US OPEN
Djokovic wins US Open for record equalling 24th Grand Slam
Novak Djokovic would not let Daniil Medvedev spoil his date with history a second time as he battled past the Russian 6-3 7-6(5) 6-3 to win the U.S. Open on Sunday and equal Margaret Court’s record haul of 24 Grand Slams.
Djokovic’s victory, his fourth in 10 Flushing Meadows finals, capped another remarkable season after his wins at the Australian Open and Roland Garros, and he will return to the top of the world rankings when they are updated later on Monday.
No man has won a calendar Grand Slam in 54 years, though Djokovic came close once again, losing in five sets to Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final.
But for the moment he is savouring his 24th Slam.
“It obviously means the world to me,” he said. “I’m really living my childhood dream.
“To make the history of this sport is something truly remarkable, it’s hard to describe the words.
“I had the childhood dream when I was seven, eight, I wanted to become the best player in the world.”
As he continues to live his dream Djokovic is also staking his claim to the mantle of greatest tennis player of all time.
At 36 Djokovic also becomes the oldest U.S. Open men’s winner in the Open Era but the Serb’s Grand Slam hunger has not dimmed and he had some bad news for his younger rivals.
“Eventually one day I will leave tennis in about 23, 24 years,” he joked. “Until then, I guess you’ll see me a bit more.
“I don’t put any number right now in my mind on how many Slams I want to win.
“I’ll continue to prioritize them as my most important tournaments and where I want to play the best tennis.”
KOBE TRIBUTE
After clinching his historic title on Sunday Djokovic threw his racquet into the air and dropped to his knees as the crowd roared.
He picked himself up and found his young daughter court-side for an emotional hug before going back to the bench and pulling out a T-shirt with ‘Mamba Forever’ on the front and the number 24 on the back.
The shirt was a tribute to both his achievement and to his late friend Los Angeles Lakers great Kobe Bryant, who wore the number throughout much of his all-star career before dying in a helicopter crash.
“I thought of doing this T-shirt, eventually, if I get the chance to win the tournament,” said Djokovic. “Kobe was a close friend, we chatted a lot about the winner’s mentality.
“When I was struggling with injury he was one of the people I relied on the most.”
Neither Djokovic nor Medvedev have been fully embraced by the New York crowds and until the end of the match there was little of the electricity that crackled through Arthur Ashe during the women’s final on Saturday.
As the match started Djokovic walked out onto court and stared across the net at Medvedev, the man once again standing between him and history just as he had two years ago.
The last time the two clashed at the U.S. Open was in the 2021 final, when the Russian captured his only major and denied the Serb that elusive calendar Grand Slam.
Djokovic did not speak of revenge on the road to the final and only referenced that loss as a learning experience.
“I haven’t played any tournament on American soil for two years,” said Djokovic, who missed last year’s Slam due to COVID-19 restrictions.
“I really did my best in the last 48 hours not to allow the importance of the moment and what’s on the line get to my head.
“Two years ago that’s what happened and I wasn’t able to be at my best and I was outplayed.
“So I learned my lesson.”
KILLER INSTINCT
As expected of a contest featuring the sport’s two premier hardcourt players, almost every point was contested with long rallies as both men pounded away from the baseline.
Djokovic came out playing with purpose and applied pressure right away, breaking the third seed at the first opportunity on his way to a 3-0 lead.
That would be the only break Djokovic would need against a surprisingly flat Medvedev, who could not raise his play to the “12 out of 10” level he said he reached in beating defending champion Alcaraz in the semi-finals.
During a marathon one hour and 44 minute, lung-bursting second set Medvedev came to life, forcing a faltering Djokovic into long grinding point after long grinding point.
But the tireless Russian’s hard work failed to pay dividends and he was unable to convert a break chance at 6-5 that would have given him the set.
Medvedev charged in front 3-1 in the tie-break but again could not land the knockout blow as Djokovic came off the ropes to take it 7-5 for a 2-0 lead.
If there is one thing Djokovic possesses it is a killer instinct and the Serb wasted no time in pressing home his advantage, breaking Medvedev to go up 3-1 in the third.
A defiant Medvedev answered with his first and only break of the match but it was not enough with Djokovic hitting right back with another break then holding serve the rest of way to clinch the title.
-Reuters
Venus Williams showed flashes of vintage form under the lights at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Monday but despite pushing Karolina Muchova to a deciding set the 45-year-old American fell 6-3 2-6 6-1 in a thrilling U.S. Open first-round battle.
The seven-times Grand Slam champion was making a record-extending 25th main draw appearance in New York, where she won the title in 2000 and 2001, and delivered a spirited performance before a packed and partisan crowd.
“I was stressed,” Muchova said in her on-court interview. “You guys make me stressed, it was an unbelievable atmosphere. She’s such a legend so it’s nice to share the court with her. I’m so happy I was able to win today.
“I just tried to block the noise, and be focused on myself.”
Muchova took the opening set with a pair of well-timed breaks but Williams responded well, using sharp net play and powerful groundstrokes to break early in the second before a blistering backhand winner earned her a double break and a 5-2 lead.
She needed three set points but finally clinched the set when Muchova sent a forehand long, marking her first set won at Flushing Meadows since 2020.
But the Czech, a U.S. Open semi-finalist in each of the last two years, hit back hard in the decider as Williams’ energy faded, racing through the set to seal victory and end the American’s latest comeback bid in two hours.
Williams, whose last U.S. Open appearance ended in a 6-1 6-1 defeat by Greet Minnen in 2023, enjoyed thunderous applause with every point she won and left the court to a warm ovation from fans.
-Reuters
US OPEN
Venus Williams gets a US Open wild card at age 45 and will be the oldest in singles since 1981
Venus Williams will make her return to Grand Slam tennis at the U.S. Open after a two-year absence, receiving a wild-card invitation on Wednesday to compete in singles at Flushing Meadows at age 45.
The American will be the oldest entrant in singles at the tournament since Renee Richards was 47 in 1981, according to the International Tennis Federation.
Williams already had been given a wild-card entry by the U.S. Tennis Association for next week’s mixed doubles competition. Singles matches begin in New York on Aug. 24.
She is the owner of seven major singles championships — including at the U.S. Open in 2000 and 2001 — along with another 14 in women’s doubles, all won with her younger sister, Serena, plus two in mixed doubles. Serena retired with 23 Slam singles trophies after playing at the 2022 U.S. Open.
The older Williams last participated in a Grand Slam tournament at the 2023 U.S. Open, losing in the first round. She hasn’t won a singles match there since 2019.
When Williams came back to the tour last month at the DC Open for her first match anywhere in 16 months, a reporter asked whether that would be a one-time thing or if there were plans for other tournaments.
“I’m just here for now, and who knows?” she replied then. “Maybe there’s more. … But at the moment, I’m focused just on this. I haven’t played in a year. There is no doubt I can play tennis, but obviously coming back to play matches, it takes time to get in the swing of things. I definitely feel I’ll play well. I’m still the same player. I’m a big hitter. I hit big. This is my brand.”
Last year, Williams had surgery to remove uterine fibroids and missed most of the season. In Washington this July, she competed for the first time since March 2024 at the Miami Open and became the oldest woman to win a tour-level singles match since Martina Navratilova was 47 at Wimbledon in 2004; Williams also won a doubles match at the DC Open.
In the process, Williams drew a ton of attention for her tennis, yes, but also for letting the world know she’s engaged to an Italian actor and for her half-joking comments about needing to get back on court to get covered by health insurance.
“I love Venus. We’re friends. I didn’t really know this was something she was still wanting to do. But I also didn’t know it was something she didn’t want to do,” said Mark Ein, the chairman of the hard-court tournament in Washington. “I was surprised. And it was a wonderful surprise.”
Williams also entered the Cincinnati Open via a wild card last week, exiting in the first round of singles.
In New York, she will play in the Aug. 19-20 mixed doubles tournament with Reilly Opelka, a 27-year-old American who used to be ranked in the top 20.
Other women getting singles wild cards for the U.S. Open are Americans Clervie Ngounoue, Julieta Pareja, Caty McNally, Valerie Glozman and Alyssa Ahn, plus France’s Caroline Garcia — who’ll be playing in her last Grand Slam tournament before retirement — and Australia’s Talia Gibson.
Men’s wild cards went to Americans Brandon Holt, Nishesh Basavareddy, Tristan Boyer, Emilio Nava, Stefan Dostanic and Darwin Blanch, and France’s Valentin Royer and Australia’s Tristan Schoolkate.
-AP
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Naomi Osaka says 2024 is her “learning year” after coming back to the tour from a maternity break and the former world number one is trying to figure out how to better cope with the setbacks after being given a crash course in early Grand Slam exits.
Osaka has four major titles under her belt but the second round at Flushing Meadows, Wimbledon and Roland Garros was as good as it got this year for the Japanese 26-year-old, who exited the Australian Open in the first round.
On Thursday she lost 6-3 7-6(5) to Karolina Muchova, unable to get to grips with the Czech’s superb serve-and-volley tennis.
“It’s a little rough because I do take these losses really personally. It’s like a dramatic word, but I feel like my heart dies every time I lose,” she said.
“I’ve been trying to be more mature and learn and talk more about them.”
Osaka has been a champion for mental health in sport as she publicly struggled with the pressure to succeed, telling reporters in Flushing in 2021 that she no longer felt joy – only relief – when she won.
She has a new perspective now, she says, but is having to deal with frequent disappointments after packing her schedule since returning to the tour in January after 15 months away.
“It’s been a little difficult because obviously I can only gauge how I’m doing by results. Like, I feel faster. I feel better, but I lost in the second round. So it’s a little rough,” she told reporters.
“But, also, it’s been fun playing a lot of tournaments. It’s been a commitment for sure, but I’ve been able to go to different cities that I’ve never been to.”
She lost in the second round of qualifying in Cincinnati but gave glimpses of her brilliance in New York as she handed 10th seed Jelena Ostapenko a straight-sets defeat in the first round.
“This year for me has been a learning year. I put a lot of energy and effort into all the tournaments that I played,” she said. “Obviously the U.S. Open is very special to me.”
-Reuters
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