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NEW YORK -- You get just five precious minutes. Five minutes to hit tennis balls on the court where youre about to play a match that could win you tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars and the chance for even more riches at the tournament -- or could send you to the airport.Five minutes to feel the depth, spin and speed of your opponents shots, in the wind, sun and humidity youre about to contend with. Five minutes to practice every type of shot you might have to hit, some of them dozens or hundreds of times: serves, forehands, backhands.Yet just about every pro spends at least half of those five precious minutes standing near the net, hitting the ball out of the air -- something he or, especially, she might do more in those five minutes of warm-ups than in the actual match.Tennis players dont come to net in matches as much as they used to, and some essentially dont do it at all of their own volition, though they might find themselves up there unwillingly after retrieving an opponents drop shot. Yet even the most dedicated baseliner hits about 15 volleys and smashes during warm-ups.Even Angelique Kerber, the world No. 2, who won the Australian Open and is a semifinalist here at the US Open.Sometimes you [are] going to the net, Kerber said after her fourth-round match against Petra Kvitova, a match in which Kerber went to net on just eight points, winning four. When you know you have a little bit [of] warm-up in the net its actually better for your [confidence]. Im not going too often to the net, but still its good to know that you hit during your practice [a] few balls there.Kerber played a lower percentage of her points at the net than just about any of the other 32 men and women who reached the round of 16 at the U.S. Open: just 5.6 percent through her first three matches. Not every match is scored, and counting can be inconsistent, because of the subjective nature of stat-keeping in tennis. Nonetheless, the naked eye and Kerber herself confirm that she rarely chooses to come to net. That didnt change much against Kvitova (6.1 percent).Venus Williams, who lost in the fourth round, played at net more frequently than most of her peers in the tournament.Some people come in just to shake hands and do the coin toss, she said. Im not one of those people.The seven-time major singles champ pointed out that slow courts and advanced racket strings make it easier for players to hit shots past opponents at the net. Kerber is much better at hitting passing shots than she is at cutting them off.Men generally go to net more often than women, in part because their bigger serves and topspin-laden ground strokes can push opponents back farther behind the baseline, and in part because their longer wingspans make it harder to hit over or around them.The frequency of net approaches varies widely among the men. British 21-year-old Kyle Edmund is among the least likely to come to net, and when he did in his fourth-round match against No. 1 Novak Djokovic, it often started with a Djokovic drop shot and ended with a missed or misplayed Edmund volley. Edmund won just 7 of 19 points at net.How many net shots players take in warm-ups seems to have little correlation to how often they venture to the net during matches. I counted warm-up net shots for 20 different players for 13 matches during the Open. And 70 percent of the players averaged between 13 and 17 net shots during warm-ups, typically dividing them up something like five forehand volleys, five backhand volleys and four smashes. (Theyd hit backhand smashes only when their opponents lobs went to the wrong side of the court.)Karolina Pliskova, who rarely goes to net, averaged nine net shots during warm-ups, while Serena Williams, who has been coming to net more this year, averaged 23. One sign that frequency of net points during matches has little to do with how much of their warm-ups players devote to net shots: Men averaged exactly as many warm-up net shots as women.Former pro and ESPN commentator Brad Gilbert pointed out in an interview that golfers dont warm up: They just play. Hed like to see tennis players do the same.You come to the court, do the coin toss, whoever wins, start play, Gilbert said. Nobody comes out on the court cold.His broadcasting colleague, 18-time major singles champ Chris Evert, said she used to take about 30 seconds warming up at net. Her rival Martina Navratilova, who played much more at net than Evert did, would use a minute and a half at net. (American teenager Taylor Townsend, whose net game is a throwback, starts her warm-ups at the net rather than the baseline.)Evert said she thinks even Kerber types should practice volleys during warm-ups.It gives you a quicker reaction, Evert said. You see the ball quicker.There are lots of other reasons to practice net shots, too. Players who dont choose to come to net much might get drawn forward by their opponents, like Kerber was by Roberta Vinci with drop shots in their quarterfinal on Tuesday. (Kerber ended up winning 7 of 13 net points.) And showing you can hit competent smashes might help dissuade your opponent from throwing up lobs whenever theyre out of position.Even Evert, who encourages everyone to warm up their volleys, reminds pros not to skimp on warm-up serves.The serve is the most important thing to practice. Air Force 1 China . The deal is pending a physical, assistant general manager Bobby Evans said. Traded from Seattle to Baltimore on Aug. 30, Morse also can play first base and right field to give manager Bruce Bochy some flexibility in writing his lineup. Air Force 1 Online . Catch all the action on TSN2 at 11pm et/8pm pt. The nine-time Big 12 champion Jayhawks are positioning themselves for another title, as they have run out to a flawless 6-0 mark in conference play thus far. https://www.cheapairforce1outlet.com/ . The 25-year-old Japanese star has officially been posted by his club team, the Rakuten Golden Eagles. Air Force 1 Cheap . -- Ohio States Urban Meyer has never had any issue acclimating to the biggest stages in college football. Air Force 1 Store . -- In one brief spurt, Brazil turned a close game into a rout and proved again it will be a strong World Cup favourite. NEW YORK -- The New York Islanders have started winning with regularity and Anders Lees sudden scoring touch is a major reason why.Lees second goal of the game with just over seven minutes remaining lifted the Islanders to a 3-2 victory over the St. Louis Blues on Thursday night.Lees go-ahead score on a slap shot came after Casey Cizikas won a faceoff in the Blues zone and sent the puck back to Lee, who rifled it past Allen with 7:18 left for his eighth of the season.It was a great job by Casey. That one found its way, said Lee, who now has seven goals in his last eight games. What makes this little run special is theyve all been team wins.John Tavares also scored and Thomas Greiss stopped 24 shots to help the Islanders improve their season-best stretch to 5-0-1 in their last six games.Were playing with resiliency and emotion, Islanders coach Jack Capuano said. We have that `no quit attitude.Robby Fabbri and Kyle Brodziak had goals for the Blues, who fell to 3-7-1 away from home while going 12-1-3 at Scottrade Center. Jake Allen, who came in with eight straight wins, finished with 24 saves.Fabbri opened the scoring for the Blues at 4:36 of the first, knocking the puck past Greiss for his sixth of the season.Lee answered for the Islanders at 6:51, just 12 seconds after Blues forward Jori Lehtera was penalized for high-sticking. Lee tipped Nick Leddys shot from the point past Allen.Tavares then scored his eighth goal with a shot from the high slot at 8:31 to put the Islanders ahead 2-1.We were pushing the whole game, it was intense until the end, Fabbri said. They are getting pucks in and playing hard.Tavares, who also has 13 assists this season and leads the Islanders with 21 points, has 492 career points. The 26-year-old center needs eight points to become the 10th player in franchise history to reach the 500-point mark.Brodziak scored the only goal of the second at 3:33 to knot the score at 2. Fabbri and defenseman Joel Edmundson had assists on Brodziaks third goal this season.dddddddddddd.The Islanders came into the game off an emotional 4-2 win over the Rangers on Tuesday night at Barclays Center. They also defeated Pittsburgh and Washington last week.Were playing hard and figuring it out. It takes time, Islanders forward Cal Clutterbuck said of this teams recent surge. The effort is there. Were eliminated confusion and mental errors. Its a sign of team maturity. St. Louis also lost both meetings with the Islanders last season. The Islanders hadnt won three straight from the Blues since a five-game winning streak from Feb. 23, 1984, to Oct. 26, 1985.They are a good team and theyre on a roll, Blues coach Ken Hitchcock said. We need more from our top-end guys. We had a chance to win, we were it perfect position and didnt take advantage of it.The Islanders are in a stretch where they will play 10 out of 14 games at home. By the time they host the Capitals on Dec. 27, they will have played 22 of their first 34 games at home.They know theyll have to made good use of playing at their home rink in Brooklyn, where they are 9-4-4 this season. Last year, they won 25 times at home and finished with 100 points.We have to compete, making sure were winning battles, Capuano added. Its our work ethic and determination. Thats how we have to play.St. Louis opened a four-game, six-day road trip after a 4-0-1 homestand, capped by a 3-2 overtime win over Montreal on Tuesday night after the Blues rallied from two goals down.Game notes Forwards Nail Yakupov and Ty Rattie were healthy scratches for the Blues. ... Islanders D Johnny Boychuk was back after missing the win against the Rangers on Tuesday because of the flu. ... The Islanders scratched F Ryan Strome (flu) and D Scott Mayfield.UP NEXTBlues: At New Jersey on Friday night.Islanders: At Columbus on Saturday night. ' ' '