NOTEBOOK From the U.S. Open

Fish's freaks: Mardy Fish has a following all his own at the U.S. Open -- the "Fish Freaks." They are six shirtless men who showed up for Fish's opening match in Arthur Ashe Stadium wearing rubber fish hats over their heads and faces. Each person painted one letter on his chest so together they spelled G-O F-I-S-H. "They were great," said the 24th-seeded Fish, who beat Sweden's Joachim Johansson 6-3, 6-2, 6-4. "It's cool to get recognition for your tennis. I don't think that has all to do with my tennis. I think it has a lot to do with my last name."
Playing in pain: The Williams sisters have won every U.S. Open since 1999. The last time neither did, Lindsay Davenport raised the trophy in 1998. Now with Serena and Venus Williams out with injuries, Davenport is seeded No. 3 and is one of the favorites, provided she can get past the pain in her aching left foot. Forced to quit during a tuneup tournament's final Saturday, Davenport needed a quick first match Monday -- and she got it, spending just 46 minutes on the court in a 6-1, 6-0 romp over Els Callens. The pain was there. Davenport played through it. "It's something I've chosen to deal with because I really want to play here the next two weeks," she said. "Hopefully, I'll cause some damage." And what about the absence of the Williams sisters? "I think right now I'm just more worried about my health," she said. "I think maybe if I was 100 percent, I would be a little more eager, excited, maybe thinking about that more."
Find the fire: Greg Rusedski played one of his trademark five-setters at the Open on Monday, losing to Gregory Carraz 4-6, 6-4, 2-6, 5-7, 6-4. For a player who often has lost his cool on the court, he was strangely serene. Bad idea? "Maybe," Rusedski said. "Maybe I should have [lost control]. Maybe it would have helped. It's a Catch-22. You need to find a good balance. If you're one way too much or another way too much, it's bad. I probably could have used a little more fire."
-- Associated Press