The 2013 New York Fashion Scoop

New York, a fashion capital of the world, has always seen displayed some of the most exciting tennis apparel. This year's US Open was no exception with most of the players dressing up to the occasion. Among the stand-outs, Venus Williams wore a gipsy-inspired floral dress that once again showed her creative power. Her sister, Serena, was imperial too, looking like the fashion diva that she is in a nicely pink/grey ensemble. In the men's squad, Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal stole the show. While the Swiss looked elegant, yet hip, the Spaniard remained faithful to his athletic, cool style.

In terms of colours, pink and grey dominated the scene, a cool combination, especially if we consider the shades used in Serena's attire. Stella McCartney however, did propose the orange garments I dislike so much. While Wozniacki's dress was once again hideous, Maria Kirilenko was the only one in that camp who showed great taste, selecting something decent-looking. 

Although an ambassador of a less powerful brand, young gun Sloane Stephens is living up to her reputation as the newest fashionista, looking sharp, young and fresh in her magenta UnderArmour dress.

Imperial Sisters

Venus Williams - EleVen

Venus and Serena Williams

Venus Williams proved she is probably the most creative tennis garments creator by showcasing a gipsy inspired floral dress. The cut is great, the fabric seems expensive and the transparency at the top and the hem adds a touch of class. I also liked the separates she wore in doubles, the floral top and the pink skirt, respectively the pink top and the floral skirt. It's all about the details and Venus knows that. Her clothes are unique, sophisticated, hip, and most important, they tell a story. I am a huge fan of her EleVen line.
I am not sure what happened to the hair though, the fuchsia hairdo being too crazy for me to understand.

Serena Williams - NIKE 'Day Look'

Serena Williams - NIKE 'Night Look'

Serena Williams - NIKE

Serena knows how to dress on a big occasion. The American is usually wearing home-wear attire at regular tournaments, however when she steps out on the court at a Slam, she is always looking stunning. At this year's Flushing Meadows, Serena wore an asymmetric dress with a nice cleavage and an interesting back. Pink and grey is one of my favourite combinations, and Serena made a stellar job picking something that looks sharp and expensive. I specifically liked the pink version, the day look, mostly because of the nice shades of pink what were combined.
I do not get the blazer though. It is totally disconnected from the rest of the outfit.

Victoria Azarenka - NIKE

Vika's outfit was very similar to Serena's, although the Belorussian went a bit hipper, more athletic, opting for separates. The garment is not extremely special, it is quite boring actually, but the colours are nice and Azarenka has the attitude to get away with it. 

The Masters of Style

Roger Federer - NIKE 'RF' Group - Day Look

Roger Federer - NIKE 'RF' Group - Night Look

Federer's game is suffering, but his fashion credentials are not. Although I prefer the lighter version of this attire, I stand by my claim that the Swiss is probably the best dressed man on the ATP tour. The night look is elegant, stylish, yet hip.

Rafael Nadal - NIKE 'Rafa Nadal' Line - Day Look

Rafael Nadal - NIKE 'Rafa Nadal' Line - Night Look

Rafael Nadal is the hottest man on the tour right now, and the Spaniard dressed the part at Flushing Meadows. His two looks are extremely now, extremely cool, they are fresh, young and hip. Rafa is the ultimate athlete and he surely looked like one in these clothes.

Red Hot Adidas

Ana Ivanovic - AdiZero

Angelique Kerber - AdiZero

Flavia Pennetta - AdiZero

No surprises from AdiZero, as this is the third version of this dress after the white one showed at Wimbledon, and the blue one we've seen during the North American hard-court season. However, there is something so American in it, something that makes it extremely suitable for New York. It's probably the colour combination, the red and the blue screaming out loud the American flag.

Andy Murray - Adidas

Defending champion, Andy Murray, does not usually produces big fashion statements, and more often than not his fashion taste can be severely questioned. However, this look represents a slight improvement. The colours are nice, and although I am not a huge fan of the black&red combo, it seems to be working here.

Mix and match

Sabine Lisicki - NIKE

Na Li - NIKE

Eugenie Bouchard - NIKE 'Maria Sharapova' Group

With Maria Sharapova out with a shoulder injury, Canadian teen, Eugenie Bouchard, was her brand's sole ambassador in New York. I do like the print, and the orange detailing, plus Genie looks so much better than Sharapova that this is actually looking great on her.

Camila Giorgi - Denise Cronwall

Bethanie Mattek-Sands

Sloane Stephens - UnderArmour

Although she is displaying the same relatively plain dress since Wimbledon, Sloane Stephens is living up to her status as the tour's youngest fashionista by always selecting the right accessories to make her outfits come to life. Love the mix of fuchsia and orange, especially in the pleaded head-band.

Stella McCrazy

Laura Robson - Adidas by Stella McCartney

Maria Kirilenko - Adidas by Stella McCartney

Caroline Wozniacki - Adidas by Stella McCartney

Although she is considered the main ambassador of the Stella McCartney line, Wozniacki often ends up wearing the most hideous piece of the collection. Just take this dress. It's a hot mess. The colour blocking is off, the layering is badly done, plus the cut is crazy. It looks like the Dane is wearing her underpants on top of an apron. And she has two dresses underneath. I am really surprised a designer like Stella could actually send this out there. 

Laura Robson and Maria Kirilenko looked better, the Russian showing once again great taste and fashion smartness to pick the best garments from a disappointing collection.

photos: GETTY IMAGES

Pennetta Restores Italian Order

Flavia Pennetta has been Italy's No.1 for a few years before a serious right wrist injury, cumulated with the rise of her compatriots, Francesca Schiavone, Sara Errani, and Roberta Vinci, saw her lose the spotlight. 

The first Italian female to break into the top 10 in singles in August 2009, as well as Italy's first ever world No.1 in doubles, Flavia suffered tremendously for not being able to play at her full potential lately. In the last seasons, which were plagued by injuries, she stood by and witnessed as her compatriots stole the limelight. Schiavone won Roland Garros in 2010 and made the final in 2011. Errani also made the final of the French Open last season, as well as the semis at Flushing Meadows. Even Roberta Vinci made the last eight in New York, in addition to claiming three Grand Slam doubles trophies with Errani, a performance that made them the world's best doubles team.

So while her compatriots were taking over the world, Flavia was sidelined, recovering from a recent wrist injury that forced her to miss last year's US Open. "I was at Brindisi, recovering from the operation and I was with my parents and watching some of the tennis on the television," she said. "I was pleased that Sara was having an excellent tournament but on the other hand I was very unhappy that I wasn't here." Lots of questions went through her mind, as she wondered when, and if, she would ever reach the same level as in the past. "I hoped I could do it. It didn't come so easy at the start of the year for me but of course I wanted to get back and I hoped I could," she confessed. 

When she lost the quarterfinal match to Kerber in 2011, I felt she missed her date with destiny. Having taken out Sharapova in the earlier rounds, Pennetta had a good chance of making the US Open final that year. However she succumbed to the unheralded German, letting a huge opportunity go by. I didn't think she would get a second chance, especially not at this edition, but she did. At her favourite tournament, Flavia came out guns and blazers to crush her higher-ranked compatriots, Errani and Vinci, as well as former champion, Svetlana Kuznetsova, and fabulous Romanian, Simona Halep, to reach her first Grand Slam semifinal. "These are the two most beautiful weeks of my life, I feel like a player again after all the problems that I've had," declared the Italian. "I feel great at the moment, New York is a place that is truly incredible for me, it is so full of good memories."

Flavia did get a bit lucky with the draw, but all credit goes to her for remaining focused and mentally tough to achieve this incredible feat. I do not believe she can overcome Azarenka to reach the final, but still she has plenty of reasons to be proud of herself and her great run: "I just try to keep working and working in the same way every day. I starting to feel more my forehand, my backhand. Everything starting to feel more normal in the way it was before the injury. And I think I've played really good tennis here, especially with Sara and with Kuznetsova. Every day has felt much better," she added. "I'm proud of myself now. I'm 31, and physically I feel good at last. I'm in my first semi-final in a Grand Slam. There is nothing else to say."

With 30s becoming the new 20s, the more experienced players are clearly dominating this year's US Open. Three of the four semifinalists are over 30, Azarenka being the only exception at 24. Congrats Flavia on an impressive run!

Flavia began her assault at the US Open by stunning her compatriot Sara Errani, seeded four, 6-3,6-1 in the second round. She followed up on the win with a 7-5,6-1 victory against former champion, Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova.

Probably the stiffest test came against hot-gun Romanian, Simona Halep, in the fourth round. The more experienced Flavia used all her wisdom to come through 6-2,7-6 to reach her fourth US Open quarterfinal.

Pennetta restored order in the Italian squad, dismissing higher ranked compatriot, Roberta Vinci, 6-4,6-1 to book her place in her first Grand Slam semifinal.

photos: GETTY IMAGES

Gasquet Steps It Up

Renowned for his habit of losing the important matches, talented Frenchman, Richard Gasquet, stepped it up at this year's US Open, hanging in tough to beat Canadian powerhouse, Milos Raonic. In a gruelling encounter that lasted four hours and 40 minutes, Richard showed much improved mental strength, recovering from one-set-to-two down to triumph 6-7,7-6,2-6,7-6,7-5.

The victory also marks a change of fortune for Gasquet who has a miserable 1-15 fourth round record in Slams. The only time he passed this stage was in 2007 at Wimbledon, where he lost in the semifinals to Roger Federer. At Flushing Meadows, the Frenchman has a good chance of equalling that performance as he goes on to face Spaniard David Ferrer next. Richard has the game and the talent to potentially win a major. However, so far, he couldn't quite challenge the big names. This year saw the rebirth of the Frenchman and maybe the success against Raonic is another huge step in the right direction. However, he really needs to overcome Ferrer to consolidate the great run.

Richard suffered a heart-breaking loss earlier this season, succumbing to Stan Wawrinka in the fourth round at the French Open, letting a two-sets-to-love lead go to waste. He learned from that defeat and the win against Raonic comes as a sort of consolation. The Frenchman was extremely motivated to get the win. At the press conference, he admitted having talked to himself throughout the match, saying “You need to win.” “I did it! And it’s a big victory for me,” declared an enthusiastic Richard. Well done, Gasquet! On to the semifinals!

Richard Gasquet showed much improved mental strength to overcome hot gun Canadian, Milos Raonic, 6-7,7-6,2-6,7-6,7-5 to reach his first quarterfinal at the US Open.

photos: GETTY IMAGES

The Self-Destruction of the Master

"I self-destruct," said Federer after his shock defeat to rejuvenated Spanish veteran, Tommy Robredo, in the fourth round of the US Open. And I totally agree with him. It's painful to witness the all-time great Federer struggle so much on the tennis court nowadays. Sadly, yesterday was no exception.
More often than not, his game completely deserts him, and he is unable to cut down on the unforced errors and to ultimately beat the opponents he is supposed to beat. It's understandable that he might have difficulties overcoming Murray, Djokovic, Nadal, or del Potro, but to lose to Julien Benneteau, Sergyi Stakhovsky, Federico Delbonis, Daniel Brands, or Tommy Robredo, is unacceptable, especially for someone who is looking to win a Grand Slam.
Although he made major adjustments, Federer cannot quite get out of this rabbit hole he entered since the beginning of the season. After Wimbledon, he changed his racquet, opting for a larger one, plus he increased his schedule, adding some smaller tournaments like Hamburg, Gstaad, or Basel, in an attempt to get more matches and rediscover the winning touch. So far the strategies did not pay off, the Swiss being nowhere near his best.

The lackluster form surfaced once more in Flushing Meadows, where Roger failed to convert on the big points, gifting Robredo one of the best wins of his career. “I kind of feel like I beat myself, without taking any credit away from Tommy,” Federer said. “Clearly he was making sure he was making many balls. It was up to me to make the difference and I couldn't. I kind of self destructed, which is very disappointing, especially on a quicker court. Your serve helps you out. You're going to make the difference somewhere. I just couldn't do it. It was a frustrating performance today.”

Frustrating indeed, as Roger could have easily sail through in minimum of sets. However, the missed opportunities (he only converted 2 out of the 16 break points he had) came back to haunt him in the end. The Swiss made 43 unforced error to go down 6-7,3-6,4-6 for the first time in eleven career meeting with the Spaniard. The loss also prevented a much anticipated quarterfinal encounter with arch-rival, Rafael Nadal. “It’s not that much of a disappointment at the end of the day,” Roger admitted. “If I'm playing like this, I'm not going to beat Rafa, or Kohlschreiber, for that matter… I was fighting with other things in my match today. Not thinking too far ahead of myself, especially the level I was playing at."

Having put forth his poorest season in more than a decade, the Swiss now faces a huge challenge to qualify for the Season Endings Championships in London. However, a more important problem for Federer is to start winning these easy matches, so that he builds his confidence back, and begins an uphill climb toward the top of the rankings. “When I lose, people are shellshocked to see me play this way… But there's no doubt about it, I'm trying hard out there trying to make it work. Sometimes it just doesn't happen.” To be fair to Roger, it did happen for such a long time, that it actually feels natural that his extraterrestrial run would end one day. I just hope that day is not today and that Federer will live to fight a few more seasons.

A former top 10 player, Tommy Robredo continued his rejuvenation this year by reaching his first quarterfinal at the Flushing Meadows. The Spaniard took full advantage on an erratic display from Federer to stun the five-time titlist in straight sets.

Although everyone was anticipating a mouth-watering clash with arch-rival Rafael Nadal in the last eight, Federer proved once again that he is going through extremely turbulent times. The Swiss lost to Tommy Robredo in the fourth round, his first defeat to the Spaniard in eleven career meetings.

photos: GETTY IMAGES

No Grand Return for the Swiss Miss

Having made a much-anticipated return to doubles earlier this summer, Martina Hingis was ready to take over the biggest stages, as she continued her partnership with Slovak Daniela Hantuchova to make her Grand Slam comeback at the US Open. 

Since teaming up at the beginning of the North American hardcourt season, Martina and Daniela have only won three matches, losing in the second round in Carlsbad, Toronto and Cincinnati, and the opening round in New Haven. They have been pretty unlucky as far as the draws were concerned, but still, it seems the Swiss Miss needs some time to readjust to the rigours and the updated rules of the WTA tour. 

In New York, the fan-favourite duo have once again been extremely unlucky, being drawn against world No.1's and defending champions, Italians Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci, in the first round. In a highly entertaining encounter, Hingis and Hantuchova played a solid match, before Martina's nerves got the best of her. The Swiss double-falted on the final point, gifting their opponents a 6-3,7-5 victory. "The draw didn't help to play the champion number one seeds," Hingis said. "They had to play well against us but definitely not an easy challenge the first Grand Slam back in it. Definitely we had our chances. We have to take them, too."

Unfortunately for the Swiss Miss, more bad news followed, as she lost her first round mixed-doubles match too. At the end of another nail-biter, Hingis and Indian doubles legend, Mahesh Bhupathi, succumbed 6-7,6-7 to Taiwan's Chan Yung-Jan and Sweden's Robert Lindstedt. Asked to evaluate her results, Martina declared: "I wish I was winning. It would help to win some matches for confidence," she confessed. "Maybe hardcourt is not the easiest one to come back to, playing eight weeks in a row. My body is screaming, 'What are you doing to me?'"

Despite the disappointing performances, Martina is determined to carry on with her plans. "I always play tennis to win matches and tournaments," she said. "We've been close." She and Hantuchova are scheduled to compete in Tokyo and Beijing. Let's go Hingis, let's unravel the doubles magic!

Facing an unlucky draw, Martina and Daniela could not make it past the first round, losing 3-6,5-7 to world No.1s, Italians Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci.

photos: GETTY IMAGES

There's No Stopping Fabulous Simona

By winning the girl’s singles title at Roland Garros in 2008, Simona Halep announced herself as a bright prospect of her generation. However, after a few years on the tour, the Romanian was yet to get her big breakthrough. A disastrous start to the season must have rang a bell though, as Simona turned it around almost overnight, going from someone ranked outside the top 50, to making her top 20 debut when she peaked at No.19 on Monday this week. 

A relatively late bloomer, Simona has been one of the hottest players of the summer having won her first four career titles in no more than three months. Since her dream run in Rome, where she came through qualies to beat Kuznetsova, Aga Radwanska and Jelena Jankovic to make her first Premier semifinal, the Romanian has found success on all surfaces, establishing herself as one of the finest all-rounders. She bagged two trophies on clay, Nürnberg and Budapest, one on grass, s'Hertogenbosch, as well as one on hard just last weekend.

After reaching the quarterfinals in Cincinnati where she succumbed to a flawless Serena Williams, Simona scored the biggest triumph of her career by claiming the title in New Haven. During an excellent week, Halep beat four-time titlist, Dane Caroline Wozniacki, in the semis, before disposing of defending champion, Czech Petra Kvitova, 6-2,6-2 in the final.

I think it is really strange how a few good matches can make such an enormous difference, but since that week in Rome, Halep seems a completely changed player. She is utterly aggressive, while still putting forth her sensational defense game, a lethal combinational for most of the world’s best. Victories over the likes of Radwanska, Jankovic, Stosur, Bartoli, Wozniacki, or Kvitova, attest the fact that the Romanian has found the golden recipe. 

For me the biggest transformation as far as Halep is concerned is her newly found mental strength. In the past, she would get a bit tight in key moments, play too safe, not take chances, ultimately allowing her opponent to dictate the play. This attitude would eventually cost her the match. Since Rome she is more composed out there on the court. She doesn't lose her head anymore, takes her chances and remains determined not to give in even when her opponent is raising her level. A good example was the match against Stosur in Cincinnati. Fresh off her triumph in Carlsbad, the Aussie produced a solid display to level at one set apiece. However, Simona kept her cool, and won the contest. Compared to another Romanian on the rise, Sorana Cirstea, Simona does not have an outstanding weapon. She does have consistency on her side though, and this helps her achieve such incredible results.

With only four losses in her last 35 matches, Halep is now setting her sights on the US Open, where she is seeded for the first time. Provided her body lasts, she could be in for a deep run into the last major of the season.

Nürnberg: Simona won her maiden WTA crown defeating home favourite Andrea Petkovic in the final.

s'Hertogenbosch: One week later, the Romanian found success on grass, overcoming soon-to-be Wimbledon semifinalist, Kristen Flipkens, to continue the winning run.

Budapest: After a tough loss to Na Li at Wimbledon, Simona regrouped by winning the title in the Hungarian capital. In the final she disposed of Austrian Yvonne Meusburger.

New Haven: Following victories over tricky opponents, Ekaterina Makarova and Carla Suarez-Navarro, Halep took out the Yale queen, four-time titlist, Dane Caroline Wozniacki in the semis.

New Haven: Simona was untouchable in the final against defending champion, Petra Kvitova, stunning the Czech 6-2,6-2 to claim her fourth title in no more than three months.

photos: GETTY IMAGES

Monfils Still Can't Pull It Through

Although he is making steady progress in his attempt to regain his place inside the top 10, Gael Monfils seems unable to put together a winning run. This past week the Frenchman played a solid tournament in Winston-Salem, but when faced with the prospect of winning the title, he once again cracked. It's true that this time he can blame a medical condition, but still, like so many other instances in his career, this is yet another missed opportunity.  

Monfils' run to the final was utterly impressive, the talented Frenchman beating rejuvenated Spaniards Tommy Robredo and Fernando Verdasco, as well as Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov. However, the championship match against Austrian Jürgen Melzer ended in disappointing, Gael deciding to call it quits while trailing 3-6,1-2. "I started to feel it yesterday," the former world No.7 explained. "I had a sharp pain. After about 50 minutes [today], I tried to serve at full speed, and that was it. I felt like something snapped a little bit and it was really painful. It was tough to continue. I will try to get an X-ray tonight and see what's going on."

Monfils, a three time Grand Slam junior champion, has long been considered a strong candidate to one day rule the ATP tour. However, injuries and a lack of mental strength have prevented him to leave up to the expectations. Gael is a show-man and he proved that time and time again. Nevertheless, when it comes to winning the big points, or the important matches, he often falls short. His record in finals is strong evidence to attest this. Out of the 19 finals he played so far, he only won 4, the last coming in Stockholm in 2011. Only this season he has lost already two finals, both accessible, one in Nice, against Albert Montanes, and the one on Saturday, against Melzer.

Gael's case resembles pretty much that of German Andrea Petkovic. Like the Frenchman, Petkovic has been struggling with injuries for most of last year, but in the last couple of months she is starting to get her career back on track with some solid performances. However, just like Monfils, she is missing a happy ending, having also lost two finals already, against Simona Halep in Nürnberg, respectively against Magdalena Rybarikova in Washington DC.

With US Open starting in a few hours, it remains to be seen how well the Frenchman will recover after the unfortunately injury. He really needs to start winning these kinds of matches in order to build confidence when tackling the top guns. For this, he needs to be 100% fit though, so steady recovery Monfils. Hope to see some more winner's stamina from you soon.

Monfils played a pretty solid tournament in Winston-Salem, but his week ended in disappointing as he retired hurt while trailing 3-6,1-2 against Austrian Jürgen Melzer in the final.

While Monfils loses his fifteen ATP final, Austrian Melzer bags his fifth career title.

photos (top-down): GETTY IMAGES (x2), AP, GETTY IMAGES