WORLD NO. 1 BEATER: With her win at the Olympics over Jelena Jankovic, Russian Dinara Safina became the first player in history to beat three different reigning No. 1 players in the same year.

“I hate not playing and I hate withdrawing from tournaments,” said Roddick, chomping at the bit to take the court and gain some momentum entering Flushing Meadows. “It’s the most hollow feeling every when you have to walk off because you’re hurt and you know people have come to watch you play.”

Nonetheless, this was a stellar day for curse beneficiary qualifier Rohan Bopanna. While beating Fish in the first set, fellow Indians, the Amritraj father and son were busy sending text messages of support. Who the messages were being sent to, I have no clue? It appears their help worked as Bopanna only needed two tiebreak sets for his Fish fry.

I’M NOT A HEADCASE: Richard Gasquet, who withdrew from the French Open citing a bad knee, says don’t count him out: “What can I say except that it’s been a huge amount of bad luck for me,” Gasquet said. “I keep reading I’m having a hard time mentally, but it’s not true.