US Open: Rafa wins sweet 16 grand slam title in ruthless fashion
In a year of adding great achievements to his legacy, the U.S. Open final was no different. Rafael Nadal clinched his third U.S. Open trophy in three sets over South Africa’s Kevin Anderson, 6-3, 6-3, 6-4.
Rafa lined up his water and recovery drink bottles exactly as he always does before the match. He also decided to go with black instead of the pink Nike outfit he’s been wearing all tournament because he had heard no one’s won a grand slam wearing pink. Rafael Nadal is a suspicious man.
He didn’t need to be. The Man in Black came out dictating play from the beginning, breaking Kevin Anderson early in the first set and he played like a freight train rolling on. There was a moment in the second set that demonstrated Nadal’s prowess over the tournament when the towering Anderson hit a ball that just dropped on his opponent’s side and Nadal chased it down and hit a passing shot that was breathless in its accuracy and speed as the ball flew past the South African to bring the score to 5-2.
After the second set was Nadal’s, ESPN’s Tom Rinaldi interviewed Toni Nadal—“Uncle Toni” to the whole world—and asked him what Nadal needs now to close this out. “Another set,” Uncle Toni said with a smile, recognizing the inevitable win. This is the last grand slam he will be tagging along with his legendary nephew. Having coached him since the Spanish wonder was three, coaching duties have been taken over by Carlos Moya last year, helping to change, and improve the now-16-time grand slam champion. Uncle Toni will be focusing on Rafa’s new academy in Mallorca, which opened last year. He is also given his own mini U.S. Open trophy to go along with his celebrated nephew. No one deserves it more.
“[I] can’t thank him enough for everything he did for me,” said 2017 U.S. Open champ Rafael Nadal during the trophy presentation. “[He is] one of the most important persons in my life.”
The Spaniard walked on the court with his Nike designed shoes that featured the years he won at Flushing Meadows, 2010 and 2013, and now he can 2017. In 2011, he was denied by Novak Djokovic, as he had been that same year in the Wimbledon final and the following year in Australia. With all his incredible achievements, the hard court losses seem to have stung a bit. He’s only won one Australian Open and now has a third in New York, a huge contrast to his La Decima record at Roland Garros. Even for a great athlete like Nadal, the win here has not always come easy and you can tell it means even more at this stage in his career, at age 31.
The grand slam year in tennis now ends where it all began, with Rafael Nadal just three majors behind his great rival Roger Federer. The story of their rivalry has been one of the greatest sports stories there is. Both legends have really mirrored each other all year. Both out with injuries last year, the Swiss and Spaniard took the recovery time to retool their games and came back to remind everyone what beautiful, fearless tennis looked like.
Federer’s resilience surprised us all by coming from behind—usually a mentally debilitating state when he faced Rafa in the past—and winning the first grand slam of the year. He followed this up with two more Masters 1000 titles on hard courts. Nadal answered by collecting up titles during his year of La Decima, winning a record 10th French Open and two more Masters titles himself. Wimbledon welcomed its king back, with a Renaissance record 8th title for the Swiss. It looked like Fed would pick up where he left off earlier in the year during hard court season, but his winning run seemed to take a physical toll on the Swiss and he suffered from back issues going into New York, losing in the quarters, denying tennis fans a first-ever meeting between the two greats in New York. It was Rafa’s turn to answer by winning the last grand slam title of the year. The two sports legends have simply collected all the big prizes as if the next generation players didn’t exist at age 36 and 31. And now they sit ranked No. 1 and 2. The only young player to have come close is the one who sits right behind them, at No. 3, Alexander Zverev.
As of now, Rafael Nadal has the upper hand since he’s solidified his hold on the No. 1 ranking. How each fared at the U.S. Open was going to determine the outcome of the top spot and once Federer went out, Nadal was assured his place.
What an amazing run it has been for the two great legends in the sport of tennis. Last year tennis fans were wondering what next generation players would fill the void with Federer-Nadal out with injury, thinking they might not come back, and after Andy Murray’s and Novak Djokovic’s run concluded. Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal began the invention of the Big Four, the John Lennon and Paul Mccartney of the group. They’ve sent a clear message, one they’ve been shouting all year long, there’s no need to fill the void because they just erased it.