On September 2, The Knockturnal was invited to attend the US Open as a guest of Dobel Tequila (the Open’s first ever Tequila Partner).
It was a beautiful evening for tennis! Thousands of fans gathered to see their favorite players face off. We had a blast exploring the grounds of the famed tournament in Flushing, Queens. At a little before 7 p.m. we headed to the Dobel Tequila Suite! It was a very VIP experience. All of the staff was warm and accommodating. The amazing food available in the suite included lobster rolls, grilled veggies, peach salad, charcuterie, truffle pasta, asparagus, steak, chicken and sushi. For dessert, we enjoyed chewey cookies (black and white, chocolate chip & oatmeal), brownies and mini cake helpings in a glass like chocolate, cheesecake and carrot.
The highlight of the evening (besides the tennis, of course), was the TEQUILA! Dobel served up some fantastic cocktails like the Ace Paloma, Spin Margarita (Maestro Dobel Tequila Diamante Cristalino, Lime Juice and Agave Syrup) and Slice Ranch Water (Maestro Dobel Tequila Diamante Cristalino, Lime Juice and Soda Water). They also gave out shots of the Maestro Dobel 50 with a bit of pineapple to bring out the flavor! We also had amazing views of the court. Other celebs in attendance that evening included Victor Cruz, singer Seal and Maren Morris, to name a few.
Throughout the week stars like Katie Holmes, Seal, Rosie Perez, Ariana DeBose and many more enjoyed a night of spectacular tennis views and toasted the US Open with Maestro Dobel.
Check out the pics below!
You can enjoy the signature cocktail of the night at home with the below recipe!
Maestro Dobel Ace Paloma
1.5 oz. Maestro Dobel Tequila Diamante Cristalino
2 oz. Owen’s Rio Red Grapefruit Soda
Twist of Fresh Lime
Procedure: Pour Maestro Dobel Tequila Diamante Cristalino and squeeze of lime into tall glass filled with fresh ice and rimmed with black lava salt. Top with Owen’s Rio Red Grapefruit and garnish with a pink grapefruit wedge placed on the mouth of the glass, serve!
At this particular match, the US Open celebrated military veterans with Lieutenant Joe Hunt Military Day. The tennis organization honored veterans with ceremonies and free tickets.
We enjoyed an evening of nail-biting matches. Daniil Medvedev destroyed Sebastian Baez’s twelve-match winning streak. He defeated Baez 6-2, 6-1 7-6(6) at 1:30 a.m. and entered strong into the US Open’s fourth round. Medvedev stands 6’6”, more than Baez’s 5’7”. Medvedev used his height advantage and big-match skills to dominate in the first two sets. He produced seamless extended backhand-to-backhand exchanges. Baez copied Medvedev’s forehand strikes, particularly in the third set. However, Baez converted only two of twelve breakpoint chances and produced fifty-five unforced errors. Medvedev commented on the first two sets. “I felt like we were both playing well, even in the first two sets. I was just a little better on important points, everything was going my way,” Medvedev said. Then, the third set occurred.
Baez hit bigger forehands and came to the net seventeen times. He neared his eighteen total net visits from the first two rounds. Baez led 5-2 in the third set. Unfortunately, a ten-minute delay for light rain halted his succession. When the contest resumed, Medvedev served at 4-5 and defended against one set point in the following game. In his next service game, he made a comeback from 0/30. On the other hand, Baez saw less success. Baez made a number of unforced errors at important moments, like at a 6/6 serving in a tie-breaker round. Medvedev commented on the third set.
He said, “Third set he raised his level just a little bit to make the match even tougher. A bit of luck and some good play from me kept me in the set and it’s good to not finish at 4 (a.m.).”
Earlier in the evening, number five seed Ons Jabeur beat number thirty-one seed Marie Bouzkova in a round three contest.
“Man, it’s a very tough match,” said Jabeur in her on-court interview. “Huge respect for her, for sure.” At the contest’s start, the players took note of the other’s skills. Jabeur utilized tricky shots, like droppers, angles, and lobs. Unfortunately, she made mistakes on easy shots in important moments. Down 3-5, she had fifteen errors, comparable to Bouzkova’s five. Despite Jabeur’s rally, Bouzkova won the first frame, 7-5. In the second set, Jabeur made a comeback. She exhibited the talents through which she secured her finalist titles at the 2022 US Open and Wimbledon. Jabeur led by 5-4 when Bouzkova limped to her chair for a time-out. After the medical pause, the match resumed. Bouzkova stumbled often and did not retrieve Jabeur’s jump shots. Jabeur could not use Bouzkova’s condition to her own advantage. A nail-biter tiebreak occurred. Soon, Jabeur led, 7-6(5). She commented on her strategy. “At the end of the second set, I tried…to make her move as much as I can. I know that’s not nice,” said Jabeur. Then, the third set occurred. Bouzkova charged at the net to stop the drop shots. She saved two match points. Jabeur served 5-3 and won the contest. On the same day, the US Open honored veterans.
The tennis tournament invited veterans from the five U.S. military branches. They watched daytime and nighttime session marches and participated in coin tosses. They played in Arthur Ashe Staium’s tennis clinics. The US Open arranged for a unique, on-court commemoration. It celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of female pilots in the Navy. Rear Admiral Shoshana Chatfield and retired Navy Captain Joellen Drag-Oslund joined USTA Chairman of the Board and President Brain Hainline. Each guest held significance. Recently, Rear Admiral Chatfield became president of the Naval War College. Captain Drag-Oslund is one of the first women pilots who became certified to fly.
The United States Marine Corps members, 6th Communication Battalion, Brooklyn, N.Y., presented the nation’s colors. The West Point Brass Quintet from the United States Military Academy at West Point played the Star Spangled Banner. The US Open showed its commitment to social change.
The day started with a tennis clinic for twenty-four participants from “Hope for the Warrior” families. The tennis tournament organization welcomed other military groups as well. Fifty tickets to the day’s matches were provided to groups including “Blue Star Families,” “Four Block,” “Black Veterans for Social Justice,” and “Zero Mills.”
We had so much fun at the US Open. Thanks for having us Dobel Tequila! #smoothnessmastered
