Jack Socks Kudla

[As you all know, the U.S. Open men's singles final was rained out today, for the third year in a row. I think it's God's way of telling the USTA to cut out this Super Saturday nonsense. . . So Novak Djokovic gets an enormous break, or at least a fair shake. He'll now have the customary day of rest between that brutal, draining semifinal he played against Roger Federer. And Rafael Nadal, his quest for a career Grand Slam postponed for a day, must be thinking, "I never thought it would be this complicated. . ." More thoughts on the final (it will begin at 4 P.M. tomorrow afternoon) in the morning. Meanwhile, here's a report on the boys' (18-and-under) final, which was completed earlier today. - PB]

by Pete Bodo

Shortly after I settled into my seat on Court 11 at the National Tennis Center, where the U.S. Open boys' final was already underway, my pal Jane (most of you know her simply as JB) remarked: "You've got to like a kid who isnt afraid to serve and volley a deuce point."

She was talking about Denis Kudla, seeded No. 10, who had already won the first set over unseeded Jack Sock. Jane and Susan (known hereabouts as lpb) were self-described "sad pandas" owing to Roger Federer's demise, but the kids they watched were doing a pretty good job of cheering them up, even if it was inadvertently.

Both young Americans play fetching tennis and have many of the tools available to their older idols. Both of them used the court well, forever trying to find an opening, and answered every question put to them on this bleak, overcast day with an appropriate response. Or at least the response that a tennis purist or asthete would appreciate. Not once did I think, This kid doesn't have that shot. . .

The distinguishing feature of many junior matches these days is unrelenting ball-bashing, a sullen if dangerous and effective determination to simply out-hit and outsteady an opponent. Actually, it's been like that for a few decades now. But Sock and, to an even greater degree Kudla, could be described as "classic" hard court players, perhaps even throwbacks. Is that a good thing?

Both kids used the whole court, and employed the approach shot, volley, and drop shot as freely as the battlefield conditions allowed. Tactially, these kids are mature. Sock, a tall and soon-to-be rugged lad, is a slightly more contemporary player who likes to load the ball up with topspin. Kudla also hits over the ball more often than not, but he's more inclined to force the action, probing at the sidelines or exploring the angles as he looks for an opportunity to atttack.

I couldn't help feeling slightly retro watching these kids; it could have been Bob Lutz and Dick Stockton out there, working out points rather than planting their feet at the service notch to trade roundhouse punches. Both boys belted the ball with impressive pace and their games dovetailed so nicely that it might have created an inflated sense of the proficiency on display, because know that some guys have a great talent for making each other look good.

But even if that was the case, it sure was fun to watch, and even to fantasize about one or both kids making a mark in the pro game. There was no radar gun to record service speed (I asked the kids after the match, and both of them cited 120 MPH as a good number for when they're serving well, if not spectacularly). I had to wonder, What if a guy like, say, Eduardo Schwank replaced one of them for a few games. Would the kid who stayed look as good? Let's face it, a close stock car race with both vehicles doing 80 looks awfully good, but banging bumpers at 140 mph is a whole other matter.

We had one clue about how these tadpoles might fare in the big pond. Sock had played the main draw with a wild card. Urban legend has it that the Bryan brothers, video recorder in hand, caught up with Sock right before his first-round main draw match with Marco Chiudinelli and asked him where he was going.

"I'm going out to get my ass kicked," he replied brightly, before sprinting off to his doom.

Looking back on the experience today, he said: "He (Chiudinelli) is obviously 60-something in the world for a reason. . . He's a veteran, he's just a little more physical than I am and knows a little bit more about really what he's doing, I guess."

I like the kid's style. I also like his one-two punch of big serve and topspin forehand, although emphasizing those qualities undersells his basic versatility. And I especially like how Sock seemed to get stronger as the match wore on.

Kudla, by contrast, started strong but weakened over the long run—not an uncommon thing for an attack-minded player. "When I'm playing well, I like to move forward. It's something I want to make consistent in my game. I think if I keep doing it, it can take me into the top level."

By the start of the third set, Kudla was donating errors freely, and he appeared to lose confidence. He failed to capitalize adequately on those occasions when Sock lost his range and left balls short, the result of which was Sock leaving fewer balls short. That's what happens when you do things that can make the other guy look better than he himself can. The next thing you know—presto!—he's a monster!

The critical break occured with Sock serving to keep his one-break advantage, at 3-2. Kudla put him under pressure, and held a break point at 30-40. The ensuing point was a beauty at both ends, drawing on a pretty elaborate combination of shots, including a get that found Kudla up near the net with Sock well behind the baseline.

Sock lofted a desperate but fast-moving lob, Kudla appeared ready to leap for the overhead—and froze. He later said: "I didn't expect it to be that good. I knew when it was going up chances of it going in were pretty high. I was hoping something would go wrong, or it would go out. I let it go. It's the best shot he could have hit."

Deuce. Two swings of the racket later, Sock was home free at 4-2, and a dispirited Kudla never won another game.

It's hard to call how the game of either of these kids, in a few years time, might hold up against the ATP rank-and-file. But it seemed enough today to know that they had shocked a field loaded with nominally better players, and that they have a nice, nuanced grasp of the game. For two-plus sets they put on a nice show and played pretty tennis—a gift to any Roger Federer fan in mourning.