There was a little record-setting on the men’s side as well, with Croatian Ivo Karlovic belting a US Open record of 61 aces in a 4-6, 7-6 (7/4), 6-7 (4/7), 7-6 (7/5), 7-5 win over Taiwan’s Lu Yen-Hsun. Serena on the other hand seems to be rested up. And her compatriot, Flavia Penneta, took the world by storm by emerging the eventual Champion in an all Italian duel.
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The year’s final grand slam got off to a glitzy Hollywood-style start, with a performance from Phil Collins to mark the arrival of the $150 million retractable roof at the stadium.
Novak Djokovic remained unstoppable as he tore apart his opposition on the way to the Finale.
Djokovic and Murray appear to have pulled away from the traditional “big four” as Roger Federer continues to nurse a knee injury and Rafael Nadal is without a grand slam semi-final since 2014.
Those sorts of thoughts helped Vinci when she got into a bit of a second-set rut against Friedsam, who eliminated her at this year’s Australian Open. Vinci sent oddsmakers into a frenzy as she beat Williams – an enormous favorite – in the semifinals of what looked to be a surefire Williams waltz to glory.
The American has two records in her sights at Flushing Meadows, where she can overtake Steffi Graf’s Open-era record 22 Grand Slam titles and also surpass the German’s unbeaten 186 consecutive weeks at world No. 1.
Roger Federer will play no part in this year’s US Open, but such is his power, he still made his presence felt across NY ahead of the final major of 2016. “I was going for something that no one has done in a really long time”, she replied. However, that could change in this US Open as Angelique Kerber is a mere 190 points behind the American. “The shoulder is still not 100% but it’s very close and she will find a way”. But for Williams to have the record all to herself, she’ll need to at least reach the semi-finals in the last major of the year, the U.S. Open.
Kerber could have passed Williams in the rankings if she had won in Cincinnati, but Kerber lost in the final to Karolina Pliskova. I did serve pretty well at Wimbledon this year. The Swiss gave Rio Olympics a miss as a result of a back injury but was back in action again at Cincinnati Masters where he was seen off in the third round.
With his nemesis Rafael Nadal less than 100 points behind him, Federer will tumble out of the top 5 by the end of this US Open as he will be unable to defend his hefty share of points from reaching the Final past year. “She was playing both singles and doubles at Wimbledon and the Olympics, and that is not easy”.
The 2009 US Open champion del Potro will be keen to repeat the same success he tasted six years back where he shocked Federer in a grueling five-setter.
Kei Nishikori, a former Finalist at the US Open, is another player to watch out for.
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British tennis superstar Andy Murray might be the in-form player coming into the US Open, winning the Wimbledon and Olympic men’s singles titles, but legend John McEnroe feels the world number two has still not reached the level of Novak Djokovic. What really matters is how Djokovic does under the lights Monday night against Jerzy Janowicz of Poland, a 2013 Wimbledon semifinalist whose career has been derailed by injuries and who entered the U.S. Open main draw via a protected ranking.
