US Open 2009: A Preview

A lot has changed since then. Let’s look back to what these four guys did during this period, and what we can expect of them in the U.S. Open.

Roger Federer:  He entered the 2008 U.S. Open badly bruised from his losses to Nadal at the French Open, and more importantly at Wimbledon. Not to mention losing his No. 1 spot in the rankings. He had critics gunning for his retirement, and fans doubting his future in tennis (well at least some of them).

He answered them all by winning not only the U.S Open, but also the French Open and Wimbledon.  He also gained back the No. 1 spot.  The fact that he won Wimbledon and regained the No. 1 ranking at the absence of Nadal, his arch rival, is another story altogether.

Federer’s success was not limited to on court performance only. He got married and became a proud father of twin girls. In the last 12 months Federer has won three Grand Slam titles and was runner-up in one (Australian Open where he lost to Nadal). He also broke Pete Sampras’s Record of most slam titles, and extended some of his own records. 

Drawing closer to the U.S. Open, Federer is one of the clear favorites to win it. Certainly betting against Federer will be a bad choice as he is five time defending champion, but that’s what happened at Wimbledon 2008. Federer shouldn’t be short on motivation as he can become the first man in tennis history to win a slam on all three surfaces in the same calendar year.

Rafael Nadal:  Nadal entered the 2008 U.S. Open with his confidence sky high and being the newly crowned No. 1 ranked player. However, he lost in the semis to Andy Murray, and then was sidelined for the rest of the 2008 tour due to injury.

He started 2009 with a bang by winning the Australian Open, beating Roger Federer in the finals and reducing him to tears in the presentation ceremony. He almost swept the clay season except for the Madrid Masters. His most painful loss came at Roland Garros (lost to Soderling in 4rth round) where he was a four time defending champion. As if that was not enough, he also had a bout with tendonitis and had to skip Wimbledon where he was the defending champion.

Nadal was forced to take a break from tennis for 2 months. He not only surrendered his No. 1 spot to Federer, but his absence on the tennis court helped Andy Murray to clinch the No. 2 Spot for the first time in his career. Since getting back from injury his game has gradually improved and he is already giving indications that he is back to full fitness and is ready for another assault at the U.S. Open.

He has the best chance to win it this year as he is fresher than most players. Hence, fatigue should not be an issue. Nadal needs to win the U.S. Open to be only the second male player after Andre Agassi to win all four slams and an Olympic gold medal (singles). Also, his record against top players makes him a heavy favorite for the championship.

Andy Murray: - Last year Murray entered the U.S. Open with a Cincinnati Masters win under his belt. He beat Nadal in the semis to reach a slam final for the first time in his career, but lost to Federer in the finals in straight sets.

Since then he has performed well in the following 12 months, which saw him become the first Briton to be ranked no. 2. Murray has been a consistent performer in the last 12 months and just like Federer, he too was benefited by Nadal’s injury. But it does not take anything away from the Briton.

Murray won in Doha, Rotterdam, Miami, and Montreal. His 50-7 win-loss record for 2009 is unmatched so far, but his only blemish this year came in the Australian Open where he lost to an inspired Fernando Verdasco. He also had an early loss at Roland Garros, which is played on clay (not his favorite surface).

Hard courts are a different ball game for the Briton. His record on the hard courts this season stands at 34-2. The two losses were against Verdasco and Nadal.

There is no doubt that he has the talent, the only problem is having the belief to win a major. For me he is as big a favorite as Federer and Nadal are.

Novak Djokovic:  Now what a change this guy had in just 12 months. From coming tantalizingly close to replacing first Nadal and then Federer for the number no. 2 ranking, to ending up at the no. 4 spot. This remarkable change was triggered by a decision to change rackets.

While he did show some remarkable form during the clay season and was Nadal’s main opponent before Nadal got injured, his most notable victories in the last 12 months came at the Tennis Masters Cup 2008 at Shanghai, and the inaugural Serbia Open.

However, his results in Grand Slams this year have not been good. He retired in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, lost in the 3^rd round at Roland Garros, and again lost in the quarterfinals at Wimbledon.

Djokovic has showed some form and consistent play this week, and having won a major before gives him an edge over other opponents who haven’t done so. With a 49-15 win-loss record this year, he may not be a big favorite at the U.S. Open but he has an outside chance.

This brings us to the pretenders who may change the whole equation on a given day.

Juan Martin Del Potro is already a established player and has shown time and again that he can challenge and beat the best on his day. He has beaten Nadal last week en route to the final at Montreal where he lost to Murray in three sets. He pulled out of Cincinnati due to fatigue. He obtained victories in Auckland and Washington this year and has a 42-11 win-loss record.

Even though Andy Roddick has shown some indifferent form this last month, he has improved his game immensely and as a past winner you just can’t count him out.

It is tough to pick a winner between these guys. Best of Luck if you are a betting person!