The U.S. Open has now drawn to a historic close in the heart of New York City, officially marking the end of Grand Slam tennis for the calendar year.
The 2023 edition saw American Coco Gauff emerge as a first-time champion, Novak Djokovic add yet another major title to his illustrious career, and a Canadian pairing secure a Grand Slam win in doubles.
Here are five key takeaways from another electrifying U.S. Open:
Age is just a number – Greatness is #24
The legend of Novak Djokovic continues.
The Serbian superstar again put forth a breathtaking display of tennis at Flushing Meadows, rising to the occasion and securing a title at the 2023 U.S. Open.
He defeated Daniil Medvedev 6-3, 7-6, 6-3 in the championship match, claiming his third major of the calendar year, and record 24th Grand Slam title.
The final, while decisive in its score-line, featured some excruciatingly physical rallies as Djokovic resisted a major push from Medvedev in the second, and even saved a set point at 5-6 on his serve.
The victory avenged his 2021 U.S. Open final loss to Medvedev.
Now, looking at the numbers, his legacy and achievements in tennis are simply unmatched.
Djokovic stands alone with the most majors in Open Era and has now equalled Australia’s Margaret Court for the most singles major titles in the history of the sport.
He’s now won three majors in a single season four times in his career (2011, 2015, 2021, 2023), surpassing Roger Federer who had done it three times previously.
He also wraps up his grand slam season 27-1 and reclaims the world No. 1 ranking, a position he’s held for a record 389 weeks.
He’s widened the gap even further between himself and his greatest rivals, sitting two slams ahead of Rafael Nadal and four majors clear of Roger Federer.
As it stands now, Djokovic has tallied 10 Australian Opens, three French Opens, seven Wimbledon Championships, and four U.S. Open crowns.
Make no mistake about it — Novak Djokovic is the greatest men’s tennis player the sport has ever seen.
Coco Gauff breaks through on biggest stage
It was the momentous breakthrough moment American tennis had eagerly awaited.
19-year-old Coco Gauff capped a sensational summer by defeating Aryna Sabalenka 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 to win her maiden Grand Slam at the U.S. Open.
She’s the first teenager to win the U.S. Open crown since Serena Williams in 1999, and her talent, competitive drive and resiliency shone through in a dramatic final.
Sabalenka, already a major champion in Australia and set to take over the world No.1 ranking this week, came out of the gates hitting with power and precision, and quickly took hold of the opening set 6-2.
Gauff, much like she had done all tournament, was able to mentally reset and readjust her game accordingly.
The young American was able to absorb and redirect Sabalenka’s pace from the back of the court, improve her serve, and continue to apply pressure with her elite defensive skills.
With the home crowd offering its full support, Gauff turned the match on its head, rallying to win the last two sets and finally realize her dream of becoming a U.S. Open champion.
Gauff had been building towards a major victory all summer long.
Her journey in the North American hard-court swing with a title at the Citi Open in Washington in early August, defeated Iga Swiatek en route to the biggest title of her career in Cincinnati three weeks ago, and now she has the first of likely many Grand Slams to come.
Despite her talents, some had questioned Gauff’s ability to win at the major level.
She took some time to call out her detractors during the trophy ceremony:
This title comes notably on the tail end of the Open’s 50-year anniversary celebration of the Equal Prize Money initiative, a cause pioneered and championed by tennis legend Billie Jean King.
Gauff has not only used her skills on court to gain a big following but has also been vocal off court on issues of equality, voting rights, and the environment.
She’s also acknowledged the role and impact Serena and Venus Williams have had in shaping her career to this point.
Serena won her first major title at the age of 17 at Flushing Meadows in 1999, defeating Martina Hingis.
Now Gauff moves to a career high ranking of No. 3 in singles, behind Iga Swiatek, and newly anointed world No. 1, Aryna Sabalenka.
Iga slips, rankings shift in women’s game
She had maintained the world No. 1 ranking for 75 consecutive weeks but Iga Swiatek’s reign atop the women’s game has finally concluded.
Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko defeated Swiatek 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 in the round of 16, officially eliminating the Polish tennis star at Flushing Meadows.
Swiatek produced remarkable achievements atop the WTA since early last season, winning Grand Slams (2022 French Open, 2022 U.S. Open, 2023 French Open), amassing 12 singles titles, and boasting a remarkable 135-day, 37-match winning streak — the best such streak since Martina Hingis achieved the same feat in 1997.
As a result of the loss, she will drop to world No. 2 in the rankings.
Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus will ascend to the No. 1 position, a testament to her terrific season.
She has won three titles including her first Grand Slam victory at the Australian Open earlier in the year and has contested six finals.
Notably with Coco Gauff also moving to the third spot, and Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan occupying fourth place, the top four WTA players by ranking have collectively won six of the last seven majors.
Alcaraz falls short of title defence, while Shelton makes impressive run
He electrified New York crowds for almost two weeks, but ultimately Carlos Alcaraz’s quest to defend his title fell short.
Daniil Medvedev delivered a signature performance, defeating the two-time Grand Slam winning Spaniard 7-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 in the semifinals, ending Alcaraz’s title hopes.
He also now concedes his world No. 1 ranking to Novak Djokovic, who is 3,260 points clear of his rival and a near lock to hold that spot until the end of the season.
There’s every reason to believe Alcaraz will rebound quickly from the setback at Flushing Meadows.
He missed both the Shanghai and Paris Masters last season due to injury, and will no doubt be a contender at both events if he competes.
He has also never competed at the ATP Finals, and the prospect of a potential showdown with Novak Djokovic at the end-of-year stage is certainly tantalizing.
Meanwhile, another exciting and talented 20-year-old made serious noise on the courts of Flushing Meadows.
Ben Shelton, with his blistering serves that touched near 150 m.p.h., thunderous left-handed forehand, and a fiery competitive spirit, rode the wave of support from the New Yorkers all the way to the semifinals, scoring upset wins over Tommy Paul and Frances Tiafoe, all while celebrating with his own ‘hang up the phone’ gesture.
His journey came to a head in a particularly spirited semifinal affair with Djokovic, who didn’t take to Shelton’s boisterous and exuberance.
Djokovic had the last laugh in a straight sets win, and hung up the phone on his opponent, lighting social media ablaze.
Shelton’s playing style is marked by an unmistakable attitude and edge, qualities that have both excited and attracted newer fans to the sport and been dismissed by tennis traditionalists as arrogant.
The polarizing demeanour has certainly brought out more eyes on the sport in North America, and who doesn’t love a good villain story?
One can only hope for a future encounter between these two at another tournament.
Dabrowski is a doubles champ
Despite Canadians falling short of expectations in singles, it was a major triumph in women’s doubles.
Ottawa’s Gabriela Dabrowski and Caledon, Ont., resident Erin Routliffe produced a surprise run at Flushing Meadows, toppling Germany’s Laura Siegemund and Vera Zvonareva 7-6, 6-3 to win their first ever women’s doubles Grand Slam.
The pair had only formed their partnership one month ago at the Omnium Banque Nationale in Montreal, but they formed a chemistry on and off the court quickly.
At the Tennis in the Land event in Cleveland, the team won two matches including a victory over the top-seeded Czech team of Katerina Siniakova and Barbora Krejcikova.
That performance no doubt bolstered their confidence heading into Flushing Meadows, where they navigated through two tough opening round matches before winning an intense battle over fellow Canadian Leylah Fernandez and American Taylor Townsend 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 (10-8) to move into the semifinals.
Dabrowski has had a great body of work in doubles, and now has three major titles.
She also won mixed doubles titles at Roland Garros in 2017 and the 2018 Australian Open.
With this latest result, she’s back inside the top 10 of the rankings, and she and Erin Routliffe intend to compete together through the end of the season.
At this rate, they’ll now set their sights on qualifying for the WTA Finals in Cancun later this fall.
