U.S. Open Notes

I love Richard Gasquet. His game is so fluid and elegant that it's probably the most aesthetically pleasing tennis on tour. I don't know a ton about him, but I'm inclined to like Donald Young because his game looks uncommonly graceful, too. A lot, in fact, like Gasquet's. So you can imagine how interesting their second-round match-up today at the Open looked.

Except that Gasquet didn't show. He called out sick.

I know nothing about the circumstances here, USA was reporting it as fever and sore throat. Maybe it was a lot worse than that. Maybe he was really, really miserable. Or has a pretty serious illness. Lord knows I'm terrible when I'm sick. Just miserable.

But this is the U.S. Open. That's why Rafa Nadal strapped it on to play yesterday despite having knee surgery the day before. Gasquet is one of the elite players, one of the few who has a chance to win a major. What's French for, "Lean into it, big guy."