Next week, the U.S. Open gets underway in Flushing Meadow at the National Tennis Center in New York. Three networks will cover the event, CBS will have Labor Day Weekend and Championship Weekend coverage and it’ll mark the last time Dick Enberg will call the event. Tennis Channel will have daytime coverage from the outer courts as well as primetime coverage during Labor Day Weekend. And the most comprehensive coverage will come from ESPN2 which has come to really embrace America’s major tennis championship.
Known as “The World’s Toughest Tennis”, the U.S. Open will start with action during the day at 11 a.m. ET and again with nighttime sessions at 7 p.m. ET. For tennis fans like me, it’s a literal smorgasbord of action for two weeks.
For ESPN2, you have the usual tennis crew led by Chris Fowler, Cliff Drysdale, Patrick McEnroe, Darren Cahill, Mary Jo Fernandez, Pam Shriver, Brad Gilbert and Chris Evert. Joining ESPN2 for the tournament will be John McEnroe. Mike Tirico, Hannah Storm and Chris McKendry will be on hand as hosts.
ESPN2 will begin from the first day of action and continue through to the Women’s Doubles Final on Sunday, September 11. We have the press release for you.
ESPN & the 2011 US Open: 100 Hours on ESPN2 HD; 420 on ESPN3.com, Growing Online & Mobile Presence
Brackets Announced on ESPN August 25; Chris Evert Makes ESPN US Open Debut
ESPN’s multi-platform and worldwide coverage of tennis’ final Grand Slam event of the year, the US Open from New York August 29 – September 11 will include 100 hours in high definition on ESPN2 HD, 420 hours on ESPN3.com’s multi-court offering plus coverage across ESPN’s platforms in the U.S. and around the world. The tournament will mark the ESPN US Open debut for Chris Evert, who joined ESPN this summer at Wimbledon. With a record six US Open titles among her 18 major singles championships, she will serve as both a studio and match analyst. For a taste of ESPN’s coverage, here is a promo spot: http://bit.ly/ESPNUSOad.
Before play begins, ESPN will be home of the exclusive announcement of the men’s and women’s draw during SportsCenter on Thursday, Aug. 25, at noon. Patrick McEnroe and Mary Joe Fernandez will discuss the pairings live from the National Tennis Center in New York with player interviews including defending champion Rafael Nadal.
During the first week of the tournament, ESPN2’s coverage will start at 1 p.m. each weekday and will continue nonstop for at least 10 hours through both the day and evening sessions. The latter, Primetime at the US Open, will begin at 7 p.m. and continue until 11 p.m. or when play is concluded, whichever is later. The second week, ESPN2 will have Primetime at the US Open at 7 p.m. on Labor Day Monday, Sept. 5, followed by day-long windows Tuesday – Thursday starting at 11 a.m. On Thursday, Sept. 8, the evening telecast will include a special doubles exhibition with actors Will Ferrell and Matthew Perry and Tennis Hall of Famers John McEnroe and Jim Courier.
All of ESPN2’s telecasts are also available online through ESPNnetworks.com, and on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app. Both are accessible to fans who receive their video service from an affiliated provider.
While ESPN2 is on the air, SportsCenter will have the right to cut-in live for updates and key moments. SportsCenter’s daytime edition is on ESPN until 3 p.m. with later editions from 6-7 p.m. and 11 p.m.-midnight. On ESPNEWS, SportsCenter airs from 3-6 p.m. and 7-11 p.m.
On the final day of the tournament, Sunday, Sept. 11, ESPN2 will televise live the women’s doubles championship at 1 p.m., and will review all the action at 10 p.m. with a special two-hour edition of SportsCenter at the US Open.
ESPN2’s Commentator Lineup
The addition at Wimbledon of Evert bolstered television’s best tennis team, led by Cliff Drysdale, a former US Open finalist. Cliff has been with ESPN since its first tennis telecast September 14, 1979, exactly one week after the network launched, making him second in ESPN tenure among commentators behind only Bob Ley. Chris Fowler, ESPN’s lead studio anchor for Grand Slam tennis since 2003, will serve as a host and call matches. Mike Tirico of Monday Night Football, Hannah Storm and Chris McKendry will also serve as hosts. John and Patrick McEnroe will again often be paired in the booth, and the rest of the ESPN tennis team returns: Darren Cahill, Mary Joe Fernandez, Brad Gilbert and Pam Shriver. In addition, Tom Rinaldi will contribute features and essays.More US Open from ESPN, Inc.
ESPN3.com, the company’s live multi-screen sports network, will cover the action from six courts (up from five) beginning at 1 p.m. the first five days. ESPN3.com will also simulcast ESPN2 for the full tournament, select additional court coverage and a simulcast of the Women’s Doubles final for a total of approximately 420 hours of US Open tennis on the web.ESPN3.com gives fans a 24/7 destination that delivers thousands of live, global sports events annually. It is available in nearly 70 million homes at no additional cost to fans who receive their high-speed Internet connection or video subscription from an affiliated service provider. It is also available at no cost to approximately 21 million U.S. college students and U.S.-based military personnel via computers connected to on-campus educational networks and on-base military networks. The network is also accessible on the go via the WatchESPN app and on ESPN on Xbox LIVE through an affiliated provider.
ESPN.com
- Courtcast: A multi-tool application with all-court scoring, match stats, Cover It Live conversations, poll questions, rolling Twitter feeds and scrolling bottom line.
- Center Court: A daily video review of the day’s best highlights and most notable results.
- Digital Serve: Exclusive daily dotcom video segment previewing the next day’s action.
- Slam Central: Home of all the best US Open content, including columns by Greg Garber, highlights and the latest results.
- Open Notebook: An aggregation of what the latest happenings are on the grounds of Flushing Meadows. From interviews, latest results, and even vetting the food, fans will get a taste of everything.
ESPN Interactive TV will be presented on DIRECTV. During the ESPN2 telecast windows for the first five days, a six-screen mosaic will include the ESPN2 program, along with matches with commentary from five other courts. In total, viewers will have access to more than 435 hours of live tennis action and 140 extra matches. Production will be enhanced with press conferences, interviews and features that will be added during court changeovers and between matches. All six screens can be expanded to full screen or picture-in-picture at the touch of the remote button. In addition, DIRECTV will offer “Matches On Now,” a graphic across the bottom with scores from each of the matches currently on the court channels, with the ability to tune directly to the match, and “Results,” an instant look at real-time scores and schedule info for matches ahead – all without leaving the match the viewer is watching.
ESPN Deportes, the multi-media Spanish-language U.S. initiative, will present live action during the first week of the US Open through its radio and online platforms. ESPNdeportes.com will serve U.S. Hispanic fans featuring daily webisodes of “ESPiaNdo” with the latest news and information. In addition, the site will offer special daily reports, highlights from New York and updates on Twitter by Varela, Cortina, and Alvarez. ESPN Deportes Radio will feature daily segments during the morning drive show Al Despertar.
ESPN International will offer over 170 hours of live coverage throughout Latin America, the Caribbean and Sub-Saharan Africa. In Latin America, coverage will be available in high definition. Coverage to Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America will be anchored by Luis Alvarez and Eduardo Varela with analysts Javier Frana and Jose Luis Clerc and reporters Nicolas Pereira, Carolina Guillen and Pablo Ferreira. Sam Gore and Mark Brown will handle English play-by-play with analysts Kathy Rinaldi and Jimmy Arias. Latin America’s ESPN Play will feature over 500 hours of live streaming coverage which will include up to six tennis courts in separate windows early on in the tournament. Additional Spanish content will be available on ESPN360.com, ESPNdeportes.com and ESPN Mobile, featuring daily webisodes of “ESPiaNdo” hosted by Varela, access to reports from New York and daily highlights.
The WatchESPN app, for fans with Apple or Android devices and who receive ESPN’s linear networks as part of their video subscription via Time Warner Cable, Bright House Networks or Verizon FiOS TV, will present ESPN2’s live coverage, in addition to ESPN3.com’s multi-screen offering. Also, ESPN Mobile TV will carry 65 hours of live coverage.
ESPN Classic: Great US Open Matches from the Past
Leading up to this year’s action, ESPN Classic will present great US Open matches from the past, highlighted by a 21-hour marathon starting late Thursday, Aug. 25 at midnight. In addition, the morning the tournament starts Monday, Aug. 29, at 7 a.m. and leading directly into ESPN2’s live coverage at 1 p.m., ESPN Classic will air the most recent two men’s finals – Juan Martin Del Potro defeating Roger Federer in a dramatic five-setter in 2009 and Rafael Nadal beating Novak Djokovic for a career Grand Slam last year.Of special note are showings of three noteworthy matches upon significant anniversaries:
- the 1981 Men’s Final – 30 years ago – when John McEnroe defeated Bjorn Borg 4-6, 6-2, 6-4, 6-3 for his third of four US Open titles Thurs., Aug. 25, at 1 a.m. (Wed., Aug. 24, at 10 p.m. PT). Borg quickly left the court and played very few matches ever again, and never in a major. The match will also be aired on Tuesday, Sept. 13, the exact 30th anniversary date, at 8 p.m.
- also on its 30th anniversary, the 1981 Women’s Final will be presented Monday, Sept. 12, at 8 p.m. In a memorable match, Tracy Austin came from way back to defeat Martina Navratilova 1-6, 7-6, 7-6 for her second and last major championship before back injuries shortened her career.
- A 10th anniversary look back at the 2001 Men’s Quarterfinal, in which no. 10 seed Pete Sampras edged no. 2 Andre Agassi in four sets, all of which went to a tiebreaker: Fri., Aug. 26, at 1 p.m. (Thurs., Aug. 25 at 10 p.m. PT).
The ESPN Classic schedule:
Date Time (ET) Match Thur, Aug 25 1-3 a.m. 1981 Men’s Final: John McEnroe vs. Bjorn Borg 7-9 p.m. 1995 Men’s Final: Pete Sampras vs. Andre Agassi MID-1 a.m. 1979 Women’s Final: Tracy Austin vs. Chris Evert Lloyd Fri, Aug 26 1-3:30 a.m. 2001 Men’s Quarterfinal: Pete Sampras vs. Andre Agassi 3:30-5:30 a.m. 1989 Men’s Quarterfinal: Jimmy Connors vs. Andre Agassi 5:30-8 a.m. 1982 Men’s Final: Jimmy Connors vs. Ivan Lendl 8-11 a.m. 1992 Men’s Semifinal: Stefan Edberg vs. Michael Chang 11 a.m.-1 p.m. 1994 Men’s Final: Andre Agassi vs. Michael Stich 1-3 p.m. 1995 Women’s Final: Steffi Graf vs. Monica Seles 3-5 p.m. 2004 Women’s Quarterfinal: Serena Williams vs. Jennifer Capriati 5-7 p.m. 1990 Men’s Final: Pete Sampras vs. Andre Agassi 7-9 p.m. 1995 Men’s Final: Pete Sampras vs. Andre Agassi Mon, Aug 29 7-10 a.m. 2009 Men’s Final: Juan Martin Del Potro vs. Roger Federer 10 a.m.-1 p.m. 2010 Men’s Final: Rafael Nadal vs. Novak Djokovic Mon, Sept 12 8-10 p.m. 1981 Women’s Final: Tracy Austin vs. Martina Navratilova Tue, Sept 13 8-10 p.m. 1981 Men’s Final: John McEnroe vs. Bjorn Borg ESPN – All Four Slams, All In One Place
Tennis has been part of ESPN since its first week on the air and provided many memorable moments, but it has never been as important as today, with the US Open joining the lineup in 2009, giving ESPN all four Grand Slam events, something no other U.S. network has ever done, let alone in one year. ESPN has presented the Australian Open since 1984, the French Open since 2002 (plus 1986 – 1993), and Wimbledon since 2003, with exclusivity for live television with all other rights extended added in a 12-year agreement starting in 2012.ESPN debuted September 7, 1979, and the first tennis telecast was exactly one week later, September 14, a Davis Cup tie, Argentina at U.S. from Memphis with Cliff Drysdale on the call and John McEnroe playing.
In addition, broadband network ESPN3.com, now in nearly 70 million homes, carries thousands of hours of tennis annually, including all four Grand Slam events, plus ATP 1000 and 500 tournaments, usually with additional, exclusive matches. Also, ESPN Classic shows great matches from the past and the sport receives extensive coverage on SportsCenter, ESPNEWS, Spanish-language ESPN Deportes, ESPN Radio, ESPN.com and ESPN The Magazine. ESPN 3D aired its first tennis at Wimbledon in 2011.
ESPN2 HD & the 2011 US Open
Date
Time (ET)
Event
Mon, Aug 29 1-7 p.m. 7-11 p.m.
First Round
Primetime at the US Open: First RoundTues, Aug 30 1-7 p.m. 7-11 p.m.
First Round Primetime at the US Open: First Round
Wed, Aug 31 1-7 p.m. Men’s First Round/Women’s Second Round Thur, Sept 1
7-11 p.m. 1-7 p.m.
7-11 p.m.
Primetime at the US Open: First & Second Rounds Second Round
Primetime at the US Open: Second Round
Fri, Sept 2 1-7 p.m. 7-11 p.m.
Men’s Second Round/Women’s Third Round Primetime at the US Open: Second & Third Rounds
Mon, Sept 5 7-11 p.m. Primetime at the US Open: Round of 16 Tues, Sept 6 11 a.m.-7 p.m. 7-11 p.m.
Men’s Round of 16, Women’s Quarterfinals Primetime at the US Open: Women’s Quarterfinals
Wed, Sept 7 11 a.m.-7 p.m. 7-11 p.m.
Quarterfinals Primetime at the US Open: Quarterfinals
Thur, Sept 8 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Men’s Quarterfinals 7-11 p.m. Primetime at the US Open: Men’s Quarterfinals Sun, Sept 11 1-3 p.m. Women’s Doubles Final 10-MID p.m. SportsCenter at the US Open
Tennis Channel’s coverage plans are next.
