Moscow, Eastbourne, New Haven, Brisbane, 's-Hertogenbosch, Estoril, Memphis and Acapulco, along with the four Grand Slams. Eight back-to-back men/women events include Dubai, Tokyo, Rome, Cincinnati, Canada, Auckland, Bastad and Warsaw. 2009 will also see new tournaments in Madrid, Brisbane, Monterrey, Ponte Vedra Beach, Bastad, Warsaw and Osaka. Additionally, in 2011, Rome, Cincinnati and Canada will all be combined men/women events. On Court Coaching The 2009 Roadmap calendar will also feature on-court coaching at all events, following approval by the Tour Board at its US Open meeting of this fan entertainment innovation. The decision to implement on-court coaching follows extensive testing of the concept and strong support from broadcasters, sponsors and tournaments and majority support from the Tour's Players Council. Under the new rule, players can request their coach once per set, either on a changeover or at the end of a set. In addition, a player may request her coach if her opponent has requested a medical timeout or change of attire/toilet break. All coaches called on court during televised matches will be required to wear a microphone to capture the coaching conversation for TV viewers. "I applaud the Tour for taking a bold step to increase access and enhance entertainment for TV viewers," said Jason Bernstein, ESPN's Senior Director for Programming & Acquisitions. "Women's tennis has been a leader in player access initiatives, and on-court coaching will be a great addition for the fan experience."

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