By Noah Stoch '27 This past U.S. Open, history was made, on both the male and female sides of the net.Starting on the women’s side, Coco Gauff, the number six ranked female player became the second youngest American to win the U.S. Open behind Serena Williams at 19 years old. Following the match, Gauff said, “It's been a long journey to this point.” At Wimbledon in 2019, 15-year-old Gauff was first put into the spotlight after defeating world number 44 Venus Williams in the opening round. Since then, Gauff has continued to progress in both singles and doubles.
After a frustrating opening match against Laura Siegemund, where Gauff and Siegemund argued over the time allowed between points, Gauff won all of her matches and found herself in the U.S. Open final. Gauff found herself playing against world ranked number two Aryna Sabalenka. After losing the first set 6-2, Gauff had an incredible comeback, eventually defeating Sabalenka 2-6, 6-3, 6-2. On the men’s side, Novak Djokovic won his record-tying 24th grand slam. The only person to have ever previously won 24 grand slams was Margaret Court Smith. Coming into the U.S. Open Djokovic was ranked second in the world. The defending champion, Carlos Alcaraz, was number one. After blowing past the rest of the competition, Djokovic defeated world number forty-three Ben Shelton in the semi-finals. At the relatively young age of 21, it is astonishing that Shelton is competing this far. In the semifinals, Alcaraz faced off against world number 3 and 2021 U.S. Open champion Danil Medvedev. Medvedev defeated Alcaraz in four sets, knocking out the defending champion. There was an immense amount of tension leading into the final match between Medvedev and Djokovic. Back in 2021, Djokovic and Medvedev faced off at the U.S. Open final as well. It was a historic match, as Djokovic was one match away from winning all four grand slams in one year, something only five other players ever have accomplished in the sport's history, but ultimately Medvedev upset Djokovic in the final. Djokovic swore this time would be different. As the match began, it looked very even. Djokovic and Medvedev had an exhausting 32-ball rally in the middle of the second set that stunned the crowd. The set ended as close as possible, with Djokovic taking the win 7-6 (5) in a close tie-break. By the championship point, the crowd was on the edge of their seats with anticipation. In the end, Djokovic won the third and final set 6-3, using every ounce of energy left in his body. Djokovic defeated Medvedev in straight sets this year, claiming his 24th grand slam and revenge for the his loss in the 2021 finals. Comments are closed.
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EditorsArielle Karni Archives
December 2024
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