US Open Tennis 2014 Men's Final: TV Schedule, Start Time and Live Stream Info
The tennis landscape is set to get a jolt of new blood now that No. 10 Kei Nishikori and No. 14 Marin Cilic are the two left standing at Flushing Meadows going into the 2014 U.S. Open final Monday.
No Roger Federer. No Novak Djokovic. No Rafael Nadal or Andy Murray. Just two younger players set to fight over a career-defining moment that can jump-start them to the upper echelon of the sport. ESPNTennis breaks down how the final disrupts the long-standing tennis timeline:
"This is the 1st time since the 2005 Australian Open that a Grand Slam Final doesn't involve either Nadal, Federer, Murray, or Djokovic.
— ESPNTennis (@ESPNTennis) September 6, 2014"
Nishikori took down Djokovic in the semifinal, Cilic eliminated Federer later the same day. Both are playing arguably the best tennis of their careers. The winner, as if two of the top four were in the final instead, is as good as anyone's guess.
Below, let's take a look at the final's pertinent info and the path each player took to get there.
| Monday, September 8 | 5 p.m. | CBS | USOpen.org |
The Road for Kei Nishikori
Any questions about Nishikori can finally be put to rest.
At just 24 years old, it has been plain as day that the Japanese star is one of the sport's best players, but only when he can stay healthy. His blitzkrieg of fast-paced, offensive speed, including a superb baseline-to-baseline game, gives any player trouble, but the one caveat is that the style has taken its toll on his body.
Nishikori has held up, though, and is now through to the final after an upset against Djokovic. As the tournament's Twitter account notes, along with the historic moment itself, he becomes the first Asian man to advance to a Grand Slam singles final:
For the first time since 2011, Nishikori upended Djokovic (6-4, 1-6, 7-6, 6-3) by breaking the world No. 1 five times and scoring on 67 percent of his first serves.
Again, it was not exactly all that surprising for fans who have seen Nishikori at his best when healthy. Christopher Clarey of The New York Times recently broke down what skills make him one of the world's best:
"At 5 feet 10 inches, Nishikori is short for a modern-day tennis star. Though his serve lacks, and will always lack, the punch of taller men like Raonic, he does not lack for weapons.
His returns are among the best in the game, as are his groundstrokes, and though Raonic did his intimidating best to keep the exchanges short, pounding 35 aces, Nishikori’s racket-head control and reflexes kept many points alive where lesser technicians and athletes would have failed.
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Call it a coming-out party for the Japanese star, who won his first three matches in straight sets over Wayne Odesnik (6-2, 6-4, 6-2), Pablo Andujar (6-4, 6-1—Ret.) and No. 22 Leonardo Mayer (6-4, 6-2, 6-3).
Nishikori then produced a five-set classic out of his hat to upend No. 5 Milos Raonic, 4-6, 7-6 (4), 6-7 (6), 7-5, 6-4, in a match that did not end until 2:26 a.m. ET. Obviously, this was a major concern for a player who struggles with injury issues.
No matter, though. Two nights later he went out and played another five sets before taking care of No. 3 Stan Wawrinka, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6, 6-7, 6-4, before his Saturday clash with Djokovic.
Healthy and with three consecutive triumphs over top-five seeds to his name, there is zero reason to write off Nishikori when he steps onto the court Monday with Cilic.
The Road for Marin Cilic
Perhaps it was only Cilic who believed in his rise to the final.
It's not hard to blame doubters, either. His first match ended when Marcos Baghdatis retired, so it was hard to get a read on the Croatian star's form. His second match against Illya Marchenko was a sloppy affair, albeit one that ended in three sets, 7-6 (2), 6-2, 6-4.
Cilic then hit a major speed bump against No. 18 Kevin Anderson in the third round, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, before making things even more difficult on himself by going to five sets with a lesser seed in the next round, this time against No. 26 Gilles Simon, 5-7, 7-6, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.
Then he hit on the inverse, breezing through an upset over No. 6 Tomas Berdych, 6-2, 6-4, 7-6.
Again, not exactly a course that suggested he was about to hit on the best performance of his career against Federer. But he did just that, firing off 43 winners and winning a ridiculous 87 percent of his first serve points.
After, the tournament's Twitter account captured the decisive moment:
BBC.com's Jeff Tarango put it best, writing that "Cilic played lights-out tennis from the beginning until the end. He just played his dream match. Roger didn't play that badly, he just got beat, overpowered."
A breakthrough has been long overdue for Cilic, too. He has never finished better than the semifinals at a Grand Slam, which came back in 2010 at the Australian Open. His best finishes outside of that since 2007 have been quarterfinals showings, two of which came at Flushing Meadows.
In other words, if his next step up the ladder was to occur, one would have thought it would happen at the U.S. Open. Of course, the same can be said for Nishikori.
Prediction
Only one thing is certain Monday—a first-time U.S. Open champ will be crowned. In fact, the last time two newcomers to the Grand Slam final stage encountered one another, Nadal beat Mariano Puerta in 2005 at the French Open.
Obviously, one of the two men in Monday's match could be on the cusp of something great.
The only discernible flaw in the matchup is the notion that, at least in theory, Cilic will not be able to pull another best-of-career performance out of his hat.
This is especially the case against Nishikori, who holds a 5-2 career advantage over the Croatian, with the most recent match being a lopsided three-set affair in Barcelona this year.
The Japanese star's form and health is too crisp, which means his elite speed and technical skill will lead to a title. Just don't expect it to come all that easy.
Prediction: Nishikori wins, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6, 6-4
Note: All info courtesy of USOpen.org unless otherwise specified. Stats courtesy of ATPWorldtour.com.
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