Fognini calls US worst Slam
Docked a point at the US Open for removing a line judge's sunglasses during a match he wound up winning, Fabio Fognini of Italy called the tournament the worst of the Grand Slams. Fognini, who is married to 2015 U.S. Open champion Flavia Pennetta, faces a fine for his actions during Tuesday's 6-7 (9), 3-6, 7-6 (5), 7-5, 6-4 comeback victory over Teymuraz Gabashvili. Warned by chair umpire Pascal Maria for smacking a ball in anger after getting broken to trail 4-2 in the second set, Fognini then received a point penalty when he grabbed the pair of shades from a line judge after falling behind 3-2 in the fourth set. When he was asked what he thought of losing a point, Fognini replied: "They have their rules. You know, the Americans are different in every way. Of the four Slams, this, as far as I'm concerned, is the worst - for a number of reasons."
Serena uses cupping therapy
Serena Williams has used the cupping therapy that drew so much attention during the Olympics when Michael Phelps won gold with purple circles dotting his shoulder and back. But the 22-time major champion says it's been for relaxation, not recovery. After her first-round win at the US Open on Tuesday, Williams said: "If I go to my lady in Palm Beach, it's part of acupuncture. I love getting it; it makes me relax." She adds: "I was like, 'Wow, you can do that for recoveryIJ'" She says she has never done it away from home before but maybe she'll start. Williams says: "I'm always learning new things. I definitely would love to try it on the road because I love the way it feels."
Tomic apologises for outburst
In the latest outburst by Bernard Tomic, the Australian muttered at a heckler during his US Open match that he was going to perform a lewd act on that person. Tomic said after his first-round loss Tuesday that he apologized to the fan afterward. He added, though: "He definitely baited me the whole set for me to say that. But I do apologize if there were people around that heard. That's all I can say." The 17th-seeded Tomic lost 6-4, 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (0) to 72nd-ranked Damir Dzumhur, making 78 unforced errors. The vulgar comments came during the first set as Dzumhur was trying to serve. Tomic later claimed he didn't remember what the heckler was saying to him.
Karlovic sets record with 61 aces
Ivo Karlovic hit 61 aces, the most in a US Open match, during his five-set victory in the first round. The 6-foot-11 Croatian broke the previous record of 49, established by Richard Krajicek in a 1999 quarterfinal loss. Karlovic, who is seeded 21st, beat Yen-hsun lu of Taiwan 4-6, 7-6 (4), 6-7 (4), 7-6 (5), 7-5 on Tuesday, holding in 28 of his 29 service games. Karlovic finished with 10 double-faults. He hit 22 aces in the second set alone - twice as many as Andy Murray produced in his entire three-set victory Tuesday night. The record for most aces in a match is 113, set by John Isner during the longest match in tennis history, his victory over Nicolas Mahut that ended 70-68 in the fifth set during Wimbledon's first round in 2010.