How Far Will Andre Agassi Go At The US Open?

This is the last go-round for Andre Agassi.

And fans don't know whether they should check out his early round matches to form final life-long memeories or just start watching the second week.

With Andre these days everything depends on his health and fitness.

If he's not hurting he can still play with anybody. But, if he's hurt, he can be beaten by anybody.

And, Andre's draw is tough.

His first round opponent is the veteran Andre Pavel of Romania. Pavel has been around a long time and won't be intimidated by the circumstances. He won't beat himself -- Agassi will have to beat him.

If Agassi manages to get through the first round he'll probably play the 8th seed Marcos Bagdhaitis. Obviously, Bags is one of the most talented players on tour so, even a full-strength Agassi, would have his hands full.

In the fourth round looms Andy Roddick.

So, let the games begin and let's see how Andre fares.

Glenn Sheiner M.D. - author of The Top Selling Tennis Tactics Ebook guaranteed to make you a smarter tennis player and take your tennis to the next level.

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US Open Tennis

Five Sets favor Federer And Nadal At The US Open

Right after Wimbledon every tennis fan would have layed all their money down on a Federer versus Nadal final at the 2006 US Open coming up.

So, what happens?

Nadal loses in the early rounds for 2 consecutive weeks. Federer wins at the Rogers Cup in Toronto but then loses to Andy Murray in straight sets at the Masters event in Cincinatti.

Nadal's woes are less difficult to explain. He doesn't have a great serve although it is improving.
And , he struggles with his returns against big servers. So, he can't get into the baseline rallies as easily as he can on clay where he dominates.

Federer obviously has to lose once in a while so it's really no big deal.

The US Open matches are best of five sets , unlike these recent tournaments which are best of three. And, I feel that the best of five format favors both Nadal and Federer but for different reasons.

Nadal is like a body puncher in boxing. He makes you run and reach and work very hard physically to return his balls which have heavy top and sidespin. By the time you've played two or three sets against him you're usually starting to wear down physically. That's why a lot of Nadal's matches are close in the beginning and then he pulls away easily.

It'll take a lot of physical endurance and mental toughness to beat Nadal in five sets. Now, maybe he'll be off and someone will beat him in 3 or 4 sets but I like his chances the longer the matches go.

With Federer it's a different story. To beat Federer you need him to be off and you have to be playing at your highest level. If he's on and you're off, you''ll get rolled --just ask Lleyton Hewitt.

And, I don't see anybody except Nadal giving Federer trouble over 5 sets.

So, on to the Open and let's see what happens.

Glenn Sheiner M.D. - author of The Top Selling Tennis Tactics Ebook guaranteed to make you a smarter tennis player and take your tennis to the next level.

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US Open Tennis

Watching Tennis Pros Practice

One of the great secrets in learning how to improve your tennis game is to go watch the pros practice. And where can you see the pros practice?

This week I went up to see the qualifying rounds at the Rogers Cup in Toronto. I bought a general admission ticket for $11. And I didn't even bother to go into the stadium and watch any matches.

Instead, I went to the practice courts where in the space of 2 hours I saw both Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal practice while standing about 10 feet away.

Name me one other profession where you can see the world's best practicing in public. Do the world's top musicians practice every day in public? Do you get to see a brain surgeon work on his operative technique?

And when you see these amazing athletes up close you learn so much if you watch closely.
Especially as they loosen up -- because here they're doing everything almost in slow motion and you can really focus on their body movements and racket technique.

So next time you really want to glean some amazing tennis knowledge go to a pro tournament and head to the practice courts.

Glenn Sheiner M.D. - author of INSIDER TENNIS STRATEGIES The Ebook guaranteed to make you a smarter tennis player and take your tennis to the next level.

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