ESPN 2007 US Open

As the shadows lengthen and the days grow shorter, a sense of urgency is in the air. With summer drawing to its close, it's time for the U.S. Open, the season's last chance for Grand Slam glory.

Has the time come for someone other than Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal to win a major? The two players have combined to win the past 10. Can Serena or Venus pull off yet another magic act in 2007? Both are in the top half of the draw and will meet in the semifinals if they get that far.

Here's a look at where things stand for a number of notables:

Men's headliners
All seems well in Federer's house -- or does it? Perhaps now is the time for a bit of revision. A desultory final in Paris, a suave escape at Wimbledon and a merely acceptable pre-Open effort. During his loss in Montreal to Novak Djokovic, he showed slight signs of crankiness, both on and off the court. Asked afterward how important the loss was, Federer spoke with the haste of a Bush administration official: "Insignificant." Really?

Djokovic is the soaring star of 2007. His runs to the semis at Roland Garros and Wimbledon were impressive, but his Montreal victory -- the first time in 13 years a man beat the top three players in the world on the way to a title -- revealed even more. "I show my quality," he said after his third-set tiebreak win over Federer in the final. "I deserve to be here right now." The most noticeable part of Djokovic's game is that, at first glance, nothing is particularly noticeable. With little flash, he goes about his business and is a few wins away, at age 20, from becoming tennis' next big thing. It will be interesting to see how he handles the high-octane environment of the U.S. Open.

Nadal so throws himself into the first half of the year that his summer becomes more about recovery than conquest. Djokovic proved to be the bigger hitter in Montreal, and bigger problems ensued in Cincinnati, when a cramp in Nadal's left arm and dizziness forced him to retire in the second set against Juan Monaco. As Nadal said following that loss, "It's important to have some off days always, but sometimes that's happen, no?" Assuming Nadal regains his health, he will be a major fan favorite in New York, and if he plays aggressively, particularly on service returns, he can go far.

Although his win in Washington, D.C., was a reasonable morale booster, little this summer has shown that Andy Roddick has the skills to win seven Slam matches. If the loss to Frank Dancevic in Indianapolis could be written off, last week's defeat at the hands of rough customer David Ferrer revealed disturbing passivity. Even Roddick agreed. "It's not like a hitting-the-ball issue like it was last year," he said after the loss. "I didn't do what I've been practicing. That makes it real difficult on yourself." And the loss to Djokovic in Montreal confirmed what many have believed for much of this year -- that Djokovic, not Roddick, is the one most likely to threaten Federer and Nadal. The sober truth might be that while Roddick is a great player, the era in which he is playing is becoming even greater.

Supporting cast

• James Blake: His run to the final in Cincinnati showed newfound consistency. He now is hoping to do more in New York than gain a noble loss.

• Lleyton Hewitt: By nearly toppling Federer in Cincinnati, he showed he is in the hunt.

• Sam Querrey: The 19-year-old is playing smart tennis, so can it scale to longer matches?

• John Isner: He is where Querrey was a year ago: big serve, nothing to lose, so take big cuts and let the chips fall where they may.

Women's headliners
Justine Henin's aggressive tennis in Toronto was impressive. The game's premier warrior gives her all and gets so much, but can her frame hold up in New York? The calibration of fitness, freshness and match play is exquisitely delicate with her, so factors like weather and swift early matches will be critical.

Jelena Jankovic's ability to smile after a big point shows a rare perspective. But one wonders: Does she really believe she deserves to be among the very best? Or, does she merely play so much in hopes that the spell doesn't wear off? Breakdowns in the semis in Los Angeles versus Ana Ivanovic and the final in Toronto against Henin showed traces of tactical and technical rigidity, particularly on her too-flat forehand and so-so second serve. Goofy candor makes her extremely likeable, but maybe a bit of the irrational also is necessary if she is to win big. Note her dutiful comments after the loss in Toronto: "Justine is always great for me to play against her and see where my level is at, because she's obviously the better player. She motivates me to work harder and to keep improving on my game. My time will come. I'm young, and we'll see."

Ivanovic, the glamorous current "It" girl, showed boldness under pressure to win L.A., striking what has emerged as the tour's best forehand. "She keeps improving, keeps working on her game, and you can see she's committed to being as good as she can be," ESPN analyst Mary Joe Fernandez said. However, it was disappointing to see her fatigued and vanquished in her opening-round match in Toronto. As with her fellow Serb, Djokovic, it will be fascinating to see how she handles the New York pressure, where expectations are higher.

How to dare assess the Williams sisters, who between them have played one tournament since Wimbledon? Venus' Wimbledon victory gave hope that she would make a strong go this summer, but that has not been the case. Serena hasn't played a match since Wimbledon, her left thumb proving to be one of the most annoying injuries of her career. But writing these two off is dangerous. Clearly their opponents are intimidated by the sisters' impressive résumés -- and resilient tenacity under pressure. Venus likely is more sharp, but only a genius or an idiot can accurately gauge Serena.

Just like Henin and Ivanovic, Maria Sharapova won one tournament this summer -- her first of 2007 -- and hardly has been a factor since. Impressive as it was to see her fight her way to the San Diego title, her '06 U.S. Open victory seems many moons ago. In her three losses at the '07 Slams, she's won a total of 10 games. In some ways, she's much like Roddick -- a player at the crossroads. Also like Roddick, she's a superb competitor whose limitations have been exposed and who is working hard to grub her way past those shortcomings.

Supporting cast

• Anna Chakvetadze: She had nice wins at lesser tournaments this summer (Cincinnati and Stanford). Now let's see if she can step up on the big stage.

• Svetlana Kuznetsova, Nadia Petrova: No longer young, but not yet too old, these two skilled Russians need to show some big-time confidence at crunch time.

• Tatiana Golovin: New coach Mats Wilander could aid her greatly. Still a teen (19), she has plenty of tennis ahead.

• Sania Mirza: Her frequent and consistent summer play could shake things up in New York. However, she has a potential third-round meeting with Chakvetadze, who already has beaten Mirza twice this summer.

Joel Drucker is based in Oakland, Calif., and writes about tennis for Tennis Magazine and The Tennis Channel.