U.S. Open Tennis And More

I'll start with the 'And More' part because the sunset was spectacular and my vantage point was from very top row of Arthur Ashe Stadium on the grounds of the National Tennis Center in New York where the U.S. Open is underway.

The Empire State Building is on the far left - I'm aiming my lens toward the west (which is a good place for the sun to set) - the tennis courts are in the borough of Queens.

Many fans climbed the steep stairs to join me in snapping shots of the colorful scene. All this was happening as James Blake was fighting for his tournament life on the court.

The Mets' new home, Citi Field, is right next to the National Tennis Center. Any shot of the grounds wouldn't be complete without a jet plane being in the shot since La Guardia airport is just to the northeast of the athletic venues.

Here's the aforementioned James Blake as he reached to return a serve. This is about as good as you can get with a tennis shot. The ball is on the racket face and you can see the face of the player. Blake advanced with a four set victory. He's not having a very good season and it wound be a big shock if he's still around this time next week. But he's a fan favorite and since this is the U.S. championship, having an American around for as long as possible would be great.

Doubles play is fun to watch. TV doesn't cover it much anymore. But most of the top ranked players still compete in doubles and - as we have here - mixed doubles. The action is fast and it's amazing how these top pros can react to the many rocket shots that fly around the court. And having trust that your partner won't hit you with a serve is important as well.