{"id":1618,"date":"2015-09-13T15:02:18","date_gmt":"2015-09-13T15:02:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mariabueno.org\/indextemp.php\/?p=1618"},"modified":"2015-09-13T15:02:18","modified_gmt":"2015-09-13T15:02:18","slug":"viva-italia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.mariabueno.org\/indextemp.php\/viva-italia\/","title":{"rendered":"Viva Italia!"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Maria<\/a>

Maria Bueno watches the women’s final from the US Open’s President’s Box on Saturday<\/p><\/div>\n

The first-ever all-Italian Grand Slam final at the US Open pitted twenty-sixth seed Flavia Pennetta against Roberta Vinci in front of a massive crowd on Arthur Ashe Stadium that included the Prime Minister of Italy and a host of celebrities. Viva Italia!<\/p>\n

After a wonderful display of all-court tennis, it was Pennetta who weathered a tight first set before storming through the latter stages of the match, defeating Vinci to win her first Grand Slam singles title, 7-6 6-2.<\/p>\n

\"Flavia<\/a>

Flavia Pennetta stuns ABC’s Robin Roberts with her retirement announcement.<\/p><\/div>\n

The biggest surprise of the match came during the on-court trophy ceremony, when Pennetta shocked the crowd by announcing that she is retiring from professional tennis after 15 years on tour.<\/p>\n

\u201cBefore I started this tournament, one month ago, I made a big decision in my life. And this is why I would like to say goodbye to tennis,\u201d she said to a stunned crowd.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m really happy. It\u2019s what all players want to do, go home with one of these big trophies. So this one was my last match at the US Open and I couldn\u2019t think to finish a better way. I want to thank everyone who supported me during my career. All my coaches, my family, who aren\u2019t here, but they\u2019re going to be proud of me. I love you guys.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite the loss, Vinci was all smiles afterward and said her run a this year’s tournament was the greatest moment of her life.<\/p>\n

“I think it’s an incredible moment for all Italian people,” she said. “Now when I come back home, I can realise what we made, because it’s not normal for me now. … But I would like to come back and try to understand what I did.\u201d<\/p>\n

Maria Bueno was watching the match with interest.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t think they played as well as they both did in the semi-finals, probably because of the occasion, but it was a wonderful match that they both clearly enjoyed playing,” she said.<\/p>\n