Federer beats Sampras in close match

Roger Federer and Pete Sampras didn’t disappoint last night at the NetJets Showdown, as the put on quite a show! Playing in front of 19,960 fans at Madison Square Garden, Federer held on to beat Sampras 6-3, 6-7(4), 7-6(6). There were some great moments in the match, as it seemed that during certain points both players were playing at their highest level. There were also some laughs during the match, especially when Sampras threw his racket to the ground in mock disgust or when Federer raised an index finger to celebrate four aces in a single game.

Overall, both players seemed to really enjoy themselves and it made for a great night of tennis in New York City. This was the fourth time Federer and Sampras have met in exhibitions, with Federer now winning three of those matches.

Lisicki wins opener

Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy student Sabine Lisicki won her opening round qualifying match at the Pacific Life Open. She defeated Raquel Kops-Jones 6-2, 6-3 and will now face Aleksandra Wozniak in the second round. Wozniak is a 20-year old Canadian who is ranked #147 in the world. She beat fourth-seeded Marina Erakovic 6-0, 6-4 in the first round of qualifying.

Mirnyi, Nishikori, McClune all set for first round of qualifying

Three players who have spent plenty of time training at the Academy will all take the court today for their first round qualifying matches at the Pacific Life Open. Max Mirnyi will face eleventh-seeded Russian Teimuraz Gabashvili, Kei Nishikori will take on Alex Bogdanovic, and Michael McClune will play Serbian Dusan Vemic.