Kei Nishikori vs Marin Cilic: Examining Significance of 2014 US Open Men's Final
Marin Cilic made short work of Kei Nishikori on Monday night to win the 2014 U.S. Open men's final 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 in New York and claim his first ever Grand Slam title.
As was mentioned a great deal in the run up to the match, it was something of an unfamiliar major final considering the absence of a select few players, per Eurosport:
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Nishikori and Cilic had made it past Djokovic and Federer, respectively, in their semi-finals, playing some extraordinary tennis, but unfortunately Monday's showpiece was largely underwhelming as the Japanese player failed to find his form.
However, it was a monster performance from Cilic, who will no doubt kick on to compete for more Grand Slam titles in the future. Read on for a look at what significance can be drawn from Monday's game.
There Is Hope for Big Four Outsiders
The dominance of the so-called Big Four—Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray—is such that you have to go back to 2003 to find the last year in which those players did not dominate the major tournament victories—i.e., were the winners of at least three of the four.
Indeed, before this year, Juan Martin del Potro was the only other man with a Grand Slam victory outside of those four since 2005, with his 2009 U.S. Open win, per Forbes' Kurt Badenhausen:
However, 2014 has been different because only two of the Grand Slams have been won by that elite group, with Cilic's victory in the U.S. Open adding to Stan Wawrinka's Australian Open win at the start of the year.
As Cilic—the world No. 16—commented after his Monday triumph, this perhaps will give the rest of the men's field hope that they can win a Grand Slam title as well, per Piers Newbery on BBC Sport:
"I feel it's very inspirational for all the other players out there that are working hard and sometimes losing motivation. I would definitely feel much stronger if I would see somebody like me accomplish things like this.
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Indeed, the past decade has been so dominated by such a small group of men that others have barely got a look in when it came to Grand Slam victories.
Nishikori—while poor in the final—showed that the greats can be beaten with his impressive four-set victory over Djokovic in the semi-final.
Furthermore, Federer is now 33 and—having not won a Grand Slam title since 2012—looks to be coming to the end of one of the greatest of all sporting careers.
With the four major tournaments all wrapped up for 2014, there will surely be a larger group of players hopeful of Grand Slam victory in 2015.
Uncertainty to Reign in Men's Tennis
While a greater variety of Grand Slam winners will be good for the players, it is not necessarily good for the game of tennis.
Much like golf has seen in the past few years with the downfall of Tiger Woods, a dominant player or set of players is needed for an individual sport to thrive.
The dominance of the Big Four sets a benchmark and has also provided some of the greatest contests the sport has ever seen, as sportingintelligence highlights:
The dawn of a new era in which the Big Four do not win everything will inevitably lead to uncertainty, as different players scramble to claim the top gongs.
Another potential fallout may be less interest in the sport. As BBC Sport's Russell Fuller intimates, the U.S. Open final was not exactly well-attended in the absence of either Djokovic or Federer after their last-four defeats:
However, that is not to say that tennis is doomed after arguably the greatest era in its history. To use the golf analogy again, while it has taken a few years, Rory McIlroy has taken on Woods' mantle this season, and the game will be better for it as some kind of order is restored.
While it is premature to suggest the Big Four will not continue to dominate, in the main, for the next few years, Cilic's victory does suggest the beginning of a new era.
While this breeds uncertainty, it should also breed excitement, as there will no doubt be a player or players who take advantage of the new openness of the game to stamp their authority and bring something different to tennis.
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