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Djokovic Targets Grand Slam At The US Open; All You Need To Know

  • Posted: Aug 23, 2021

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic will arrive at the US Open aiming to create even more history as he bids to become just the second male player in the Open Era alongside Rod Laver in 1969 to capture a Grand Slam in New York.

The Serbian, who last lifted the title at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in 2018, has claimed the first three major championships of the year, drawing level with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal on 20 majors after his Wimbledon triumph in July.

A fourth US Open crown would also move the 34-year-old ahead of his rivals onto 21 major championships, but despite Federer and Nadal’s absence, the 85-time tour-level titlist will face stern competition in New York.

Last year’s finalist Alexander Zverev ended Djokovic’s hopes of clinching his first Olympic singles gold medal when the 24-year-old downed the top seed in the semi-finals in Tokyo, before going on to defeat Karen Khachanov in the final. Zverev is currently on an 11-match winning streak as he backed up his triumph in Asia by capturing the Western & Southern Open title in Cincinnati.

Daniil Medvedev will be the second seed and will return to Flushing Meadows with fond memories, having enjoyed a run to his first major final there in 2019. The 25-year-old, who lifted the National Bank Open Presented by Rogers trophy earlier this month, will be targeting a maiden major alongside Zverev at the US Open.

Greek star Stefanos Tsitsipas has collected a tour-leading 48 wins this year and will also pose a threat, but he has never advanced past the third round in his three previous main draw appearances in New York.

Here’s all you need to know about the US Open: what is the schedule, where to watch, who has won and more.

Established: 1881

Tournament Dates: 30 August-12 September 2021

Tournament Director: Stacey Allaster

Draw Ceremony: Thursday 26 August at 12:00 p.m.

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View Schedule (View On Official Website)
* Qualifying: Tuesday, 24 August – Friday, 27 August at 11:00 a.m.
* Main Draw: Monday, 22 August – Sunday, 12 September, Monday – (second) Monday 11:00 a.m and 7:00 p.m., (second) Tuesday-Friday, 12:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m., Saturday 12:00 p.m., Sunday 4:00 p.m.
* Doubles Final: TBC.
* Singles Final: Sunday, 12 September at 4:00 p.m.

How To Watch
TV Schedule

Venue: USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center
Surface: Hard

Prize Money: Total Financial Commitment: $57,500,000

View Who Is Playing, Past Champions, Seeds, Points & Prize Money Breakdown

Honour Roll (Open Era)
Most Titles, Singles: Jimmy Connors, Roger Federer, Pete Sampras (5)
Most Titles, Doubles: Bob Bryan, Mike Bryan, Daniel Nestor (5)
Oldest Champion: Ken Rosewall, 35, in 1970
Youngest Champion: Pete Sampras, 19, in 1990
Highest-Ranked Champion: No. 1 Jimmy Conners in 1974, 1976, 1978, John McEnroe in 1981, 1984, Ivan Lendl in 1986-87, Pete Sampras in 1996, Roger Federer in 2004-07, Rafael Nadal in 2010, 2017, Novak Djokovic in 2011, 2015
Lowest-Ranked Champion: No. 20 Andre Agassi in 1994
Last Home Champion: Andy Roddick in 2003
Most Match Wins: Jimmy Connors (98)

2020 Finals
Singles: [2] Dominic Thiem (AUT) d [5] Alexander Zverev (GER) 2-6, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6(6) Read More
Doubles: Mate Pavic (CRO) / Bruno Soares (BRA) d Wesley Koolhof (USA) / Nikola Mektic (CRO) 7-5, 6-3 Read More

Social
Hashtag: #USOpen
Facebook: @usopentennis
Twitter: @usopen
Instagram: @usopen

Did You Know?
The US Open bears little resemblance to the tournament that started in 1881. It has evolved from an exclusive men’s singles and doubles tournament in Newport, R.I., to a two-week sports and entertainment extravaganza held in Flushing, N.Y. It is home to the Arthur Ashe stadium, which with a capacity of 23,771, is the largest tennis-specific stadium in the world.

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Zverev Rises To No. 4 After Cincinnati Title, Mover Of Week

  • Posted: Aug 23, 2021

No. 4 Alexander Zverev, +1
The German has risen one spot to No. 4 in the FedEx ATP Rankings after he overcame Andrey Rublev at the Western & Southern Open to capture his fifth ATP Masters 1000 title. The 24-year-old, who dropped just one set in Cincinnati, had never won a match in six previous appearances at the tournament. Read Cincinnati Final Report & Watch Highlights

View Latest FedEx ATP Rankings

No. 15 Felix Auger-Aliassime, +2 (Joint Career-High)
The #NextGenATP Canadian has climbed two places after he reached the quarter-finals in Cincinnati. It was the first time this season that the 21-year-old had reached the last eight at a Masters 1000 tournament. The eight-time tour level finalist’s best result at this level came in 2019 when he enjoyed a run to the semi-finals in Miami.

No. 18 Grigor Dimitrov, +3
The 30-year-old has returned to the Top 20, jumping three spots to No. 18 after he snapped a three-match losing streak to reach the third round in Ohio. The Bulgarian defeated 13th seed Roberto Bautista Agut and World No. 37 Alexander Bublik before falling to Russia’s Daniil Medvedev.

No. 20 Gael Monfils, +2
After overcoming Alex de Minaur to capture his 500th tour-level victory in Cincinnati, the Frenchman has risen two spots to No. 20. The 34-year-old is only the 11th active player to reach the 500-wins milestone.

Other Notable Top 100 Movers
No. 22 John Isner, +4
No. 23 Lorenzo Sonego, +4 (Career-High)
No. 26 Ugo Humbert, +3
No. 32 Fabio Fognini, +4
No. 84 Guido Pella, +9

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Zverev Sounds Signal Of Intent Ahead Of US Open

  • Posted: Aug 23, 2021

A fifth ATP Masters 1000 trophy, an Olympic gold medal and an 11-match winning streak to boot have Alexander Zverev arguably in the hard-court form of his life. The German’s comprehensive triumph over Andrey Rublev in the Western & Southern Open final on Sunday came as a further boost as he shifted his focus to next week’s US Open.

It was the World No. 5’s fourth title of the season and took his ATP Head2Head to 5-0 against his former junior doubles partner. Victory means he has not lost a match since his fourth-round exit at Wimbledon seven weeks ago (l. to Auger-Aliassime) and ensures he will arrive in Flushing Meadows as one of the favourites to go one better than he did a year ago in a five-set defeat to Dominic Thiem in the final.

“The US Open is a week that everybody is looking forward to. I think Novak [Djokovic] will be back. He’s obviously going to be the favourite, as well. But I think other guys are going to be in great shape,” Zverev said following his 6-2, 6-3 victory.

“I’m looking forward to the week. Let’s see how it goes. But there is still one week to go. I still have a lot of work ahead of me. I have to find my rhythm in New York, as well.”

Zverev ended World No. 1 Djokovic’s bid for the Golden Grand Slam this season on his way to Olympic gold in Tokyo last month. The Serbian has not played an event since Tokyo, but Zverev holds no doubt he will still be the man to beat at the US Open.

“I do think that he’s still the favourite. I do think he’s going to be playing incredible tennis there,” Zverev said. “He’s going to be fresh, and I think there is also other guys that are in very good form. I think Rublev is in very good form, Medvedev, Tsitsipas, all those guys are playing great tennis.

“It’s definitely going to be an interesting US Open. But I’m also looking forward to it, because I know where I stand, I know how I’m playing, and I hope I can continue the work and hopefully play even better in New York.”

While Djokovic remained at No. 1 in the FedEx ATP Race to Turin, the next four behind him filled the semi-final berths in Cincinnati. Tsitsipas and Medvedev held down second and third places, respectively, while Zverev jumped ahead of Rublev following his win on Sunday. Given all are 23 to 25 years old, could it be a glimpse into a burgeoning new Big Four?

“I mean, we have to see. The other guys are still there, right? I mean, Novak is still World No. 1. Let’s not forget that. Rafa is still top 10, as well. They are still there. I think… they’re going to come back even stronger,” Zverev said.

“But we’ll see. I think tennis is in a good spot, I would say, because the other guys are still there. Novak is still at the top of his game, but the young guys all look quite strong. It’s going to be interesting to see who will do what in the next few years.”

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Murray Ends Rubin’s Lucky Loser Stay in Winston-Salem

  • Posted: Aug 23, 2021

Barely an hour before Noah Rubin took the court to face former World No. 1 Andy Murray at the Winston-Salem Open on Sunday, the American had good cause to believe his shot at a main draw berth was over.

Murray ensured his opponent’s stay would not last another hour following a 6-2, 6-0 victory under the lights, but it was a main draw reprieve Rubin never expected in the first place. The 25-year-old had held a match point on serve before he fell in a dramatic final-round qualifying match to Lucas Pouille earlier on Sunday.

Then came an 11th-hour main draw call-up, following Nick Kyrgios’ withdrawal due to a knee injury. Murray said it was quite the change from preparing to face the unpredictable Kyrgios, over whom he held a 5-1 ATP Head2Head record, to then taking on a lucky loser at No. 306 in the FedEx ATP Rankings for the first time.

“Originally I was playing Nick and he had an injury to his knee so wasn’t going to play. I didn’t know if I was going to play tonight. They said if I was playing against a qualifier then I wouldn’t play and then I drew a lucky loser… so then I was playing Noah… It was tricky,” Murray said in his on-court interview.

“It was obviously difficult for 45 minutes and then the first couple of games because you’ve gone over a strategy with your coach about the match you’re going to play and then obviously that changes.

“… Twenty minutes before you go on court you’re playing someone you haven’t played against.”

Murray kicked off his North American hard-court swing last week with a first-round victory over Richard Gasquet before putting up a tough fight against ninth seed Hubert Hukacz in a second-round defeat. He continued to build up valuable match-play in only his sixth tour-level singles event this season on Sunday as he won 92 per cent of first-serve points and broke five times to book a second-round meeting with 13th seed Frances Tiafoe.

“It’s a bit tricky but obviously after the first few games I started to get a bit more comfortable and then towards then end he was struggling a bit,” Murray said of the 58-minute win. “Unfortunately I know he’s from here and that’s great. It was a nice atmosphere to play in and everything but my job is to try to win the match.”

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Zverev Surges Past Rublev & Berrettini In Race

  • Posted: Aug 23, 2021

Alexander Zverev won his fifth ATP Masters 1000 title on Sunday at the Western & Southern Open, and by doing so made a big move in the FedEx ATP Race To Turin.

Thanks to the 1,000 points he earned in Cincinnati, the 24-year-old climbed from sixth to fourth in the Race, moving past Andrey Rublev and Matteo Berrettini. Zverev now has 4,195 points and is within 185 points of third-placed Daniil Medvedev, who reached the semi-finals in Ohio.

The 17-time tour-level titlist is trying to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals — which will be held in Turin from 14-21 November — for the fifth consecutive year. Zverev has wins against Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in his career at the season finale, which he won in 2018.

FedEx ATP Race To Turin Standings (as of 23 August)

 Player  Points
 1) Novak Djokovic  7,170
 2) Stefanos Tsitsipas  5,380
 3) Daniil Medvedev  4,380
 4) Alexander Zverev  4,195
 5) Andrey Rublev  3,940
 6) Matteo Berrettini  3,595
 7) Rafael Nadal  2,985
 8) Casper Ruud  2,630
 9) Hubert Hurkacz  2,460
 10) Jannik Sinner  2,075

Rublev, who reached his second Masters 1000 final, jumped ahead of Berrettini by 345 points as he tries to qualify for the season finale for the second consecutive year. Berrettini is also attempting to earn a spot at the year-end championships for the second time (2019) in the event’s first year in Italy.

There was no movement this week between positions seven and 14. But with seventh-placed Nadal announcing the end of his season, that will make the battle for one of the final positions at the Nitto ATP Finals even more fierce.

Norwegian Casper Ruud, who made the quarter-finals in Cincinnati, is in eighth place with 2,630 points, and Miami champion Hubert Hurkacz of Poland is 170 points behind in ninth place with 2,460 points.

The only player who has qualified is World No. 1 Novak Djokovic (7,170 points). Stefanos Tsitsipas, the 2019 Nitto ATP Finals champion, is in second place with 5,380 points.

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Rublev: ‘It’s All About The Mental Side’ Against Zverev

  • Posted: Aug 23, 2021

Andrey Rublev is a firm believer streaks are meant to be broken. But having snapped one against compatriot Daniil Medvedev in the Western & Southern Open semi-finals on Saturday, a repeat of the feat against Alexander Zverev proved a bridge too far on Sunday.

Zverev captured his fifth ATP Masters 1000 title with a 6-2, 6-3 victory and took his ATP Head2Head record to 5-0 against the Russian. Rublev was attempting to win his first match in five ATP Head2Head meetings for the second day running, after he had done so against top seed Medvedev.

The 23-year-old had lost all 10 sets against Medvedev and all nine against Zverev coming into Cincinnati. While he managed to turn the tide in the semi-finals, he admitted there was still a hurdle to figure out the Zverev puzzle at tour level.

“Maybe you need to win at least once… to find this key,” Rublev said. “Sometimes when you’re losing match by match, in the end it’s not easy. And you can see that the way I lost a couple of times to him [did not feel] real, because it’s a bit too easy, the score is much easier, and the match is much easier than it should be.

“We play in practices, and it’s always… tough sets. You can see that we play a similar level. And then when you go [into the] match and you’re losing like today, 2 and 3, it’s more mental. It’s not about game.

“It’s all about [the] mental [side] that you need to find the key how to behave inside of yourself in these matches. Because the game is there, so it’s not about the game.”

In the second ATP Masters 1000 final of his career, following a runner-up showing to Stefanos Tsitsipas at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters in May, Rublev made a nervous start as he lost his opening two service games. It was the only opening Zverev required to extend his winning streak to 11 matches, following his Tokyo Olympics gold medal run.

“In the end that was the key to the beginning that I couldn’t save my serve. I said then you feel a bit more down that he’s serving so good, and it’s going to be super tough to break him,” Rublev said. “Even if he [makes] some mistakes, he still has [the] advantage. Plus he’s now on super confidence after the Olympic Games, winning some great matches here.

“… When you start a break down – even I know by myself when I break someone in the first game – it’s double easier to play after. So that was, in the end, the key.”

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Kyrgios Withdraws Ahead Of Murray Showdown In Winston-Salem

  • Posted: Aug 23, 2021

Nick Kyrgios withdrew from the Winston-Salem Open on Sunday evening due to a left knee injury before a scheduled first-round showdown against former World No. 1 Andy Murray. Murray will now play lucky loser Noah Rubin.

“I was in Florida, in Bradenton rehabbing and training and came here obviously excited to play here. I love the facility, it’s really great,” Kyrgios said. “To play Andy Murray, one of my good friends and a tennis icon would have been amazing, but obviously I have to look after my body.

“I just didn’t feel as if the risk was worth [playing] today. I’ve got to be more cautious with it, keep rehabbing, keep training.”

Kyrgios and Murray were set to clash for the seventh time in their ATP Head2Head series (Murray leads 5-1) and for the first time since the Aussie triumphed at The Queen’s Club in 2018.

“I feel when I play it’s a bit of a rarity these days and and to have someone like Andy going through what he’s gone through and to be back on Tour as well, I think this match was very hyped up,” Kyrgios said. “I was obviously excited to play him.”

Kyrgios, who said he has felt the left knee pain for about two weeks, was at IMG Academy in Florida to try to improve it. The 26-year-old most recently competed in Toronto, where he lost a three-setter in the first round against eventual finalist Reilly Opelka. The Aussie plans to play the US Open.

“I just need a bit more time,” Kyrgios said. “As a professional athlete playing on Tour for this long I want to look after my body, I want to do it right.”

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