Del Boy sends Fed packing
THE most likely outcome of the Us Open is that it ends with the list of 2017 men’s Grand slam winners reading FedererNadal-Federer-Nadal.
Yet the season could also throw up a final twist, with the Flushing Meadows title going to one of a random cast list that reads Juan Martin del Potro, Kevin Anderson and Pablo Carreno-Busta.
the biggest threat to Nadal comes in tonight’s semi- final when he faces Del Potro, who would surely be going for more than a second slam had his career not been blighted by a succession of wrist injuries.
the Argentinian reminded everyone of his class early yesterday with his 7-5, 3-6, 7-6, 6-4 win over roger Federer. the victory had echoes of the 2009 final when Del Potro edged out the swiss to win as a 20-year-old. While his talent has never been in dispute, nothing the world No 28 has done this year suggested he would be a serious contender in New York.
Del Potro came into Flushing Meadows with a modest 18-11 match record for 2017 and had missed the Australian Open due to more fears about his wrist.
Even here he has been trying to fight off the effects of a heavy cold and, after beating Federer, said the semi-final will be another case of mind over matter.
‘Physically i’m not in the perfect condition, but when you play semi-finals of the Grand slam, everything can happen,’ he said. ‘You must be ready for the chance and — playing against rafa in my favourite tournament — i know if i play my best tennis i could be a danger for him.’
Del Potro has had to modify his backhand to protect his ligaments and slices it far more than he used to.
that flank is sure to be attacked by Nadal, who seems to have rediscovered his old knack of cranking up his form with every match through the course of a slam fortnight.
At stake is a championship match against the winner of a semi-final which is a throwback to before the ‘Big Four’ era, which regularly provided some less than stellar finalists. While 12th seed Carreno-Busta has been among those spaniards who have lived in the shadow of Nadal, 6ft 8in Anderson is from south Africa, the land that tennis forgot.
the country used to produce an abundance of top players but its fall from grace in the game has been akin to that of sweden.
World No 32 Anderson — from Johannesburg, but a graduate of the American college system — has also come through a bottom half of the draw which was further weakened by the late withdrawal of Andy Murray.
the women’s event has already delivered one big surprise, with all four of last night’s semifinalists coming from the host nation.
For south Africa to suddenly produce a men’s Grand slam champion again would top any shock of a tennis season that nobody could possibly have foreseen 12 months ago.