Fifty musings from a fabulous fortnight in Flushing

	Roger Federer claimed his ninth Grand Slam title, moving him into sole possession of sixth place on the all-time list. Bob Martin/SI

Cleaning out the notebook from a U.S. Open short on continuity and long on exceptional tennis....

• King Roger Federer has won a Career Slam of sorts: The Australian Open, Wimbledon, the U.S. Open and now the Andre Open. Seriously, his clinical, generally drama-free threepeat in New York is still another step on the road to Laverville and Samprasburg. By the way, honk if you've seen the Federer-Nadal rivalry. Since Wimbledon, that story line has sure shriveled up, hasn't it?

• Maria Sharapova was the best player coming into the tournament and the best one going out. The heavy hitting and the iron will have always been there, but when did she pick up all those extra bells and whistles? If she can sustain this level of play, outside of clay, the rest of the field is in trouble.

• The smashing results of the Jimmy Connors-Andy Roddick partnership was unquestionably one of the bigger story lines. Watching Roddick play closer to the baseline, smack his backhand, attack the net and, frankly, show off some unbecoming rough edges, the influence of Jimbo is undeniable. Still, I feel like John Roddick -- the guy who, technically, remains Andy's coach -- got a little shortchanged here. Had Andy continued his decline, John would have taken the heat. Only fair that the big brother gets some credit right now.

• Given how well Sharapova plays and how fiercely she competes, it makes her blatant cheating all the more disappointing. Someone in her camp of enablers ought to impress upon her that she is discrediting herself and discrediting the sport. And just because the toothless administrators turn a blind eye doesn't make it right. Sure, it might just be a silly banana and some gesticulating fingers. But "you don't play fair" is one of the most serious charges you can levy against an athlete.

• Leander Paes and Martin Damm won the men's doubles, beating Jonas Bjorkman and Max Mirnyi in the final.

• Big surprise in the women's doubles as unseeded Nathalie Dechy and Vera Zvonareva slalomed through an upset-addled field to win the women's title.

• All credit to Justine Henin-Hardenne for reaching the finals of all four majors this year. But, as she gamely admits, a 1-3 record is below her standards. Anyone else get the feeling she has handed the mantle of "Most mentally tough player" over to Sharapova?

• The tournament started by honoring Billie Jean King, spent a week paying homage, and, fittingly, concluded by toasting Martina Navratilova. "The Lege" added to her legacy by teaming with Bob Bryan to win the mixed doubles on Saturday night. "I just wanted to keep inspiring people ... and show people that you can do great things regardless of your age if you just believe and, you know, go for it," said Navratilova. Unlike many of you, my resentment toward CBS is minimal: I would love to have seen the match, but can we really have reasonable expectations that a major network would scrap scheduled programming for the sake of mixed doubles?

• Dusan Lojda of the Czech Republic won the boys' event and top-seeded Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia (remember the name) won the girls' event.

• Can we all make a pact and agree to cheer like hell for Marcos Baghdatis when he returns to New York next year?