USA TODAY International Edition
U. S. OPEN Titlists boost profiles
But Wawrinka, Kerber aren’t only big stories at year’s final Slam
NEW YORK With a new- look stadium and a host of on- site improvements, the U. S. Open felt like a different tournament in a lot of ways for the record crowds that streamed through the gates of the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center over the last two weeks. But the tennis was business as usual, as two singles champs further cemented their spots in the sport’s upper echelon — one as a new No. 1.
Nine story lines from the 14 days at Flushing Meadows. Wawrinka wows in fantastic final display
With match point saved in the third round against Britain’s Dan Evans, Stan Wawrinka only gained steam as the event went along. That remained true Sunday, when he lost the first set to top seed and defending champion Novak Djokovic only to settle in for a heady and heavy battle, winning in four sets to capture his third Grand Slam title. He moves to 3- 0 in major title matches and has Australian Open ( 2014), French Open ( 2015) and U. S. Open titles to his name. It was a shocking letdown for Djokovic, who has been far and away the best player in men’s tennis over the last two years. Kerber is U. S. Open champ, world No. 1
A perennial top- 10 player at the start of the year, Germany’s Angelique Kerber, 28, put an exclamation point on a 2016 in which she surprised many by winning the U. S. Open title, adding to her Australian Open crown from January. Kerber was assured of the No. 1 ranking when Serena Williams lost in the semifinals but cemented her place with a thrilling three- set victory against Karolina Pliskova in the final. Serena shocked in semis
Another year, another startling upset loss for Williams in the semifinals. The American was going after her 23rd major — which would have given her an Openera record along with most con-
secutive weeks at No. 1 with 187 — but Pliskova had other ideas. The big- hitting Czech became the first to beat Serena and Venus Williams in a major in six years. Murray, Nadal falter in five- set thrillers
Djokovic was the lone member of tennis’ Big Four to reach the semifinals, the first time that had happened since the 2010 French Open. Roger Federer was out with an injury, Rafael Nadal lost a heartbreaking fifth- set tiebreak to Lucas Pouille, and reigning Wimbledon and Olympic champ Andy Murray went out 7- 5 in the fifth set to Kei Nishikori. A new roof debuts ( with some bumps)
The Arthur Ashe Stadium roof isn’t without flaws. The roof, a three- year, $ 150 million project, was closed for the first time during Nadal’s second- round night match to roaring applause. But noise was an issue for players, particularly in the first week as crowds inside Ashe buzzed and the noise was trapped inside the stadium by the roofed structure. “It’s never been this loud,” analyst John McEnroe said on ESPN. Wozniacki makes magical run
Former world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki made a surprise run to the semifinals. Ranked 74th in the world and coming off an ankle injury this year, Wozniacki wasn’t expected to make any sort of mark. But she won five matches in a row to reach the semifinals, where she fell to Kerber. Del Potro is an inspiring
fan favorite
If Wozniacki’s run was inspiring on the women’s side, that role belonged to 2009 U. S. Open champ Juan Martin del Potro for the men. Back from a third wrist surgery in February, del Potro put together a masterpiece, beating seeds David Ferrer and Dominic Thiem to get to the quarterfinals, where he lost to Wawrinka. Bellis, Sock and the American effort
While Serena was the last American standing in singles, the American effort was strong across the board. Jack Sock made the fourth round, upsetting 2014 U. S. Open champ Marin Cilic en route, while 19- year- old Jared Donaldson reached the third round. CiCi Bellis, 17, made the third round, losing to Kerber, and Bethanie Mattek- Sands took the women’s doubles title with partner Lucie Safarova. Officials flag match for suspicious betting
Tennis was rocked this year by a news report of prevalent match fixing, and midway through the event the Tennis Integrity Unit confirmed that a U. S. Open match had been flagged for suspicious betting patterns. Investigators are looking in to Timea Bacsinszky’s 6- 1, 6- 1 first- round win vs. Vitalia Diatchenko, which was said to have an unusually high number of bets placed on it. Neither player has been implicated, but the alert was a reminder that the issue remains — and that officials are ( seemingly) doing their best to quell it.