Daily Dispatch: Del Potro Struggles With Wrist Injury in US Open Training

After snatching defeat from the jaws of victory in his Winston-Salem Open final vs. local favorite John Isner, Tomas Berdych posted some song lyrics to his Facebook page:

In these hard times
We’ll work harder, harder
Through these hard times
I’ll work harder, harder
for resolution
Show me some revolution
This battle will be won!

Just imagine what Berdych would’ve posted in his AIM status updates, back in the day when that was big.

World No. 1 Roger Federer was asked in a conference call about whether he ever doubted it was possible to return to the top ranking.

“Doubts? Maybe you believe less or you believe more, but doubt, not really,” Federer said. “I knew how close I was. I was actually extremely close on many occasions to give myself chances to win Slams.

“So it was just a combination of many things that set me back at times, but I never gave up. Mentally I was always ready to do the work and willing to travel and give it a shot. At the end it all paid off. I’m extremely happy.”

Looking back on Federer’s 2011, it’s incredible to look at what he’s done since that US Open semifinal match against Novak Djokovic. He has been laying the groundwork for a return to World No. 1 for almost a year. He has won nine titles, including Wimbledon, and a singles silver medal at the Olympic Games. He has made it to at least the semifinals at every tournament he’s played except Miami.

Federer is right, some of those matches could’ve turned out completely different in 2011. He could’ve managed to eke out a win at Wimbledon against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. He could’ve converted one of those match points against Djokovic at the US Open. But instead of letting those misfortunes be encouragement to accept that his dominance was fading, Federer used those experiences to motivate him to get better. That is what sets him apart from anyone else. Regardless of what happens at the US Open, Federer has outperformed many people’s expectations for him in 2012.

Juan Martin del Potro says he’s still having trouble with his left wrist on his two-handed backhand while training for the US Open. (Link in Spanish)

The New York Times has a good piece on the USTA’s development programs and evaluating their effectiveness.

Rafael Nadal talks to CNN about missing the Olympics and the US Open:

Random tennis flashback: former World No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki imitating Nadal getting a full body cramp during his press conference at last year’s US Open: