Right this is my final post on the 2013 US Open from Flushing Meadows in New York, which will cover the men's final, which was between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, in probably the most anticipated slam final of the year. So let's start by having a look at the match....
OK so the match had a lot riding on it as both men were looking to clinch their 2nd US Open title, and although both Nole and Rafa were in contention for the No.1 spot (i.e. Rafa gaining it and Nole keeping it!) this battle was decided when Nole reached the final as he defended his points from last year, it meant he could remain at No.1. However the match itself promised to be a real thrilling contest and just possibly one of all time great classics, just like their amazing 2011 final was at Flushing meadows. But did this match live up to those expectations????? Well to be honest not quite, the match itself was a very entertaining and gripping one, but it was clear from the very start that the better and more aggressive player was Rafa, who came out strong and broke Nole's serve twice to grab the first set with ease. In the 2nd set however Nole started his comeback and after an incredible 54 shot rally, Nole broke Nadal's serve for what was only the 2nd time in the whole tournament to go 4-2 up. However Novak ended up surrendering the break back to Rafa, but he was not yet done as he broke again to go 5-3 up and from here he managed to level the match at a set all. In the 3rd set the momentum at the beginning was firmly with Djokovic as he nabbed an early break as he raised his level and played some incredible shots against Rafa. But Rafa after a very tough and thrilling service game on to trail 2-1, Rafa managed to break back to go even on serve again at 3-3, and from here Rafa fashioned another break at 5-4 to grab a two sets to one lead. And in the 4th set we witnessed some of the most intense and ferocious play we have ever seen from Rafa on a tennis court as he ruthlessly overwhelmed the World No.1 to nab the double break and he served out the match with ease as he fell to the ground and wept with joy as he clinched his 2nd US Open title after a gritty 6-2, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 victory.
While it fell short of the mark of the classic we might have hoped for, the match nonetheless had plenty of terrific rallies and great points and it had the hugely enthusiastic New York crowd whooping and hollering all the way throughout. And without a doubt the most impressive thing about this match was Rafa himself and how he showed tremendous grit and determination and he played with about as much aggression and ferocity as I have ever seen him play with on a tennis court, and his venomous, blistering forehand consistently found its mark throughout the match. And what's even more remarkable is that Rafa even found a way to push back Nole when he was a break down in the 3rd set and he went to rentelessly pummel his rival into submission in the 4th. And there is no doubt that he is the best player in the world just now, and while Nole is ahead of him in the rankings for now at the No.1 spot, its only a matter of time before Rafa grabs it back for the first time in two years. Another scary thing about Rafa's stats in this tournament is that he only had his serve broken four times in total (and three of those were by Djokovic, one by Gasquet) and that shows just now that he is virtually invincible on serve.
Not only that given Rafa's absence from the tour this time last year, Rafa really has a golden opportunity to clean up even more here as with four tournaments ahead of him with the China Open, Shanghai Masters, Paris Masters and the ATP world tour finals in London, he is sure to finish as the world No.1 if here were to win all four of those titles. And if he does it will make for possibly the most successful season in the history of his career not to mention any player's career if he wins 14 titles in one season, surely that has to be a record! And as Rafa has shown sizzling form on the hard courts this year, and with the remainder of the season being on hard court, it would be tough to see him not win every event he will play for the rest of the season. But whether or not he is capable of that remains to be seen, but for now Rafa is looking unstoppable and he is showing no signs of slowing down.
Although after winning the title Rafa said that he felt tired and fatigued after the intensive rigours of winning so many matches over the last month in Montreal and Cincinnati as well. And Rafa also said that while he is committed this week to play at the Davis cup in Spain's tie against the Ukraine, he felt concerned about changing surfaces from hard court back to clay could disrupt his progress for the remainder of the hard court season (as the tie will be played in Madrid on clay courts). And Rafa's main concern is of course in trying to remain on course to win the year end championships and end the season as the world no.1 And akin to Andy Murray after his historic win at Wimbledon, who felt mentally drained in his efforts after winning the title, there is also the possibility that Rafa might be feeling the same way after putting so much effort into his hard court season and winning at the US Open. And if that's the case then Rafa will need to be careful that he doesn't suffer a comedown in the forthcoming weeks, otherwise his attempt to finish as No.1 in the world will be thwarted.
As for Djokovic well its hard not to sympathise with him, as he really struggled to find his best form in the final, even though he produced some terrific tennis at times in the match, he suffered badly due to making too many unforced errors (53 in all) and his best shot, the backhand down the line was just misfiring on the day, as was his serve. And it does show a slightly alarming dip in Djokovic's form this year, that ever since losing to Nadal in their epic semi final match at the French Open earlier this year, he has just looked a bit flat as a player. Novak has however still managed to produce some terrific tennis even when he wasn't playing his best as he proved against the likes of Del Potro at Wimbledon and Stan Wawrinka at the US Open, and that is what makes him a great champion.
However Novak has to be careful as he goes into the remainder of the season as he has a lot of points to defend as he is the champion in the three of the four events left in his calender on the tour, in China, Shanghai and the o2 in London. And a certain Rafael Nadal is coming right after him and unless Nole can really step up his level, he's going to find it hard just to cling onto these titles. However Novak has a way bouncing back after defeats, and that is something he did really well last year after the disappointment og losing in the French Open final, and losing his title defences at Wimbledon and the US Open. And if Rafa is going to take that No.1 spot, then I'm sure Nole is not going to give it up without a real fight and that's we will hope to see from him in the next couple of months.
And while Andy Murray has nothing really to do with this post I thought I would ask the question again: when is Rafa going to play him???? It has now been two years since they last played in Tokyo where Andy upset Rafa in the final of the Japan open, and it would be absolutely fascinating just to see how both men's games will stack up against one another. With Nadal and Djokovic we know firmly where they stand with one another just now game wise, but with Andy its completely different, as he is not the same player since they last played. And if there IS one man that could upset the odds against Rafa then that one man is Andy Murray and I simply cannot wait to see them play again, and its been a long time waiting but hopefully whenever they finally meet again, it will be well and truly worth the wait.
So that's it for my posts on the 2013 US Open, which has been a terrific tournament for both the men and ladies events and they both featured some terrific matches and two strong finals to finish up the slam season this year. Next up for the men will be the Davis cup, and this week Andy Murray will be back in action with the Great Britain team, as they will take on Croatia in a world group play-off for a chance to get back into the World Group. The tie is however away from home, which will prove to be quite tough for them, and with clay being Andy's weakest surface, this could leave them at a disadvantage. However I'm sure that team GB can hopefully pull off a win here and let's they do as it would be great to see them get through to the world group once again.
Rafa also may be in action this week at the Davis cup as well as the Spanish team wait to see if he will be ready to play in their tie against the Ukraine. And Djokovic will also be in action in the Davis cup as Serbia take on Canada in the semis final where he will most likely play against the giant serving Milos Raonic, which should make for a mouth watering clash. So the slams may be finished but there is still plenty of great tennis left to look forward to this week and in the forthcoming weeks.
So once again I shall say bye for now, and bye bye to the US Open, which has been great this year.
Until the next post, bye the now!
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