By: Adith Gopal With the US Open done once again, we have another year’s worth of insane highlights, memories, and legacies made. Legendary Spaniard Rafael Nadal [2] captured his 19th Grand Slam, beating Russian Daniil Medvedev [5] in a grueling five-set match, while young Canadian Bianca Andreescu [15] toppled arguably the greatest women’s player ever in Serena Williams [8]. The first round of the tournament saw many upsets, especially from young Next-Gen players. Young American Taylor Fritz [26] was upset by Spaniard Feliciano Lopez in four sets. In the battle of the Next-Gen Canadians, Felix Auger-Aliassime [18] was shocked by Denis Shapovalov in a three-set domination. Most surprisingly, both Dominic Thiem [4] and Stefanos Tsitsipas [8] were upset in four-set matches by Thomas Fabbiano and Andrey Rublev, respectively. On the women’s side, former US Open champ Sloane Stephens [11] was dominated by Russian Anna Kalinskaya in two sets, while three-time Grand Slam winner Angie Kerber [14] was upset by Kristina Mladenovic. The fourth round saw arguably the largest upset of the entire tournament, when all-time legend Novak Djokovic [1] was forced to retire to Swiss great Stan Wawrinka [23]. Both players have had a great rivalry in years past. Another large upset occurred in the fourth round, when young German Alexander Zverev [4] was easily beaten by Argentine Diego Schwartzman [20]. This early exit for Zverev yet again highlighted the 22 year-old’s consistent struggles in Grand Slams despite his potential of being an all-time great. On the women’s side, Belinda Bencic [13] handily upset the 2018 US Open champion Naomi Osaka [1], while Johanna Konta [16] upset Karolina Pliskova [3] in a grueling three-set match. Aussie Ashleigh Barty [2] also slipped to Qiang Wang [18] in a two-set domination. In the quarterfinals, we got another large upset when Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov upset twenty-time Grand Slam champ and Swiss legend Roger Federer [3]. This was not a pretty match, as Federer looked much off his game. Italian Matteo Berrettini [24] upset Frenchman Gael Monfils [13] in a five-set match, taking him to the semifinals, the farthest Berettini has made in a Grand Slam. The men’s semifinals consisted of matchups of Medvedev against Dimitrov and Berrettini against Nadal, while the women’s final consisted of Bencic against Andreescu and Williams against Elina Svitolina [5]. Nadal and Medvedev rolled against Berrettini and Dimitrov respectively, while Williams thrashed Svitolina and Andreescu escaped in a close match against Bencic. Both Medvedev and Andreescu made their first Grand Slam final ever. Both finals matches were thrilling. In the men’s final, Nadal won the first two sets, while Medvedev came back in the next two sets. In the final set, Nadal used his experience and mental fortitude to beat Medvedev 6-4, winning his 19th Grand Slam and his second US Open title in three years. After a final loss last year, Williams looked to rebound, but Andreescu fought ferociously. Andreescu was able to win the first set, and while she was dominating the second set, Williams saved match points to roar back. Ultimately, Williams lost the second set and Andreescu won her maiden Grand Slam.
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Dylan EdelmanWilson Senior Archives
February 2020
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