You have the Monday blues, the U.S. Open has officially come to an end. We have months before the start of the next Grand Slam. However, let's recap the 2024 U.S. Open from both the men and women’s side.
Aryna Sabalenka
Aryna has a brashness to her game and her personality that seems to be working at the moment. She played well leading up to the U.S. Open and even better throughout the tournament. She is dialed in, she is destroying the ball (hitting it bigger than many of the ATP Tour members) and is extremely confident. Saturday's win vs. Pegula was nothing short of an exclamation point. She is the one to beat, she hits it bigger than all her competitors and she seems to rise to the occasion better than anyone else on the WTA Tour at the moment.
Jannik Sinner
Jannik has had a crazy, few weeks. With his doping case finally behind him, he was able to focus on just the tennis. Jannik was flawless throughout the Open. He dismantled Fritz in what looked like a completely lopsided match up. He was more patient, the better ball striker and the better mover.
Taylor Fritz
It is a tremendous week for TF. However, I can promise you that he feels like he let one slip away. Getting back to a GS final is no promise and he knows that. While he competed hard, Taylor will have to develop his game if he wants to compete with the top guns. Tactically, it is too tough to outhit Sinner, it would have made sense to see Taylor at the net more often and try to shrink the court for Jannik.
Unmotivated Novak
I think Novak was hungover from the Olympics. He was riding such an incredible high that it looked like he was ok with losing in the Open. While Gold under Novak's belt though, it begs the question, what else does he have to prove and how will he be able to motivate himself. Novak will win more GS titles if he wants to, I know it sounds foolish but it's true.
Iga and Naomi
Iga and Naomi are in weird spots. While both dominated the WTA for extended periods of times, both seem to be struggling with the mental side of the sport. Dealing with pressure and expectations in not an easy fix. It will be interesting to see how they close out the rest of the year and how they do at the 2025 Aussie Open.
Entering a new era of Tennis
The days of Rafa, Roger and Novak dominating the QF and SF of GS’s are over. You will see many new faces push their way into the latter stages of these tournaments. However, Carlos and Jannik will still very much be the two guys to beat.
