We attended the 2nd round of professional tennis at the Cincinnati Open on Sunday and had the pleasure of watching two matches with top 10 seeded players. It was 94 degrees and pure sunshine… and crazy hot!!
The first match was Riley Opelka from St. Joseph, Michigan versus #6 seed, Alex De Minuar from Australia (A 6’11” power player versus a speedy 5’10” finesse player). My seat was in the second row directly behind Opelka’s coach (see photo below of the player wiping sweat of his racket between points). Opelka would casually chat with his coach between points. At one break in action, he was marveling to his coach (felt like he was talking to me) how his opponent was able to return one of his 140 mph serves.
Opelka getting ready to fire a powerful serve.
Watching the match from the second row in the Grandstand (all the seats are now padded, and it is now reserved seating in the Grandstand).
Opelka, after firing a 143 mph ace.
Yes, the revamped Cincinnati tennis complex is fantastic (see below). For more than $200 million, it better be an attractive destination. Even after attending the major tournaments in New York, California, and Florida, we have decided that the Cincinnati Open — with the cordial Midwestern fans — is still the best.
