TENNIS: US Open 2024
Sep. 10th, 2024 08:11 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
feather_ghyllIt’s been a strange summer for tennis, mainly because of the Olympics, which meant changing surface from clay to grass, back to clay and then to (American) hard courts, with the latter season being curtailed for the players who’d competed and done well in the Olympics. This threw up some unusual results. On the women’s side, Pegula had a better time in north America than she’d had in Paris, and Sabalenka, who had pulled out of the Olympics (and Wimbledon), looked like the favourite going into the US Open, having beaten Swiatek handily on her way to winning the tournament just before.
On the men’s side, Sinner hadn’t played at the Olympics either, and his hip seemed to be an issue when he lost to Rublev, but less of a problem when he won the run-up tournament. And then the news broke that he had tested positive for a banned substance, but in tiny amounts. His story that it had been transmitted by his physio (who was the guy who was meant to be keeping an eye on this) was accepted by the authorities. It seemed plausible, but it was pointed out that not all tennis players can afford the same legal defence (reflecting society in general), which meant that he was not provisionally suspended as some players might have been in his place. So, in as much as everyone was talking about him as a potential favourite, they were also talking about all that. (There had also been a controversy over the lack of video replay in a match between Draper and Auger-Aliasseme.) The other two favourites were Alcaraz (on for a grand slam having won the last two majors) and Djokovic (having won the gold at the Olympics). And the last two wouldn’t have to answer questions about the doping situation every time they faced the media.
Round 1: Tsitsipas (who’s rarely gone deep at the US Open) loses; Raducanu loses to another grand slam champion in Kenin, having skipped the Olympics and the last two run-up tournaments; no. 10 seed Ostapenko loses to Osaka. Would this be the catalyst to bring Osaka back up the rankings?
No, because in round 2, she lost to Muchova, who is a great player when she isn’t injured. But the big upset was among the men as Alcaraz lost, having played badly. On to round 3, and it was Djokovic who lost in four sets to Popyrin, who was seeded and had had a good summer, and played brilliantly. Suddenly, the men’s side was more unpredictable than the women’s!?!?
Because, yes, defending champion Coco Gauff lost to Emma Navarro, but she’d just lost to her at Wimbledon, and after a patchy summer wasn’t expected to repeat her success in New York. The ‘summer of Pao’ ended as Muchova beat Paolini in the fourth round, while Draper was the man picking up Alcaraz’s draw and getting into his first quarter final at a slam. It felt at this point as though the winner of the Sinner v Medvedev quarter final would have to be the favourite to win on the men’s side, but all the other players left had to be thinking this was their chance at some level.
And after the quarter finals, we knew that one of the male finalists would be American, as Fritz beat Zverev to earn the right to face Tiafoe in a semi. It’s been over 20 years. Navarro continued her impressive development by making it through to the semi, and at another stage of her career, at her seventh slam quarter final, Pegula backed up her strong summer by beating Swiatek. Sabalenka (who despatched Zheng easily) and Muchova would be facing them, respectively. That’s only one Grand Slam winner left standing, but that’s not much of a surprise on the women’s side. That there’s only one Grand Slam winner in the men’s semi finals is, though, especially as he isn’t one of the Big Three. That would be Sinner, beating Medvedev (this was the third slam where they’d faced each other this year.)
He would be facing Draper, who beat de Minaur. It seems as if de Minaur’s injury returned and hampered him somewhat, but the really impressive thing is that Draper won without dropping a set, again, facing his first big test of a higher ranked player to get to his first semi-final at what has to be his favourite slam. Whatever else he does, I’m impressed (after being underwhelmed in the early summer when he failed to back up his win against Alcaraz at Queen’s.)
In the women’s semis, Pegula came back from a set and a break down to make it through to her first Grand Slam final. And it’s a home one. It seems as though Sabalenka used what she’d learned from facing Gauff last year to fight through a second set wobble to beat Navarro in two, setting up a final between the two best women players on American hard courts this summer. (Sabalenka will also be playing against the crowd again in the final.)
In the men’s semis, after two tight sets, Sinner beat Draper in three (and Draper vomited from nerves, which is something he’ll have to sort out), and will face Fritz, who beat Tiafoe in five sets (the second time Tiafoe has lost a semi at the US Open.) So, another Australian Open champion facing a home favourite at Flushing Meadows…
Women’s finals – and the champion is Sabalenka, winning 7-5,7-5, proving again that she’d learned mentally from her loss to Gauff last year, proving that she’s certainly the best hard court player in the women’s game right now, and the only one to have won two slams this year. Pegula’s best slam ever, can she build on it? But really, tennis’s attention must now be on the rivalry between Swiatek and Sabalenka.
Men’s finals – and the champion is Sinner, winning in three sets and proving his calibre against someone who’s only skirted with getting into the top 10. (Fritz was the surprise package of the US Open, I suppose.) It’s a first US Open win for an Italian man, breaking new ground. Like Sabalenka, he’s confirmed that he’s the best hard court player right now, and has divvied up this year’s slams with Alcaraz, with the two of them in their early twenties, showing up the older generation. Djokovic did get the gold medal in Paris, but Wimbledon aside, did not have a great year. Will this year be seen as a turning point for men’s tennis, as we said goodbye to Murray and Thiem and probably Nadal?
On the men’s side, Sinner hadn’t played at the Olympics either, and his hip seemed to be an issue when he lost to Rublev, but less of a problem when he won the run-up tournament. And then the news broke that he had tested positive for a banned substance, but in tiny amounts. His story that it had been transmitted by his physio (who was the guy who was meant to be keeping an eye on this) was accepted by the authorities. It seemed plausible, but it was pointed out that not all tennis players can afford the same legal defence (reflecting society in general), which meant that he was not provisionally suspended as some players might have been in his place. So, in as much as everyone was talking about him as a potential favourite, they were also talking about all that. (There had also been a controversy over the lack of video replay in a match between Draper and Auger-Aliasseme.) The other two favourites were Alcaraz (on for a grand slam having won the last two majors) and Djokovic (having won the gold at the Olympics). And the last two wouldn’t have to answer questions about the doping situation every time they faced the media.
Round 1: Tsitsipas (who’s rarely gone deep at the US Open) loses; Raducanu loses to another grand slam champion in Kenin, having skipped the Olympics and the last two run-up tournaments; no. 10 seed Ostapenko loses to Osaka. Would this be the catalyst to bring Osaka back up the rankings?
No, because in round 2, she lost to Muchova, who is a great player when she isn’t injured. But the big upset was among the men as Alcaraz lost, having played badly. On to round 3, and it was Djokovic who lost in four sets to Popyrin, who was seeded and had had a good summer, and played brilliantly. Suddenly, the men’s side was more unpredictable than the women’s!?!?
Because, yes, defending champion Coco Gauff lost to Emma Navarro, but she’d just lost to her at Wimbledon, and after a patchy summer wasn’t expected to repeat her success in New York. The ‘summer of Pao’ ended as Muchova beat Paolini in the fourth round, while Draper was the man picking up Alcaraz’s draw and getting into his first quarter final at a slam. It felt at this point as though the winner of the Sinner v Medvedev quarter final would have to be the favourite to win on the men’s side, but all the other players left had to be thinking this was their chance at some level.
And after the quarter finals, we knew that one of the male finalists would be American, as Fritz beat Zverev to earn the right to face Tiafoe in a semi. It’s been over 20 years. Navarro continued her impressive development by making it through to the semi, and at another stage of her career, at her seventh slam quarter final, Pegula backed up her strong summer by beating Swiatek. Sabalenka (who despatched Zheng easily) and Muchova would be facing them, respectively. That’s only one Grand Slam winner left standing, but that’s not much of a surprise on the women’s side. That there’s only one Grand Slam winner in the men’s semi finals is, though, especially as he isn’t one of the Big Three. That would be Sinner, beating Medvedev (this was the third slam where they’d faced each other this year.)
He would be facing Draper, who beat de Minaur. It seems as if de Minaur’s injury returned and hampered him somewhat, but the really impressive thing is that Draper won without dropping a set, again, facing his first big test of a higher ranked player to get to his first semi-final at what has to be his favourite slam. Whatever else he does, I’m impressed (after being underwhelmed in the early summer when he failed to back up his win against Alcaraz at Queen’s.)
In the women’s semis, Pegula came back from a set and a break down to make it through to her first Grand Slam final. And it’s a home one. It seems as though Sabalenka used what she’d learned from facing Gauff last year to fight through a second set wobble to beat Navarro in two, setting up a final between the two best women players on American hard courts this summer. (Sabalenka will also be playing against the crowd again in the final.)
In the men’s semis, after two tight sets, Sinner beat Draper in three (and Draper vomited from nerves, which is something he’ll have to sort out), and will face Fritz, who beat Tiafoe in five sets (the second time Tiafoe has lost a semi at the US Open.) So, another Australian Open champion facing a home favourite at Flushing Meadows…
Women’s finals – and the champion is Sabalenka, winning 7-5,7-5, proving again that she’d learned mentally from her loss to Gauff last year, proving that she’s certainly the best hard court player in the women’s game right now, and the only one to have won two slams this year. Pegula’s best slam ever, can she build on it? But really, tennis’s attention must now be on the rivalry between Swiatek and Sabalenka.
Men’s finals – and the champion is Sinner, winning in three sets and proving his calibre against someone who’s only skirted with getting into the top 10. (Fritz was the surprise package of the US Open, I suppose.) It’s a first US Open win for an Italian man, breaking new ground. Like Sabalenka, he’s confirmed that he’s the best hard court player right now, and has divvied up this year’s slams with Alcaraz, with the two of them in their early twenties, showing up the older generation. Djokovic did get the gold medal in Paris, but Wimbledon aside, did not have a great year. Will this year be seen as a turning point for men’s tennis, as we said goodbye to Murray and Thiem and probably Nadal?
