Straight Sets: U.S. Open Set to Begin as Planned

The United States Open will begin as scheduled, at 11 a.m. on Monday, on a majority of the courts. The biggest change is at Arthur Ashe Stadium, where the first match will begin at 1 p.m. instead of 11 a.m.In a statement sent Sunday night, the United States Tennis Association said the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center had emerged from Hurricane Irene "with minimal damage." It also said gates would open to the public at 10 a.m. on Monday."From our perspective, we were very fortunate," said Daniel Zausner, the managing director of facility operations for the U.S.T.A. "There was virtually no damage, and any damage we had was cosmetic in nature."In a telephone interview Sunday, Zausner discussed the U.S.T.A.'s storm preparations. The 48 hours <a href="http://www.salehandbagsbags.com"><strong>lv handbags</strong></a> before the storm were spent breaking down the six broadcast centers; removing banners, canopies and other signage; and helping venders move merchandise to higher ground.Zausner and a crew of about 25 worked overnight Saturday, and several crews were scheduled to work through Sunday night as well. Zausner, who has run the facility operations for 10 years, said he had never experienced a similar type of storm, although a tornado hit the facility once weeks after the Open.In terms of damage, Zausner said there was no flooding or structural damage, only some broken fences and a few leaks that needed to be patched. He also said the Open would benefit from its large number of local workers, in case public transportation is not back up by Monday morning.On the men's side Monday, Mardy Fish, the highest seeded, at No. 8, of 14 American men, will begin play. So will third-seeded Roger Federer, who would tie Andre Agassi for second-most Grand Slam wins in the Open era with a win over Santiago Giraldo of Columbia.Also in action: Gael Monfils (seeded seventh) of France and Tomas Berdych (ninth) of the Czech Republic, along with the youngest man in the draw, 18-year-old Bernard Tomic of Australia, and the oldest man in the draw, a 30-year-old American named Michael Yani. Yani will attempt to win his first ever Grand Slam match.On the women's side, several other top seeds or intriguing players will also begin play Monday. Unseeded Venus Williams is scheduled to play on Arthur Ashe at night. Second-seeded Vera Zvonareva of Russia will play at Louis Armstrong Stadium in the afternoon.Also on Monday, <a href="http://www.salehandbagsbags.com"><strong>gucci handbags</strong></a> the Jets and the Giants will play at MetLife Stadium at 7 p.m., and the Mets play a doubleheader against the Marlins at Citi Field at 4:10 p.m.According to the New Jersey Transit Web site, there will be no service to the Meadowlands Sports Complex for the Giants-Jets game. Coach USA will supplement its bus service from the Port Authority bus terminal.The Open will continue through next weekend to the men's singles final on Sept. 11.