An unseeded hard-luck story sends the swaggering Spaniard packing after an intense third round match.
By wire services
Published September 4, 2005
NEW YORK - Misfortune's victim for so long, James Blake punctuated the Hollywood-like turnaround of his life and career by upsetting French Open champion Rafael Nadal on Saturday at the U.S. Open.
Blake, the Tampa resident who sank to No. 210 in the rankings last spring and needed a wild-card invitation to get into the Open, knocked off the No. 2 Nadal, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, 6-1, as cheers, mixed with more than a few tears, cascaded from his friends.
"I need a new vocabulary to describe how I felt about that match," Blake's mother, Betty, said. "This time last year he was half-paralyzed and watching this on TV and wondering if he'd ever play tennis again. How good is that? It's like you can't describe how good that is. To see him smile the way he did is wonderful for a mom."
Blake was overwhelmed by the constant cheers of his buddies and the more than 20,000 fans in the stadium, who gave him a long, warm ovation at the end.
"I truly wish every single person in here could have the feeling I have now," he told them.
If it wasn't the biggest win of the 25-year-old Blake's career - in his mind nothing will ever top his victory over Andre Agassi three years ago en route to his first tour title - it put him into the fourth round of the U.S. Open for the first time, matched his best-ever performances in Grand Slam events and set him up for a possible quarterfinal battle with Agassi.
Agassi, seeded No. 7, had a tough time against No. 32 Tomas Berdych but reached the fourth round with a 3-6, 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 (7-2) victory.
In other matches, No. 8 Guillermo Coria, No. 13 Richard Gasquet and No. 19 Tommy Robredo advanced, as did women's No. 2 Lindsay Davenport, No. 3 Amelie Mauresmo, No. 6 Elena Dementieva, No. 7 Justine Henin-Hardenne, No. 11 Patty Schnyder, No. 12 Mary Pierce, No. 15 Nathalie Dechy and No. 19 Elena Likhovtseva, who beat 2004 French Open champion and No. 13 Anastasia Myskina.
The match between Blake and Nadal, two of the speediest players in tennis, gyrated around brilliant shots by each in the first two sets.
Everything changed on two astonishing points that Blake won, the first on a running lob that he flicked crosscourt into the corner to break Nadal in the third set for a 3-2 lead, the second a series of shots that broke Nadal for the set and crushed the Spaniard's spirit.
On that set-winning point, Blake lofted a lob that Nadal unbelievably ran down with his back to the net as he skidded into the wall behind the baseline. Blake smashed the ball from midcourt but Nadal caught up to that one, too, with a leaping backhand. Once more, Blake sent the ball into the front row of the stands, the only place Nadal couldn't reach it.
"I don't know how many winners I hit today, but whatever it is, you can double it, because that's how many winners I would have hit against other players," said Blake, who was credited with 53 to Nadal's 29. "I felt like I had to hit two winners at least to win each point."
Nadal, the winner of nine tournaments this year and usually so cocky, sagged and never recovered as Blake steamrolled him in the fourth set.
To anyone familiar with Blake's story of tragedy and perseverance - and that included his many friends and family and virtually everyone else in the stadium - the sight of him taking down the best young player on the tour was as emotional as it gets.
Only 16 months ago, Blake didn't know if would ever play tennis again after he fractured vertebrae in his neck when he crashed into a net post during practice. It allowed Blake to spend time with his father, who had cancer. His father died in July last year.
A week later, Blake contracted shingles, which temporarily paralyzed his face and caused vision and hearing problems. Again he tried to look on the bright side, wondering what he would do with his life if his athletic career were to end.
