NEW YORK -- Roger Federer was a twitchy, unsettled mess, channeling his inner Serena Williams by lecturing the chair umpire. And this was after he had won the third set.
The crackling forehands of his 20-year-old foe, Juan Martin del Potro, bothered him. Del Potro's sneaking glances toward his coach before he would ask for a call to be challenged bothered him. The swirling winds, the blowing trash, the noisy crowd - these were moments of imperfection unappreciated by the tennis maestro.
All these bothers added up until there was del Potro of Argentina standing in the middle of the court, holding up a trophy, winner, 3-6, 7-6 (5), 4-6, 7-6 (4), 6-2, over the five-time defending champion in the final of the U.S. Open on Monday night at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
After a backhand by the top-seeded Federer flew long, on his third championship point, del Potro dropped to the ground, flat on his back. Looking at the sky, it must have been how Federer had felt all match, trying to solve the game of the 6-foot-6 del Potro, now the tallest Grand Slam tournament winner.
"I don't have words to explain it," del Potro said of his victory.
This was the first Open final to go the ultimate five sets since 1999. Del Potro is the first Argentine man since Guillermo Vilas in 1977 to win the U.S. title, and Vilas was in the stands Monday standing and cheering for del Potro.
Federer had won 40 consecutive matches here in ways both dominating and imperious, but almost never did he become unsettled the way he did this time.
During the 4-hour, 6-minute match, Federer was overheard on national television muttering an audible obscenity and engaging chair umpire Jake Garner in a tempestuous argument over how del Potro was using the challenge system. "Don't tell me to be quiet, OK?" Federer said to Garner. "When I want to talk, I talk."
Note: : Serena Williams wore a T-shirt Monday that said, "Can I Get An Amen?"
This was after she and her sister Venus had beaten the top-seeded women's doubles team of Cara Black and Liezel Huber, 6-2, 6-2, to win the women's doubles title.
And this was after Williams issued a follow-up statement to one she had issued Sunday, only this time she included an apology for her tirade Saturday directed at a lineswoman who had called a foot fault on Williams' serve. Williams' actions caused a penalty point to be assessed for unsportsmanlike conduct - a point that gave eventual champion Kim Clijsters a 6-4, 7-5 victory.
Williams' newest statement read in part, "I want to amend my press statement of yesterday and want to make it clear as possible - I want to sincerely apologize FIRST to the lineswoman, Kim Clijsters, the USTA and mostly tennis fans everywhere for my inappropriate outburst. I'm a woman of great pride, faith and integrity and I admit when I'm wrong. I need to make it clear to all young people that I handled myself inappropriately and it's not the way to act - win or lose, good call or bad call in any sport, in any manner." On Sunday, Williams was fined $10,500. She earned $350,000 for reaching the singles semifinals here. She and her sister also received $410,000 for winning the doubles championship.
