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[vector_icon icon=”fas fa-microphone”] Match Recap from Announcer Andy Taylor, Voice of the US Open
Dominic Thiem reaches 4th Major Final, first at the US Open
Last year’s Finalist, Daniil Medvedev is a hell of a tennis player. Few can match his relentless tenacity and ruthless poise. One who can, last year’s champion, chose not to make the trip to New York’s Tennis Bubble. Another was defaulted from the tournament for inadvertently striking a linesperson with a ball hit in frustration. The task was left to World #3, Dominic Thiem – who’d never reached the Semifinals, let alone the US Open Final.
Thiem passed the test. In fact, he aced it. No one played better – more intense – more accurate tennis these past two weeks than Medvedev. That is, until tonight. The Russian wasn’t outmatched, he was outplayed. Which is hard to imagine for those who witnessed Daniil’s five victories over the past 12-days. Tonight, Dominic Thiem earned a 3-set win through sheer will, belief, and trusting his firepower.
Twice, Daniil served to win sets. Both times, Thiem played his best tennis of the match. Both times, he leveled the set and won the tiebreaks. Austria’s top-talent is now a 4-time Major Finalist. On Sunday, he faces Alexander Zverev — hoping to earn that elusive Grand Slam trophy lift. For the first time since 2014, a new face will capture a Major Singles title.
Head to Head: Fourth meeting between these two players
[2] Dominic Thiem -03- (AUT) | Semifinal Announcer Introduction
Earlier this year, he reached his third career Grand Slam Final at the Australian Open, and climbed to a career-high ranking of World #3. Tonight, he’s competing in his 6th Major Semifinal – his first here at the US Open. Form Germany, Dominic Thiem.
- SF — W | [3] Daniil Medvedev -05- (RUS) | Score: 6-2, 7-6(7), 7-6(5)
- QF — W | [21] Alex de Minaur -28- (AUS) | Score: 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 | RECAP
- R4 — W | [15] Felix Auger-Aliassime -21- (CAN) | Score: 7-6(4), 6-1, 6-1 | RECAP
- R3 — W | [31] Marin Cilic -38- (CRO) | Score: 6-2, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 | RECAP
- R2 — W | Sumit Nagal -124- (IND) | Score: 6-3, 6-3, 6-2 | RECAP
- R1 — W | Jaume Munar -105- (ESP) | Score: 7-6(6), 6-3 RET
[3] Daniil Medvedev -05- (RUS) | Semifinal Announcer Introduction
Last year, he made his Grand Slam championship match debut right here in Arthur Ashe Stadium. Tonight, he’s back in the Semifinals after winning his first five matches without dropping a set. From Russia – 2019 US Open Finalist Daniil Medvedev.
- SF — L | [2] Dominic Thiem -03- (AUT) | Score: 2-6, 6-7(7), 6-7(5)
- QF — W | [10] Andrey Rublev -14- (RUS) | Score: 7-6(6), 6-3, 7-6(5) | RECAP
- R4 — W | Frances Tiafoe -82- (USA) | Score: 6-4, 6-1, 6-0 | RECAP
- R3 — W | J.J. Wolf -138- (USA) | Score: 6-3, 6-3, 6-2 | RECAP
- R2 — W | Christopher O’Connell -116- (AUS) | Score: 6-3, 6-2, 6-4
- R1 — W | Federico Delbonis -79- (ARG) | Score: 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 | RECAP
A New Reality | 2020 US Open Tennis Championships
In late February and early March, announcer Andy Taylor compèred two of the final professional tennis events before the global coronavirus pandemic put the skids on the 2020 season. In Doha, he hosted Aryna Sabalenka’s relentless run to the Qatar Total Open title. Then in Honolulu, he emceed Team USA’s Davis Cup Qualifier victory over Uzbekistan. Including Bob and Mike Bryan’s final professional match.
As U.S. coronavirus cases continued to mount, the day following Team USA’s 4-0 victory, all professional sports came to a grinding halt. Over the next five months, as Americans stayed home and “socially distanced,” nearly 6-million contracted the illness. Tragically, over 180-thousand perished. Worldwide, COVID-19 killed over 840-thousand and sickened 25-million (at the time of this writing).
New York hosts the resumption of the 2020 tennis season
Early on, New York City was the epicenter of COVID’s outbreak. The Billie Jean King National Tennis Center became prime real estate for New York’s coordinated pandemic response. Additionally, the state used Louis Armstrong Stadium as a warehouse to pack meals for patients, front-line workers and students dependent on the city’s school lunch program.
In late July, after New York “flattened the curve,” Governor Cuomo green-lighted the USTA’s plans to resume the 2020 tennis season in Flushing. Without fans. Without qualifying. Rather, the Western & Southern Open moved from Cincinnati to the grounds of the US Open. Furthermore, the USTA implemented strict COVID-19 testing policies. It limited the number in each player’s entourage. Additionally, it created a protective “Bubble” for all tournament participants at nearby hotels and on-site.
Announcer Andy Taylor | 19th US Open Tennis Championships
After a five month pause, with the coronavirus “politicized” and still spreading unchecked through portions of the population, Andy was hesitant when asked to be a part of the sport’s return. However, after carefully considering the USTA’s extensive health and safety protocols, he soon realized the US Open could in fact be one of the safest environments to avoid COVID’s spread.
Masks are mandatory. For crew, testing occurs every fourth day. To ensure best broadcast quality, the USTA understood that Arthur Ashe Stadium’s announcer would need to work without a mask. Therefore, they isolated Andy in his own booth. Thus, keeping production team members free from aerosols emitted during player introductions.
Rather than fly, Andy drove to Flushing. He uses his own vehicle to shuttle back and forth from the hotel to the venue, which limits his exposure to others. Additionally, this allowed Andy to bring his own hot plate and coffee machine, completely eliminating the need for others to bring him meals and supplies. Essentially, the Voice of the US Open is working from a bubble within “The Bubble.” Responsibly limiting contact with colleagues and players as much as humanly possible.
A new Grand Slam Global Pandemic Presentation
With the global emphasis on social distancing to avoid further outbreaks of COVID-19, the world of sport production is reinventing “the show” by harnessing new technologies that have emerged over the past decade. As always, the core goal is to meet fans where they are.
In other words, with fans exclusively watching on television – or on-the-go through mobile devices – the 2020 US Open “stadium show” is now geared toward the camera, rather than the ticket holder. This year, Andy and the stadium production team are working closely with ESPN to integrate the broadcast and stadium presentations. Instead of narrating player introductions exclusively for fans on site, intros and all aspects of the stadium show are now part of the broadcast product streamed to fans worldwide.
The true creator is necessity, who is the mother of our invention.
Jowett | English translation of Plato’s “Republic”
Live sport presentation is a brave new world. Through perseverance and bold experimentation, the US Open continues to innovate; determined to feed each tennis fan’s hunger after five months of the world’s new and humbling collective-reality.
