We've Got Eyes On The Back Of Our Heads

New York and tennis don't quite mix, which is what makes the U.S. Open, that sticky punctuation mark at summer's end, the year's best tournament. The courts are hard, the crowds are demanding and sometimes uncouth (in fact, earlier this week there was a fight in Arthur Ashe Stadium), the weather can be unbearably hot, the moods swing and even the outfits players wear are brash and unkempt.

As cultured a city as New York is, it's not a genteel one, forcing tennis to adapt after two highly proper Grand Slam tournaments earlier in the summer -- the French Open and Wimbledon. It produces wonderful, gutsy tennis straight from Queens, an inherently tacky and mixed-up place. My favorite victory of Pete Sampras' came at the U.S. Open in 1996: He puked in the back of the court during a fifth-set tiebreaker in a quarterfinal match against Alex Corretja. Sampras wiped his mouth and then won the match. That about summarizes the U.S. Open.

This year, for the second consecutive Open, Roger Federer pulled off a behind-the-back, between-the-legs winner! See the above video for the sheer brilliance. New York inspires the inspirational and produces compelling play. Those who don't wilt amid the noise, smell, heat and general chaos of the city play strongly and excitingly, which is always fun to watch. The worst part about starting school in August's last week is how hard it is to find time to follow along.

Thanks to Wild Nothing, who've released the debut record of the year, for the post's title. It's a lyric from the first song, which refers here to those trick shots of Federer's. How else could he pull them off?