Having won four of the past five Grand Slams, Novak Djokovic’s position on the all-time Grand Slam titles leader board is looking better than ever. And, on the eve of the US Open, the World No. 1 made it clear that he was aiming for the top spot on that list.

Djokovic arrives in Flushing Meadows with his sights set on a 17th Grand Slam crown, which, if achieved, would bring him to within one title of second-placed Rafael Nadal (18) and three shy of all-time leader Roger Federer (20).

”I’m aware of [the debate around the Grand Slam titles leaderboard]. I mean, I’m part of this world. Of course, I can’t completely switch off and eliminate what people are talking about,” said Djokovic.

”It’s flattering, obviously. But at the same time, you know, it’s still a very long way ahead of me. It does also put a certain level of responsibility to me as well, because I am aiming to do that. It’s definitely one of my ambitions and goals. I am 32, so things are a little bit different than they were 10 years ago, but I still feel young inside and outside. I am still very motivated to keep going.”

Last month, Djokovic saved two championship points to beat Federer 13-12 in the fifth set of an instant-classic Wimbledon final. The victory marked Djokovic’s fifth title run at SW19 and denied Federer a place in the history books as the oldest Grand Slam champion in the Open Era at 37 years, 340 days.

Djokovic’s win against Federer at the All England Club was his third in a Wimbledon final against his great rival (2014, ’15) and will live long in the memory of the Serbian, who shares the top half of the US Open draw with third seed Federer. Djokovic placed this year’s Wimbledon win against the Swiss alongside his 2012 Australian Open final victory against Nadal as one of the greatest matches of his career.

“It’s [in the] top two matches I have ever played… The other match is the one against Nadal in the finals of [the 2012] Australian Open which went for almost six hours,” said Djokovic. “So, those two matches really are very special and take a special place in my career and my mind as well.

“I do still have flashes from the 2012 Australian Open match still that many years after. Of course, I would wish to remember the Wimbledon final against Roger this year for many years to come.”

Due to the fast-paced nature of life on the ATP Tour, there is rarely time to take a moment to reflect on milestone victories. But Djokovic’s recent dominance at the Grand Slam level does provide the Serbian with a strong belief in his abilities and a desire to achieve even greater success in the sport.

”Once I’m done with my career or maybe slowing down the pace with tournaments, I guess I’ll have more time to really reflect on everything and look at those matches… It’s really hard to look back too much,” said Djokovic.

”Of course, you’re looking back and then it awakens certain kind of emotions that, of course, are positive and it allows you to awaken that confidence in you, the belief and the motivation. It inspires you to again keep going and trying to reach more historic results. But at the same time, you have to stay in the present moment.”

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Heading into the US Open as the defending champion for the third time in his career, the Serbian will be attempting to successfully defend his title in New York for the first time. Djokovic has reached the final in seven of his eight most recent appearances at the final Grand Slam of the year and owns a 69-10 record at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

“I, personally, have enjoyed lots of success and have been blessed to play well on these courts here at the US Open, especially the Arthur Ashe Stadium,” said Djokovic. “I have not lost too many matches in my career playing night session, and a lot of matches that I get to play in Arthur Ashe Stadium are night sessions. So, I really do enjoy that loud atmosphere that happens in there, which is quite the opposite of, for example, Wimbledon, except the last finals match.

“And I think you just adjust to it. You adapt to it. You accept it. You embrace it. I do embrace it because I think it’s good for our sport to have various different atmospheres on the centre courts of four different Grand Slams.”

With Federer and Nadal also looking to add to their Grand Slam trophy collections and stretch their lead against Djokovic, this coming fortnight could see the Grand Slam leader board dynamic change yet again. For Djokovic, his first mission will be to get past first-round opponent Roberto Carballes Baena. Achieving his ultimate goal will take time, effort and a lot more winning.

Hubert Hurkacz made Polish history at the Winston-Salem Open on Saturday, beating Benoit Paire 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 to capture his first ATP Tour trophy.

The 22-year-old became the first Pole to capture a tour-level crown since Wojtek Fibak’s WCT Chicago title run in 1982. Hurkacz broke serve on five occasions throughout the two-hour, nine-minute clash to improve his tour-level record to 23-18 in 2019.

The 2018 Next Gen ATP Finals qualifier becomes the 14th first-time champion on the ATP Tour in 2019 after improving his record against French players this year to 5-1. Players trying to win their first ATP Tour title are 14-17 in championship matches this season (13-11 in 2018).

First-Time ATP Champions In 2019

Last year, Hurkacz was placed No. 109 in the ATP Rankings. The World No. 41 achieved his career-high No. 40 ATP Ranking on 12 August and is projected to reach a new career-high when the latest standings are released on Monday.

After coming from a set down to defeat Duckhee Lee in his opening match, Hurkacz defeated four consecutive seeded opponents to take the title in North Carolina. The third seed beat 16th seed Feliciano Lopez, 10th seed Frances Tiafoe, second seed Denis Shapovalov and top seed Paire to claim the trophy.

After trading breaks early in the first set, Hurkacz played with consistency from the baseline and anticipated well to claim consecutive games for a 4-1 advantage. The 6’5” Pole earned three straight service points from 15/30 to take the opener after 35 minutes.

Paire grabbed the crucial break of the second set in the eighth game, moving up the court and capitalising on errors from his opponent to serve for the set. The Frenchman forced a decider with his sixth ace of the set before a slight delay to play due to rain.

Despite the rain, the pattern of the opening two sets was followed in set three as both players broke serve in the opening stages. But it was Hurkacz who played his best tennis in the latter stages of the match, breaking serve to love with deep returns before moving a game away from victory by dictating play with his serve and forehand. The Pole converted his first championship point on serve as Paire fired a cross-court forehand into the net.

Paire was bidding to improve to 3-0 in tour-level championship matches this season. Earlier this year, the 30-year-old triumphed at clay-court events in Marrakech and Lyon.

Hurkacz earns 250 ATP Ranking points and collects $96,505 in prize money. Paire receives 150 ATP Ranking points and $56,000.

“Mr. Bhupathi, can you please look at my game?”

Nine words. One critical question. It was the moment Sumit Nagal’s career was born.

Without those nine words, he would not be among the 200 best players in the world. He would not have qualified for the US Open on Friday, storming back from a set and 0-3 down in the final round. And he would not be making his Grand Slam debut on opening night against Roger Federer, in front of thousands on Arthur Ashe Stadium and millions more watching around the world.

Simply put, without those nine words, Nagal says he would not be playing tennis.

***

Flash forward 12 years. It was an overcast Friday afternoon at Flushing Meadows, with rain showers delaying the start of play by two hours. Nagal had reached the final round of qualifying, but his dreams of punching his ticket to a first Grand Slam were teetering on the brink. Standing on a packed Court 4, with a berth in the US Open main draw on the line, the 22-year-old was just three games from the exit.

Trailing by a set and a break to a red-hot Joao Menezes, he would mount a stunning comeback. Nagal flipped the script in a flash, reeling off six of the next seven games to force a decider. There, he sprinted to a double break lead and never looked back.

And just hours later, the experience became even more unbelievable. As he sat in the locker room, trying to process what he just achieved, he received a text from his coach: ‘Nagal Federer Monday night’. It was all happening for the World No. 190.

“It feels amazing,” Nagal told ATPTour.com. “The last three Grand Slams I played I was in qualies and I didn’t win a round… Playing the main draw of a Slam feels great. It’s what everyone dreams of. And to play against Federer, I’ve wanted this. I was telling my friends this yesterday. When people told me that Federer plays a qualifier, I was thinking how much I’ve always wanted this.”

Nagal’s eyes grew wide as he enthusiastically hit the table in front of him.

“I want to play him. It doesn’t matter. It’s not about winning or losing all the time. It’s just the experience. It’s playing someone who has 20 Grand Slams.”

The exuberance in Nagal’s voice continues to rise. His passion is palpable.

“There’s just so much excitement. I’ve seen him play 50 matches here. And the energy playing at night at the US Open is insane. I’m very, very excited. I’m going to bed happy, with a smile on my face.

“I don’t care what the commentators will be saying about me on TV. I’m going to be enjoying the crowd, playing the best tennis player ever. I’m just some dude from India. I’m fine with that until I make my name. That’s it.”

Many players grow up idolising Federer, but Nagal admits that he isn’t one of them. While he admires everything the Swiss has accomplished and reveres him for his impact on the game, he offers an interesting reason why he’s never tried to emulate him.

“He’s just too good. You never want to copy him. If you watch Federer and what he’s doing with the ball and then you try to do the same, you’re just going to break your racquets. It’s never going to happen. That’s why he’s not my idol. Just too good. That’s how I see it.”

***

Nagal’s story began many years before he stepped on the grounds of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Flash back to 2005, when the Jhajjar native was eight years old.

In Japan, they play baseball. In Brazil, football is life. But in India, cricket is religion. Nagal grew up wanting to pursue his nation’s most popular sport, often playing for eight to 10 hours a day, but his father dissuaded him. Suresh Nagal would take his son to the local sports club and upon seeing the tennis courts there, he grabbed a racquet and started hitting.

“The first day, I played a member of the club and put one ball in the court. I was so happy. After 40 minutes, I put one ball in and I was like ‘yeah dad!’. In six months, I got better and better after so many hours. My father believed in hours over talent. When you’re eight, it’s pretty late to start tennis.”

Then, just two years later, the moment that would launch his tennis career had finally arrived. Indian legend Mahesh Bhupathi was holding a selection, akin to tryouts, for admittance into his academy. One of the cities where the selection was held was in New Delhi, just 40 kilometres from Nagal’s hometown.

That’s where Nagal uttered those nine words that he believes changed his life.

“I was hitting with the other kids and there was a moment where I went to Mahesh and said, ‘Mr. Bhupathi, could you please look at my game?’. I knew who he was, so I grabbed his hand and asked him to look at my game. After that, it’s apparently when he told my family that they’re going to take me.

“That’s the one line that changed my life. If I didn’t tell him this, I would not be sitting here right now. My family didn’t have enough money to support me when I was young. I couldn’t have played tennis. If I didn’t show guts and go up to him, I tell you I wouldn’t be here in New York today. I’m 100 per cent sure. I’m very proud that I did it at that age.”

Nagal was one of a few thousand people there, with only three getting selected by Bhupathi. Now, he is looking to put India back on the tennis map.

Gone are the glory days of Vijay Amritraj, Leander Paes and Bhupathi. But, for the first time in more than two decades, there will be multiple players from India competing in singles at a Grand Slam. In 1998, it was Bhupathi and Paes at Wimbledon. Now, Nagal joins countryman Prajnesh Gunneswaran in the main draw at the US Open.

The nation has had a bevy of new faces emerge on tour in recent years, with Gunneswaran cracking the Top 100, Ramkumar Ramanathan reaching an ATP Tour final in Newport last year and Yuki Bhambri competing in six Slams. But none are as young as Nagal.

“I play for my family. We don’t have a tennis family. It’s just very, very random. When I won junior Wimbledon – in doubles – you should have seen the tears in my parents’ eyes. I play for them and my country. I’m very proud playing for India. My goal in tennis is to do really well. Not just being 80 or 90 in the world. So people aren’t saying that India is only good at cricket. People don’t say it’s an amazing tennis country anymore and I want to be the one that leads that.”

Off the court, Nagal’s passions include Japanese culture. He has a full sleeve of tattoos on his left arm, depicting a temple, a samurai and a lotus flower. He says the Japanese peoples’ pride and attitude towards life gives him energy.

The right-hander currently trains at Nensel Academy in Germany, having moved there exactly one year ago. His head coach is club director Sascha Nensel, with fitness director Milos Galecic traveling with him to New York. Nensel used to work with former World No. 4 Nicolas Kiefer and WTA star Julia Goerges.

Nagal’s results speak for themselves. Up to a career-high No. 190 in the ATP Rankings, he is steadily plotting his ascent. Nearly two years removed from his lone ATP Challenger Tour title in Bangalore, the 22-year-old is finding his stride once again.

Clay is Nagal’s favourite surface and he would reach the semi-finals in five of seven Challengers since early May. His most recent event was at the ATP 500 stop in Hamburg, where he qualified for a tour-level tournament for the first time. In fact, he had not played a hard-court match since March and admits that the original plan was to skip the US Open and grind on the dirt for the rest of the year.

“It’s just about being happy on court. Whenever you’re happy and looking forward to competing, it helps with everything. It’s events like these that make it all worth it on the Challenger Tour. Every time you beat someone good, you get confidence. And it’s a game where confidence does matter.”

Kevin Anderson has withdrawn from next week’s US Open due to a right knee injury.

The 33-year-old South African, who has been limited to five tournaments this season, was aiming to return to action for the first time since Wimbledon. After also struggling with a right elbow injury earlier in the year, Anderson was bidding to add to his 11-4 record in the coming fortnight in Flushing Meadows.

Anderson reached his first Grand Slam final at this event in 2017 and has compiled a 22-9 record at the hard-court Grand Slam since his main draw debut in 2010. The six-time ATP Tour titlist will be replaced in the draw by lucky loser Paolo Lorenzi of Italy.