Tennis: Tributes and milestones at the 2015 Citi Open

Farewell, Lleyton: Lleyton Hewitt, the two-time Grand Slam winner from Australia, is wrapping up his final year on the ATP Tour which will reportedly culminate at the 2016 Australian Open. In Washington, D.C., the 34-year-old received a wild card to compete at the 2015 Citi Open, where he defeated countryman John-Patrick Smith before falling to Feliciano Lopez in three sets in the second round. Match point against Smith, of course, featured one of Hewitt’s signature “Come on!” screams:

Hewitt was also honored in an on-court video tribute:

Farewell to Mardy, too: American Mardy Fish will retire after the 2015 U.S. Open. The 2004 Olympic silver medalist won six singles and eight doubles titles on the ATP Tour, all before achieving his career-high ranking of No. 7 in 2011. Since then, a series of health issues, notably some serious heart problems and related anxiety attacks, forced Fish to take long breaks from the game. In D.C., Fish competed in doubles with Grigor Dimitrov, defeating the 2014 Wimbledon champions Jack Sock and Vasek Pospisil before defaulting from the next round due to an injury suffered by Dimitrov. Like Hewitt, the Citi Open also paid tribute to Fish on the court:

Citi Open by the numbers:

500: Samantha Stosur, the 2011 U.S. Open champion, celebrated her 500th match win on the pro tour following an opening round victory over Kristina Mladenovic, 6-2, 6-2. The Australian was surprised by the milestone when asked about it during her post-match press conference. “Yeah, 500 is a lot of matches,” she said. “So it’s nice to make that and know that you’ve had a pretty decent, long career.”

108: The longer they compete in the pro ranks, the longer American doubles players Bob and Mike Bryan continue to break – and extend – records. The 2015 Citi Open marked a staggering 108th title for the 37-year-old twin brothers. Imagine how many more they’ll win if they match the career longevity of currently active players Daniel Nestor and Leander Paes, both 42?

7: Kei Nishikori won his 10th career singles title – beating John Isner, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 – but the Citi Open was notably his seventh since hiring Michael Chang to join his team in early 2014.

1: Backing the talent that led her to the Australian Open semifinals in 2013, Sloane Stephens won her first tournament. The 22-year-old defeated Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, 6-1, 6-2, in what was also her first final on the WTA Tour.

And finally, a Hall of Fame announcement:

Honored at this year’s Washington Tennis & Education Foundation Hall of Fame initiation: Hon. Norman Dicks (retired Congressman from the state of Washington); former Wimbledon singles finalist Zina Garrison; and the Hon. William H.G. Fitzgerald. (photo by Kwai Chan / Meniscus Magazine)

Photos: 2015 Citi Open – ATP Tour
all photos by Kwai Chan / Meniscus Magazine