Arthur Ashe Kids Day was packed with celebrities, activities, and some funny moments. After a foggy and humid start, the sun and a slight breeze came through at around noon and the grounds lit up. There were kids everywhere getting their faces painted, tracking down their favorite tennis players with a Sharpie in one hand and a giant tennis ball in the other, and doing on-court activities. Most of the fans were sporting the A.R.Foundation’s new red, white, and blue wristband. The USTA Billy Jean National Tennis Center has officially kicked off the 2007 US Open with a bang!

Andy started his day with practice in Louis Armstrong stadium at 11am with Kiefer, and then refueled at lunch for two celebrity doubles matches. The vocal artists and tennis players alternated turns as the center of attention, and Andy first stepped on court with WWE wrestler John Cena to play doubles against Martina Hingis and Ana Ivanovic. The girls put up a fight, and John put on quite a show swinging like he was Barry Bonds and whiffed more times than not, and the ladies prevailed in the first Double Delight.

The second showing came at 3:30, and this time Andy partnered up with Matchbox 20’s lead singer Rob Thomas. They took on two towering athletes- American youngster Sam Querrey and Skateboarding champion Tony Hawk. Chris Kattan strut onto court with a spikey hair-do being held in place with a bright blue sweatband while swaying his hips in a woman’s white tennis skirt. After a few points, with Team Rob & Roddick in the lead, Andy grabbed a skateboard, so did Tony, and Rob joined in the fun by picking up a red electric guitar, and everyone was swinging their new “utensils” like racquets. Even though Andy hit the ball with the wheel and it didn’t go over the net, Kattan called the match to an end with Team Rob & Roddick as the winners.

With sunburnt shoulders and sweaty faces, the fans emptied the grounds happy to have attended another year’s US Open kick-off event. The USTA put on quite a show today, but I have a feeling that was only the tip of the racquet. We’re in for a smash hit year here, and our number five-seed Firepower is ready to get this party started. Go Andy!