The 2015 men's final at the U.S. Open was not a great match. At 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4, it was a good win for Novak Djokovic, but something (as at Wimbledon) he was expected to do. Had Roger Federer won, it would have been a great victory for him. In fairness, Fed would have had to have played great to beat the world's number one. After all, he hasn't beaten Djokovic in a Major for some time now, and--to be fair--he is spotting him close to six years in age. That said, Federer played some great points.
At one point, in what turned out to be its final game, the match almost became a great one. After breaking Djokovic who was serving for the title at 5-2, and easily holding serve, Federer had double-break point against Djokovic. Nole, as he has done so often, showed himself to be the better come-from-behind player. He got it back to deuce, only to watch Federer get yet another break point on a superb down the line backhand winner. He then hunkered down and won the next three points; one on a beautiful forehand that handcuffed Federer at the baseline, and the next two on serves Federer was unable to return. In the end, and unfortunately for the Federer faithful (of whom there were many), Djokovic played more great points, both offensively and defensively. That is what must be maddening about playing Djokovic in a best of five-set format. In order to beat this seemingly inexhaustible man, you must be aware that most of your best shots will be coming back to you, some better than you hit them. Realizing this, you go for more, and it's either a winner or (yet another) unforced error.
Now Federer--even at the relatively old tennis age of 34--is still head and shoulders above just about everybody else in the world. Being number two--at any age--ain't too shabby. It wasn't so long ago (although it seems it) when Novak Djokovic was a distant number three behind Federer and (the now struggling ) Rafael Nadal. With Nadal's heartbreaking five-set dismissal early on, both Fed and Nole sailed through to the finals. If anything, it was a tougher trek for Djokovic, having been stretched to four sets in both the round of 16 and the quarters. But by the time he got to the semis, he dethroned reigning champion Marin Cilic in the most devastating (and one of the quickest) semifinals in U.S. Open history.
As most of the fans realize, the great Roger Federer may not have too many chances to win his 18th Major title, let alone get to a final. As such, they must cherish such opportunities, as they will be fewer and farther between as time goes by. That, of course, didn't prevent them from cheering for their boy at every opportunity. And don't get me wrong; rooting for your favorite player(s) is one of the great joys of being a spectator. But many of Federer's fans applauded and cheered on Djokovic errors and even on service faults--something unheard of among tennis fans of yore. We expect good sportsmanship on the court. Is it unfair to the players to expect any less from their fans? Djokovic, by the way, is among the few players we see applauding exceptional shots by his opponents. This is not something I can ever recall Federer (or many others) having done. Kudos, by the way, to Eve Asdenaki-Moore, the first woman to umpire a men's singles final at the Open, for politely reminding fans not to be impolite. She was also courageous in overturning wrong calls, and wasn't wrong once, surviving virtually every challenge with quiet aplomb.
Can Djokovic keep it up? With his appearance in this year's finals, he is one of only three men in the Open era to have been in the final of all four Grand slams in the same year. (The other two are Rod Laver--who actually won the Grand Slam twice-and, oh yeah, a guy named Roger Federer.) At 28 and with 10 Major titles to his credit, it is not impossible to imagine Djokovic overtaking Sampras and Nadal tied at 14 , and maybe even Federer. After all, he'll have 16 shots at it between now and age 32, so it's not too far-fetched to envision him making significant inroads toward the record. Just a couple of years ago, it seemed inevitable that Rafael Nadal would overtake Federer in total Majors won. Rafa is now "stuck" at 14. So imagine, if you can, it is 2019, or 2020. There's an aging Novak Djokovic, a few gray hairs poking through his black hedge, being cheered on by an adoring crowd, hoping the old Serb can rise to the occasion one more time and break Federer's record. And who among us can honestly say that this superb athlete and competitive gentleman won't deserve his (long overdue) day in the sun (albeit possibly under a retractible roof)?
At one point in the match, when Federer (or was it Djokovic?) went for broke on a shot which sailed wide, John McEnroe (or was it Patrick?) exclaimed "When you live by the sword, you die by the sword." To sustain the fencing metaphor enriched by Djokovic having once again "foiled" Federer in a Major, I suppose I can be forgiven for observing the following: Roger's vaunted Sabr ("Sneak Attack By Roger") gave way to Nole's Epee ("Excellent Performance, Exceptional Endurance").
At one point, in what turned out to be its final game, the match almost became a great one. After breaking Djokovic who was serving for the title at 5-2, and easily holding serve, Federer had double-break point against Djokovic. Nole, as he has done so often, showed himself to be the better come-from-behind player. He got it back to deuce, only to watch Federer get yet another break point on a superb down the line backhand winner. He then hunkered down and won the next three points; one on a beautiful forehand that handcuffed Federer at the baseline, and the next two on serves Federer was unable to return. In the end, and unfortunately for the Federer faithful (of whom there were many), Djokovic played more great points, both offensively and defensively. That is what must be maddening about playing Djokovic in a best of five-set format. In order to beat this seemingly inexhaustible man, you must be aware that most of your best shots will be coming back to you, some better than you hit them. Realizing this, you go for more, and it's either a winner or (yet another) unforced error.
Now Federer--even at the relatively old tennis age of 34--is still head and shoulders above just about everybody else in the world. Being number two--at any age--ain't too shabby. It wasn't so long ago (although it seems it) when Novak Djokovic was a distant number three behind Federer and (the now struggling ) Rafael Nadal. With Nadal's heartbreaking five-set dismissal early on, both Fed and Nole sailed through to the finals. If anything, it was a tougher trek for Djokovic, having been stretched to four sets in both the round of 16 and the quarters. But by the time he got to the semis, he dethroned reigning champion Marin Cilic in the most devastating (and one of the quickest) semifinals in U.S. Open history.
As most of the fans realize, the great Roger Federer may not have too many chances to win his 18th Major title, let alone get to a final. As such, they must cherish such opportunities, as they will be fewer and farther between as time goes by. That, of course, didn't prevent them from cheering for their boy at every opportunity. And don't get me wrong; rooting for your favorite player(s) is one of the great joys of being a spectator. But many of Federer's fans applauded and cheered on Djokovic errors and even on service faults--something unheard of among tennis fans of yore. We expect good sportsmanship on the court. Is it unfair to the players to expect any less from their fans? Djokovic, by the way, is among the few players we see applauding exceptional shots by his opponents. This is not something I can ever recall Federer (or many others) having done. Kudos, by the way, to Eve Asdenaki-Moore, the first woman to umpire a men's singles final at the Open, for politely reminding fans not to be impolite. She was also courageous in overturning wrong calls, and wasn't wrong once, surviving virtually every challenge with quiet aplomb.
Can Djokovic keep it up? With his appearance in this year's finals, he is one of only three men in the Open era to have been in the final of all four Grand slams in the same year. (The other two are Rod Laver--who actually won the Grand Slam twice-and, oh yeah, a guy named Roger Federer.) At 28 and with 10 Major titles to his credit, it is not impossible to imagine Djokovic overtaking Sampras and Nadal tied at 14 , and maybe even Federer. After all, he'll have 16 shots at it between now and age 32, so it's not too far-fetched to envision him making significant inroads toward the record. Just a couple of years ago, it seemed inevitable that Rafael Nadal would overtake Federer in total Majors won. Rafa is now "stuck" at 14. So imagine, if you can, it is 2019, or 2020. There's an aging Novak Djokovic, a few gray hairs poking through his black hedge, being cheered on by an adoring crowd, hoping the old Serb can rise to the occasion one more time and break Federer's record. And who among us can honestly say that this superb athlete and competitive gentleman won't deserve his (long overdue) day in the sun (albeit possibly under a retractible roof)?
At one point in the match, when Federer (or was it Djokovic?) went for broke on a shot which sailed wide, John McEnroe (or was it Patrick?) exclaimed "When you live by the sword, you die by the sword." To sustain the fencing metaphor enriched by Djokovic having once again "foiled" Federer in a Major, I suppose I can be forgiven for observing the following: Roger's vaunted Sabr ("Sneak Attack By Roger") gave way to Nole's Epee ("Excellent Performance, Exceptional Endurance").
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