Ben and Coco

Week 1 at the Open

With every ball that’s struck in competition during the three weeks of the US Open available online, why go to the US Open?

What does a tennis fan get in person that you can’t see through a screen and hear analyzed by smart ex-pros like Andrea Petkovic?

Crowded concourses

Distant, overpriced seats near the top of Ashe

Blistering heat

And better things

Yesterday I took my 16-year-old nephew to his first world-class sporting event. He spent most of his time doing something that’s impossible for the home viewer.

He watched practice.

Hours of it.

The chance to be just a few feet away from the world’s greatest tennis players was irresistible for him. He saw Djokovic and Medvedev and Sinner and Rublev and Swiatek and Sabalenka and Jabeur. He couldn’t stop talking about how close he got to Zverev while the 2020 US Open runner-up signed autographs.

The capstone was purely accidental. As we were leaving Swiatek’s practice, Iga hit a ball into the stands. The ball landed right next to us, and my nephew picked it up as cleanly as a Gold Glove infielder. And then could not believe that he could keep it.

My own favorite only-in-New-York experience on Sunday happened just a few minutes later. We walked from the practice courts to the Grandstand to feed my massive tennis crush on Ben Shelton where Ben and Taylor Townsend were playing a brilliant mixed doubles match.

Their opponents, Aldila Sutjiadi and Rohan Bopanna, played like elite pickleball players with an emphasis on patience and placement. The 43-year-old Bopanna, a 4-time Grand Slam Doubles finalist more than twice Shelton’s age, hits about half as hard. Ben bombed serves and forehands all over the court like a young Boris Becker.

Even better than Ben’s bottomless power was his endless joy. He celebrated every great shot with exclamations, dancing, high fives, and funny gestures. He’s still a kid at heart, and the relaxed atmosphere of a mixed doubles match allows him to share his entire range of emotions. Shelton’s rise adds to the sense that American tennis is on the cusp of a new golden era.

The leader of that next American pack is unquestionably Coco Gauff. Gauff survived a tense match against veteran Caroline Wozniacki to advance to a much-anticipated quarterfinal against Iga Swiatek. (oops, Ostapenko)

With Iga out, Coco becomes the clear favorite to win the women’s tournament. On the men’s side, we continue rolling towards Alcaraz-Djokovic, round 5. To get there, Djokovic will have to beat two tough Americans in a row, first, a red-hot Taylor Fritz and then the Shelton-Tiafoe winner.

Those pursuits of the year’s last Slam title will be most remembered, however, for my nephew, what will linger is the chance to get so close to greatness.