James Blake, premier qualifié

10/08/2008 - 08:26

L'Américain a franchi le cap du premier tour, ce dimanche, en venant à bout de l'Australien Chris Guccione en deux sets (6-3, 7-6). James Blake est ainsi le premier qualifié du tableau de simple masculin.

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James Blake pour Gilles Simon

12/08/2008 - 17:58

Gilles Simon connaît désormais son adversaire des huitièmes de finale. Le protégé de Thierry Tulasne affrontera l'Américain James Blake, qui a mis fin au parcours de Dominik Hrbaty (7-6, 4-6, 6-3).

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Blake stoppe Simon

13/08 14h54 - JO 2008, Tennis

Gilles Simon est sorti aux portes des quarts de finale du tournoi olympique.

Comme à Cincinnati récemment, le Niçois est tombé sur un James Blake déchaîné (6/4 6/2). L’Américain aura l’honneur de défier le Suisse Roger Federer en quarts de finale. David Nalbandian et Gaël Monfils vont maintenant jouer le dernier 8e de finale du jour.

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Déclaration de James Blake



James Blake (USA, vainqueur de Roger Federer en quarts de finale): "Battre le N.1 mondial aux Jeux restera comme l'un des grands souvenirs de ma carrière. Je suis surtout fier de pouvoir porter haut les couleurs de mon équipe. C'est une grande fierté de faire partie du Team USA. J'espère que ce que j'ai réussi pourra inspirer d'autres athlètes américains. Ce soir, j'ai mieux joué les points importants que lui. Je ne pense pas qu'il soit devenu particulièrement vulnérable. Lorsqu'on parle d'année noire pour lui, il faut quand même mettre les choses en perspective. Ses résultats ne sont pas si mauvais que ça. Mais c'est comme pour Tiger Woods. On attend de lui qu'il gagne toutes les semaines. Or Roger est humain."

www.7sur7.be

Blake admire Federer

Tombeur de Roger Federer en quarts de finale des Jeux Olympiques (6/4 7/6), l'Américain James Blake a rendu un vibrant hommage au Suisse.

«Il faut quand même se rendre compte qu'à chaque fois qu'il entre sur un court il ne joue pas seulement face au mec en face mais contre Pete Sampras, Björn Borg et toute l'histoire du jeu. Honnêtement, je ne sais pas comment il a fait pour gérer cette pression pendant quatre ans. Tout le monde aurait craqué. Je suis admiratif de la façon dont il a géré ces quatre dernières années. Il ne perd jamais le contrôle de lui-même. Vous ne le voyez jamais briser une raquette ou insulter un arbitre. Et il est toujours un des meilleurs joueurs au monde. Seulement, il est humain», a expliqué James Blake en conférence de presse.

Source

Blake: "Gonzalez n'est pas fair-play"

15/08/2008 - 21:13

Battu par Fernando Gonzalez (4-6, 7-5, 11-9) en demi-finale du tournoi olympique, James Blake n'a que très peu goûté le comportement du Chilien. Le New-Yorkais l'a ainsi accusé d'un manque de fair-play lorsque Gonzalez a nié avoir touché un retour de Blake alors que les images de la télévision prouvaient le contraire. "Je pense que lorsqu'on dispute les Jeux Olympiques en pratiquant ce qui est considéré comme un sport de gentlemen, il faut reconnaître ce genre de choses, a déclaré l'Américain sur ESPN. Gonzalez est un grand joueur qui fait son maximum pour gagner, même si, normalement, il le fait dans les règles..."

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Blake s'est fait peur

Tennis - US Open

James Blake a eu chaud. L'Américain, tête de série numéro 9, a eu besoin de cinq sets pour venir à bout de son talentueux compatriote Donald Young, mardi, lors du 1er tour.

US OPEN - 1er tour

Simple messieurs:

James Blake (USA/N.9) bat Donald Young (USA) 6-1, 3-6, 6-1, 4-6, 6-4.

Prochain adversaire: Darcis.

Source

An interview with James Blake
Saturday, August 23, 2008

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.


Q. Can you talk about your first‑round match with Donald Young?
JAMES BLAKE: Should be an exciting one. Great talent, young American, got a lot of potential. I hope my experience will be a little more valuable than his potential at this point. I think he's a name that will be household name hopefully in a couple years. I hope he doesn't make it household name this time.
He'll be fighting hard and have nothing to lose, so I'm looking forward to a good match.


Q. You mentioned you hope your experience pays off. Beijing must have been big one for you. Probably disappointed not to medal, of course, but still the best you've done in a major tournament.
JAMES BLAKE: Yeah, it was a good feeling to beat Roger Federer. In my opinion, probably going to go down as greatest of all time. I said I had the confidence to beat him for a long time but haven't actually done it.
It's a little different to go out there and do it and prove it. Very excited about that. Really helps confidence to come into a tournament and feel like there's no one that you're scared of, you feel like you can beat every single person in the tournament.
That's the way I feel now, so that's going to help me now going in. I have a lot of work to do before I get to some of those top guys. I've to get through Donald Young first.


Q. Have you ever felt that way before coming into a Grand Slam tournament, that you didn't really fear anybody and that you could be holding that championship trophy at the end?
JAMES BLAKE: Yeah, well, every year I do feel like I can come in here and win this tournament. I think I really started believing it after the Agassi match in '05 when I was a couple points from being in the semifinals against a good friend of mine, Robby Ginepri, who I played a ton of times and I would have felt comfortable playing out there.
I think after that tournament I felt like I could win any these. But at that time Roger was still dominating, and at times he was making it look easy. It was tough to really go into a tournament thinking you're anything but a dark horse the way Roger was playing.
Now I think a lot of guys have started really improving at a great rate, hopefully including myself to the point where we can challenge him. We can hopefully challenge Rafa as well the way he's playing.
But this time is the first time I've had that win on my record against a guy like Roger to come in and feel like ‑‑ I can not just say that I believe it, but everyone can know that I have the confidence to be that top player.


Q. How, if at all, did the Olympics change your preparation for the US Open relative to other years?
JAMES BLAKE: Well, it changed my sleep patterns a little being 12 hours away.
Otherwise it's the same kind of thing I would be doing: Playing a tournament against top players in the world. So that was great preparation.
It's very hot and humid over there, so that's perfect. Because normally in these summers we're playing in Cincinnati and Indianapolis and DC where it's always hot, so that preparation was the same. It was just a matter of being on a different continent.
And then getting back and maybe taking a couple of extra days' rest just to get used to the time zone.


Q. Overall, how far was the Olympics?
JAMES BLAKE: Olympic experience? Unbelievable. I was thrilled to be a part of the team. A team that I'm proud to call inspirational. They were all incredible athletes over there. Whether they were getting a medal or just getting personal best, they did it with a ton of sportsmanship and ton of class.
I'm really happy watching all them. The women's soccer team winning gold, the men's basketball team, the women's basketball team, Michael Phelps, all the swimmers we are people that were very friendly to me. It just made sports really feel good. I always feel good about tennis in general, but it made sports as a whole feel good to me.


Q. James, how was the Roger that beat you eight times in a row different from the Roger that you just beat?
JAMES BLAKE: Well, I hope it wasn't too different. I think it was more of the fact I played some of the bigger points as well as I possibly could.
We've had a lot of matches where they've been very close, and it comes down to a few points here and there. He just, for the last few years, has seemed like those points, there was ‑‑ there was nothing you could do. He would dictate play and really force you, force the action.
This time I felt like I was doing that. I made all my first serves on all my points and just felt good about the way I was playing the big points. I think he definitely didn't have his best day against me, but playing him nine times I'm ‑‑ I guess he's bound to have one off day out of all them,
because there are times when I felt like there was nothing I could do.
When I played him in Shanghai I feel like it was one of the better matches I've seen him play. When I played him here at the Open we had a close four‑setter. It definitely could have gone either way, but like I said, those big points he played unbelievable.
This time it was a couple of points here and there, and if it wasn't me for playing those unbelievably well, it could have gone down to another one of those matches where I was close but didn't quite get it. This time I did.
So one out of nine I'm going to get those, and maybe this will be another one here.


Q. You hit with Andy Roddick yesterday. You two are very close in the rankings, maybe closer than you have ever been. What's your sense of how he's doing coming kind of an injury‑marked season?
JAMES BLAKE: In terms of rankings, neither one of us are worried about that. Whoever is ranked higher, it doesn't make a whole lot of difference to us. But I think he's playing great.
Like you said, I was hitting with him. He was playing really well. We had a really good practice. He was serving huge. I guess that's not really a surprise. When he's making a lot of first serves, a high percentage, he's very, very tough to break and tough to deal with.
He puts a lot of implied pressure on your serve just by serving that well. On these courts, quick as they are, the ball is flying a little, he's going to be dangerous. He's got the confidence since he's won here before. I'd look out for him to be dangerous.


Q. How big of a deal is jet lag, and have you had to do much special or different to try to adjust?
JAMES BLAKE: No. The first couple of days were rough, but I feel great now. I've gotten a lot of sleep the last couple of nights. That's one thing I think I have a special talent for is sleeping. I do that well.
And after the first couple of nights where I was waking up early thanks to the time change, I got right back on to a pretty good schedule. We're used to it in the amount we travel, the amount we're kind of trotting the globe and dealing with the jet lag and dealing with playing a few days after, after flying.
But now I feel great, and I still have another day or two to get ready. The staff here is great for if you need a massage or whatever, if you need to just stay loose, get stretched by all the trainers. I feel great.


Q. The sense of patriotism that you must have felt in Beijing, I mean, every now and again we get a patriotism check, if you will, and I imagine that would be one for you.
JAMES BLAKE: Definitely.


Q. Coming off that experience playing for your country and then coming here playing in this country's Open championship, can you carry those feelings even more so than a normal year?
JAMES BLAKE: Yeah, I think it's a great little span for me in terms of patriotism, go from the Olympics to our US Open to Davis Cup probably in Madrid. I'm not going to lose patriotism. I hope I never loss that patriotism because I'm always proud. I guess it's a little different in the Olympics when you have U.S.A. on your chest, you have the whole team supporting you.
When I beat Roger and walked back into the dining hall, I had athletes from swimming to track and field to diving to everything else under the sun coming up to congratulate me.
It means a lot to know that there are other sports that care about tennis as well just because of the patriotism. I guess we care about each other as one great grander team. And.
Here at the US Open we don't have that team aspect, but I really feel the Americans kind of travel the globe with that, because Andy and I are so close, Mardy and I are so close, I'm texting and calling him every night with how well he's doing at the Pilot Pen. John Isner, Donald Young even. Getting a little tense before we actually have to play each other, but even when we're not playing each other we're all really close and we get along great.
We feel like we're cheering for each other. I feel like I can never miss a night match at the Open or a few matches in a row because there's always an American playing that I want to watch. So it's something I carry on here, and we got a lot of great talents from America this year. Hopefully one of us will be holding the trophy at the end.


Q. Because of all that, has this tournament always held a special place in your heart?
JAMES BLAKE: Always. And because of the patriotism, but also because I grew up a fan of this tournament. I grew up just an hour from here loving watching this, coming down here with my parents, and then as I got older coming down with my friends.
It's a tournament that I'm a fan of, whether I'm playing, whether I was hurt and I missed it one year, whether I retire, I'm always going to be a fan of the US Open.


Q. Do you agree that Rafa comes in here as a clear‑cut favorite even though he's never been past the fourth round or the quarters? When you saw the draw come out, what was your reaction to being in his section?
JAMES BLAKE: Well, I think it's tough this year to say there's one clear‑cut favorite. Rafa is No. 1 in the world, but like you said, he hasn't had as much success here. He's played a lot of matches. I feel like anyone can win this, as opposed to the last few years, I would say for sure Roger was the clear‑cut favorite and there were a lot of dark horses.
This year I'd say there are seven or eight guys that chance to win it. Rafa is the favorite, but I wouldn't say a clear‑cut favorite like the way Roger was.
You take kind of the Tiger Woods effect. You take him versus the field. I don't think you could take Rafa that same way right now just because he hasn't proven himself here yet. So I don't think it's the same as the way it's been with Roger.
And in terms of looking ahead in the draw, I haven't looked that far ahead. I don't know if I play him in the quarters, the semis, whatever. I'm looking to get through Donald Young and see where it goes from there.


Q. Are you saying it's more a case of you and others improving than Roger going backwards?
JAMES BLAKE: He may have lost confidence for a match here and there, but I definitely don't think he's lost anything. The game continues to improve, which is why I've been more and more impressed with him over the past four years continuing to stay No. 1.
Because if you look at a lot of guys that were former No. 1s, look at Lleyton Hewitt, look at Carlos Moya, those guys are not getting worse even though their ranking is dropping. The game just keeps getting better and better. They may not improve as much as the rest of the game is improving.
I think it's unfair to compare generations and eras, because the game gets two to five to ten percent better every single year. Guys are getting stronger and fitter and guys are playing better tennis. I don't think it's Roger getting worse. I don't think there's any way that's the case. I think guys are definitely improving. Guys are catching up a little.
That's not to say he can't turn it on at any time, because the talent, confidence he has, and court sense, he could turn it on and go through this tournament just like last year and couple years ago where he just goes through making it look easy.
But I hope I have something to say. I hope some of the other guys have something to say about that, and we're going to do our best.

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An interview with James Blake
Tuesday, August 26, 2008


Q. Was there ever a point tonight where you felt like a little defeated, like tonight wasn't your night?
JAMES BLAKE: No, I try not to let those kind of doubts get into it. If it's set, you think more about the fact that anything can happen, not that it's not your night or you're thinking about losing. You're thinking, now's the time where you need to play your game and what's most comfortable with you. Because if the other guy is feeling that good and playing his game, he can take it to you and anything can happen in one set.
So that's all I was thinking. I never felt like, "It's not your night, things aren't going to go your way." It stung a little when he won the break point with a broken string, but once that was over and once that game was over, I had to put it out of my mind and came right back and broke him the next game. I thought I did a pretty good job of that of not thinking about the fact that it could have been a pretty big loss there.


Q. You had said a few days ago, spoken to the potential that Donald has. A lot of people use that word to describe him. You saw him out there tonight and saw what he was able to do. What was the biggest difference you saw in him?
JAMES BLAKE: Well, after the first set I think he was a little shellshocked. I was playing really well. He made mistakes he really shouldn't have and it was over pretty quickly. And then he really found his rhythm, and after that he gave me very few free points on my serve. He did a good job of keeping his backhand deep, not giving me a lot of chances to move in, and trying to hurt me with his forehand. He did a very good job of doing that. He always moves well, so I think that was good tonight, and just came down to a couple points here and there, of course.
Like I said, I think earlier maybe my experience will help a little, and that definitely could have been the difference in one or two points at the end of that match.


Q. Did you feel any effects from going the distance at the Olympics tonight?
JAMES BLAKE: No, I don't know. It just seemed a little weird early on in the match. It seemed like I hadn't been here in a few years. Maybe because so much has happened over the last year. And it was also a little strange to, seemed like the crowd wasn't as into it in the beginning just because the first set went so quickly, and they wanted a little drama to get into it. I guess fortunately, or unfortunately, I provided that for them and then it was back to like it was my home crowd again, and it's my favorite court in the world, and it felt comfortable again.
Just at the start maybe I was a little ‑‑ it didn't look like it in the first set obviously, I meant the first few sets I might have been a little out of sorts. I feel great now. I have two days now to rest and recover, and come out hopefully playing even better on Thursday.


Q. How did you feel about your own game? You seemed to swing a little bit.
JAMES BLAKE: Yeah, I played a couple loose games. And he played some really good games. But I felt like when I was attacking when I was going after the ball. I was most effective that first set, that third set and at the end of the fifth I was going really after my shots and I was taking my backhand hard across court and not being tentative with it. It was something that was kind of tough tonight because of the wind. The wind can really play havoc with your strokes, because when you're against the wind you feel like you're being pushed back, when you're with the wind you feel like the ball can fly.
It was just a little difficult. We both handled it well at times and both handled it poorly at times. Just came out a little better at the end.


Q. How much of your experience did you lean on, especially because it seemed like especially at the end you came through some pretty pressure moments, I guess, in that match?
JAMES BLAKE: Yeah, just having been through this a bunch of times before, especially the way he was playing at the end of the fourth set and into the fifth, he definitely looked like he was locked in. If someone's playing like that, you can't just keep pushing and getting balls in the court and expect them to miss. And I know that from playing too many times and playing a little passive and letting guys beat me. This time, it makes it so much easier after you've been through that and learned from trial and error that I'm going to go through my shots in the fourth set I was broken, I made a few errors.
People might have said he's going for too much but if I don't do that, I don't win the match. I just know I need to play that way to win. It makes you so much more confident and comfortable at the end of the match knowing your game style, knowing what you need to do and going after it. If you don't have it that day, you lose. You miss those shots, there's nothing you can do. But that's the way you're going to win more matches.
So I had to go for those, and I don't know if Donald has been in as many five‑setters. He might not have felt as comfortable. I know he doubled in that game he got broken and he maybe made a couple of errors he wouldn't normally make. That's sometimes finding your game, finding what's comfortable.
Sometimes one of the drawbacks of potential is you might have too many tools. He's got a huge forehand, but he can play great defense and sometimes you don't know how you should balance that, and it takes a little while to adjust and to learn that. I'd love to work with him more, just have him come down to Saddlebrook and hit, and have him sit hit with some of the other top players in the world, the Mardy Fishes and Andy Roddicks and having him get used this to level all the time and figure what works best. I think he made a huge step tonight and I hope he continues it with his practice.


Q. Lots of people talked about him having those tools and unfairly or not, put the pressure on like the next wave. What's separating him at this point? You saw a flash tonight but just in your veteran estimation, what was it?
JAMES BLAKE: There really isn't that much separating him. Like I said, him getting down and practicing with the top players more is going to make a big difference. I remember seeing him at Davis Cup last year as a practice partner, and you could almost see him improving by the day. Just getting that confidence of hitting with us and working hard, and putting in the hours is going to make a huge difference. I really don't think there's much difference between him and guys top 20, 30 in the world. Of course, there's going to take some time with experience. There aren't too many guys like a Rafa Nadal that will explode on the scene at such a young age. Once he gets that little experience and figures out what kind of game style he wants to play and plays matches like this, I don't see any reason he's going to be held back by anything.


Q. Among what you're feeling right now, is part of it just relief you're through and going to the next round?
JAMES BLAKE: Yeah, I think any time you win a five‑setter there's a huge relief. Obviously a couple points here and there and it could have gone the other way, and I could have had a pretty bad Open and be already on my way back to Connecticut. But I'm feeling great now and definitely relief, and I'll enjoy a good night's sleep when I do finally get to bed. Yeah, there's definitely a little relief there.


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Blake par abandon

L'Américain James Blake (n°9) a profité de l'abandon du Belge Steve Darcis (à 4-6, 6-3, 1-0) pour se qualifier pour le troisième tour de l'US Open.

L'Equipe

An interview with James Blake
Thursday, August 28, 2008

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.


Q. Last year you had a lot of five setters going into the tournament. Looked like maybe this one would go four at least, and all of a sudden, boom, it ended. I mean, is there a sense of relief on that, or did you feel like maybe you were just getting going and a little bit disappointed in a way?
JAMES BLAKE: Well, I got through it with a win; I have to be happy with that. It's a tough way to win. I definitely felt like I started playing a lot better. I had a ton of break chances in the second set; only capitalized on one.
That was enough to get through it, and capitalized early on one in the third. That's what I was thinking about, just getting through that game, and then if I could get a lead just starting to front run and playing my game.
What was working was when I was moving forward I missed a few volleys I don't normally miss. I felt like I was coming forward effectively, and it was starting to happen a lot more. I wasn't getting pushed around anymore, and I was starting to do the dictating.
That's what I was looking for, so I guess I can just take confident in the fact that I was starting to do that. I know I can do it, so it will hopefully it will be even more comfortable the next round.


Q. You had a very physical match with Donald to start this campaign off. So as far as maybe preserving the body a little bit, do you think, okay, got a little bit of a break?
JAMES BLAKE: Yeah, can't hurt. Playing a shorter match is going to be helpful hopefully if I go deep into this tournament. A little less wear and tear on your body, even though we're conditioned to play plenty, plenty of long matches.
It's okay on us. Most of us are in good enough shape to deal with that. But it doesn't hurt to take a little off. I think also mentally, you deal with a lot mentally going into each and every match. Every point you're into 100%, so a little less fatigue hopefully towards the end of the tournament. Maybe it will help me down the road.


Q. What's the dynamic of playing your good friend in the next round?
JAMES BLAKE: I think it's going to be fine. It's great. We're close enough friends, so no matter what happens on Saturday or Sunday, whenever we play, we're going to be friends afterwards. If we play this time of the day, afterwards there's a good chance we'll be out to dinner together, all our groups. I'm sure we'll make some sort of a deal where the winner will have to pay.
But we'll be friends afterwards. I'll still be in his wedding in a couple of months, and I don't think anything ‑‑ I don't think anything's going to change between us, except one of us will be through to the fourth round and the other one will be on a plane back to Tampa.


Q. There's a Chilean who might not invite you to a cocktail party who you played in the Olympics, but he did speak about the situation the other day. He said after three hours you don't feel your body ‑‑ he didn't feel the shot. He said it's not my problem. It's your problem. Could you comment about what Fernando said?
JAMES BLAKE: Yeah, it's not my problem anymore either. What's done is done. I've moved past it, and, you know, whatever ‑‑ you know, whatever gets him to sleep at night is fine. If he says after three hours he can't feel a ball hitting his racquet, then apparently every fifth set he's ever played he can't feel the ball.
But, you know, that's ‑‑ like I said, whatever he wants to say or needs to say, that's up to him. He said it's not his problem. It's not my problem. It's the past.
If you let someone else get to you in the past you're not dealing with the present.


Q. Did it put a little bit of a shadow, James, on the tremendous event that was...
JAMES BLAKE: No, you can't let ‑‑ you know, if you're in a stadium full of 20,000 people and you got one unruly fan, you can't let that spoil the fact that you got a great crowd. I'm not going to let one point change my Olympic experience.
I was proud to be a part of Team U.S.A., part of the effort put forth by all the Olympians, proud of all the hard work and sacrifice they made to get there and compete at the highest level and do it fairly, cleanly, and with everything to be proud of.
I'm really happy about my Olympic experience. I wouldn't change it for anything. Obviously I wish I had done better. I wish I had gotten the medal to bring home to the States, but I can hold my head high saying I did everything I could. Did.
I competed with the utmost respect for my competitors and with the utmost respect for my country.


Q. Would you say the other players sort of backed you up or felt that a player should call in on himself? Did any of them come up and talk to you?
JAMES BLAKE: Yeah, I mean, guys were saying, Yeah, bad luck, obviously ‑‑ especially a lot of my friends on tour here, and they're saying they wish it had gone the other way or things like that. But I really don't get into it too much.
It's just ‑‑ it was one point. It is what it is, and it's over with. You know, I stand by all my comments I made there, and I'm not going to change that.
But no matter what I say or do isn't going to change the fact the point is over, the match is over, and I'm now worried about the US Open.
Hopefully the umpires are watching a little more closely here at the US Open.


Q. Is bottom line a guy should call it on himself?
JAMES BLAKE: You know, I feel like at the Olympics, you really should, dealing with the fact that we're competing in an event that promotes sportsmanship, promotes goodwill amongst countries.
And being in a sport that's somewhat gentlemanly. I'm not going expects, say, Lebron James or Kobe Bryant to say, Oh, no, that ball touched me last when the ref is calling it.
But when it's something that you know for sure. I'm not going to ever expect anyone to change a line call either because you can't be 100% sure.
Maybe I am holding him or any other athlete to too high of a standard to call that just because I feel like I would call it. Just because I feel like the way I was brought up in the world of tennis and the code of conduct that you are supposed to call it on yourself. And.
If my expectations are too high, then that is my problem. That's up to me. But I feel like since I would, I do generally try to expect that from others. But if those expectations are too high, it just leaves me maybe unfulfilled in those expectations with some of my other competitors. But I do feel like a lot of them would have.


Q. Along those lines, do you feel at this point your fans were quite loud today, your friends in the box on kind of a quiet afternoon. Do you feel there's ever a point where they cross the line and can act as a deterrent to your opponent in an unsportsman‑like way?
JAMES BLAKE: I'm actually very proud of those guys, because most of them ‑‑ not most of them ‑‑ but a decent amount of them have played tennis in their day, whether it's college tennis, high school tennis, and they are quiet during points.
In between points they do get loud, and I love that about the US Open, that you can get loud in between points and the crowd can be rambunctious. They do a good job.
I didn't hear anything today that was disrespectful to my opponent. And if I did, if I ever do, I'll mention it to them afterwards. But those guys are up there cheering at the right times, in my opinion, and cheering on their good friend.
I feel like it's similar to any country getting behind one of their top players, like Lleyton, playing Lleyton Hewitt in Australia. These guys, while they're doing it, they're also raising money for charity. All the shirts they're wearing, that money goes directly to my cancer research fund.
I couldn't be more proud of those guys. If they do get out of line, I'd be the first to apologize to an opponent or to the rest of the crowd. But I really don't think they have crossed the line.


Q. When you watch the convention tonight, will it be a night for another Harvard man?
JAMES BLAKE: I watched it a little bit here and there the last couple of nights and I read about it, and I'm proud of that Harvard man.


Q. He went to Columbia.
JAMES BLAKE: Yeah, Harvard graduate school, but we'll claim him.


Q. Guys always talk about how different this tournament is different this tournament is, the night, the noise. For a guy coming from New York and your affiliation with the Mets, is it just so different than anything else you play? Is the pressure on you greater because of your connection with the area?
JAMES BLAKE: Yeah, it is different than any other tournament, and different in a very positive way. This is the tournament at the beginning of the year I circle on my calendar I wasn't to peak for. I want to do as well as I possibly can at the US Open, because like you said, there is added pressure.
For me, the pressure is a synonym for opportunity. I feel like if you're doing something without any pressure, you're probably doing something a lot of people don't care about or you're doing something that's easy.
Nothing I'm doing out there is easy. I've worked hard to get here, and I'm proud to be in that position with pressure. I've always talked to my coach about the fact that as the matches get bigger and bigger, the wins and the losses, the wins mean more, the losses sting more.
That means you are dealing with a lot more pressure and you've done a lot to get there and you've earned that. It's an opportunity to do something great. That's the way I feel coming in here.


Q. Did you do anything differently with the Olympic Games and with Federer from what you usually did when you play with him?
JAMES BLAKE: No. I went in with the same confidence I've always had with him. This time I happened to serve really well on the big points, and I just played a lot of those really close points as well as I possibly could. That's just solidified or validified (sic) the fact that I had a lot of confidence going in.
I've had confidence against him many times. He just stepped his game up, and this time it was my turn. It was my day when I was playing as well as I possibly could, and I'm really proud that it happened on such a grand stage as the Olympics.


Q. Did you feel your opponent was laboring or not moving well?
JAMES BLAKE: Looked like he was struggling a little bit, but I didn't realize the extent of it. He got the trainer to come out at one point and work on his back, but it didn't seem that serious until he said that he really just couldn't run. I didn't realize how serious it was until then.


Site Officiel
http://www.usopen.org/en_US/news/interviews/2008-08-28/200808281219959588318.html

Blake éliminé

Tennis - US Open

L'Américain James Blake, tête de série N.9, s'est incliné au 3e tour de l'US Open, samedi, face à son compatriote Mardy Fish. Ce dernier retrouvera Gaël Monfils, tombeur de David Nalbandian, pour une place en 1/4 de finale.

US OPEN - Simple messieurs

3e tour:

M.Fish (USA) bat J.Blake (USA/N.9) 6-3, 6-3, 7-6 (7/4).

Prochain adversaire: Monfils.

Source

Bâle: James Blake trébuche

24/10/2008 - 18:50

Après avoir disposé de l'Allemand Kiefer au premier tour et de l'Espagnol Hernandez en huitièmes de finale du tournoi de Bâle, James Blake s'est incliné en quarts face à Feliciano Lopez. Il n'aura fallu que deux manches (6-4, 7-6) à l'Espagnol pour s'imposer face à l'Américain qui, rappelons-le, s'avère être un adversaire direct de Gilles Simon pour le Masters de Shanghai.

Sports.fr

Blake s'est fait peur

29/10/2008 20:15 , Tennis - ATP - Bercy

James Blake, tête de série n°11, s'est qualifié pour les huitièmes de finale du tournoi de Bercy en s'imposant en trois sets face à l'Italien Simone Bolelli (6-7, 6-3, 6-4). Issu des qualifications, ce dernier avait éliminé Nieminen au tour précédent et a très bien résisté face à la puissance de Blake. Mais ce dernier a fini par s'imposer en 1h59 et il est toujours en course pour la Masters Cup de Shanghaï.

L'Américain rencontrera l'Allemand Kohlschreiber, qui a éliminé David Ferrer, en huitièmes de finale.

L'Equipe

Blake en quarts

30/10 15h51 - Tennis, ATP, Bercy

L’Américain James Blake s’est qualifié pour les quarts de finale du Masters Series de Bercy au détriment de Philipp Kohlschreiber (6/4 6/4).

James Blake peut toujours espérer disputer le Masters. L’Américain a dominé Philipp Kohlschreiber, qu’il n’avait pourtant jamais battu jusque-là (6/4 6/4). En quarts, il retrouvera Roger Federer ou Marin Cilic.

Sport24

Blake pour De Chaunac

20/01 12h26 - Tennis, Open Australie

L’Américain James Blake s’est qualifié pour le 2e tour au détriment du Canadien Frank Dancevic (6/4 6/3 7/5).

James Blake s’est qualifié pour le 2e tour de l’Open d’Australie au détriment du Canadien Frank Dancevic (6/4 6/3 7/5). Il y retrouvera le Français Sébastien De Chaunac.

www.sport24.com

Blake ne perd pas le sommeil pour Obama



21/01/09 14:01 | Marion Tribondeau

- James Blake devra attendre quelques semaines pour célébrer l'investiture de Barack Obama, puisqu'il a préféré rejoindre le second tour de l'Open d'Australie.

L'Américain, tête de série numéro 9, garde son esprit fixé sur sa carrière de tennisman, en continuant à dormir au lieu de se lever à 3h du matin – heure à Melbourne – pour regarder la cérémonie à Washington.

« Je regarderai l'enregistrement quand je rentrerai chez moi. Avec ma carrière, je dois rester vraiment concentré sur le prochain tour. »

« C'est un événement très significatif que d'avoir le 1er président afro-américain au pouvoir. Je ne pense pas qu'il y ait quelqu'un de plus qualifié que Barack Obama pour ce travail aujourd'hui. »

Blake a ajouté qu'il avait fait des dons pour la campagne d'Obama quand il en avait eu l'occasion.

« J'ai tenté d'arriver à temps pour les événements à Tampa, mais j'étais en dehors de la ville et je n'ai pas pu revenir à temps. J'ai aidé quelques collecteurs de fonds à New York, aussi. »"

tennistalk.com/fr
http://www.tennistalk.com/fr/actualites/20090121/Blake_ne_perd_pas_le_sommeil_pour_Obama