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[vector_icon icon=”fas fa-microphone”] Match Recap from Announcer Andy Taylor, Voice of the US Open
Denis Shapovalov advances to the Round of 16
Tremendous victory for Denis Shapovalov, who was down a set and a break at the start of the fourth set this evening. “Night Train” delivered a clutch break as Fritz served for the match. He backed it up by earning the only minibreak in the tiebreak, then convincingly rolled through the decider.
Three years ago, Denis Shapovalov made his US Open debut as a confident, free-swinging, 18-year-old southpaw ranked outside the top-65. After posting three qualifying victories, he thrilled fans with flashy, highlight-packed matches – becoming the youngest man to reach the US Open’s 4th-Round since Michael Chang in 1989. He played out of his mind, and loved every minute of it.
That year, in Round-1 he dispatched Daniil Medvedev in straight-sets, then embraced the limelight only found in New York’s Arthur Ashe Stadium. He scored an improbable win over World #12 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, then outlasted Kyle Edmund to reach the Round of 16. Alongside Nadal and Federer, Denis Shapovalov became one of the 2017 US Open’s main attractions. Though he fell to Pablo Carreno Busta, the Canadian’s flamboyance earned him new fans the world over.
Since then, Denis has reached the 3rd-Round every year in New York and once in Melbourne, but hasn’t been able to bust through — until today. On Sunday, he’ll face World #10 David Goffin for a shot as his first Major Quarterfinal. The two played last October in Tokyo, where Goffin won in two tiebreak sets.
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Head to Head: Third meeting between these two players
[12] Denis Shapovalov -17- (CAN) | Round-3 Announcer Introduction
Last season, he captured his first ATP title in Stockholm, reached his first Masters-1000 Final in Paris, and led his country to the Davis Cup Final. From Canada, Denis Shapovalov.
- R3 — W | [19] Taylor Fritz -25- (USA) | Score: 3-6, 6-3, 4-6 7-6(5), 6-2
- R2 — W | Soonwoo Kwon -73- (KOR) | Score: 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-4, 6-2
- R1 — W | Sebastian Korda -205- (USA) | Score: 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2
[19] Taylor Fritz -25- (USA) | Round-3 Announcer Introduction
A 5-time Finalist on Tour – He captured his first ATP Singles title last year in Eastbourne. Through to the 3rd-Round of the US Open for the second time, he is making his Arthur Ashe Stadium debut. From Rancho Palos Verdes, California: Taylor Fritz.
- R3 — L | Player Player -000- (ZZZ) | Score: 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-7(5), 2-6
- R2 — W | Gilles Simon -52- (FRA) | Score: 7-5, 6-3, 6-2
- R1 — W | Dominik Koepfer -91- (GER) | Score: 6-7(7), 6-3, 6-2, 6-4
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.
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.
