Talk about a reversal of fortune, Becker's charge Djokovic and Edberg's charge Federer being completely outplayed by the charges of Michael Chang (Nishikori) and Goran Ivanisevec (Cilic). Believe it or not, that intangible alone had me tipping the underdogs. Overall, Boris Becker and Stefan Edberg had the more distinguished careers but the coaches of the underdogs were living vicariously today. Djokovic never had and Federer no longer has the goods to completely dominate the sport. Nadal is nearly indestructible at the majors as long as he's healthy.
But, there will be none of that in the women's final. Initially, I thought that Serena would win in 3 sets but after seeing her handle Makarova, I predict Serena in 2 quick sets barring injury.
Monica Seles and she are the two most ruthlessly competitive players in the history of the sport period. Both hate to give up points let alone championships. There's a reason both have such remarkable records at the majors and win-loss percentages career-wise. On the biggest stages, smart money is on Serena.
Caro lacks the fire power of Sam Stosur, Sharapova, or Venus to pull off the upset. And neither Stosur nor Sharapova has been able to do it consistently. Unlike Federer, Serena simply has not allowed a female version of Nadal to upstage her in the biggest events of the sport.
Check out the win-loss stats below at the 4 majors in finals for holders of 8 or more singles titles in the open era.
Serena Williams (17 - 4) Monica Seles (14 - 4) Pete Sampras (14 - 4) Bjorn Borg (11 - 5) Rafael Nadal (14 - 6) Andre Agassi (8 - 7) Jimmy Connors (8 - 7) Roger Federer (17 - eight) Billie Jean King (12 - eight) Steff Graf (22 - 9) Ivan Lendl (8 - 11) Martina Navratilova (18 - 14) Chris Evert (18 - 16)
it's nice to see a change on the men's side for once. Looking forward to the Nishikori vs. Cilic final
A Chorus Line revival played its final Broadway performance on August 17, 2008. The tour played its final performance on August 21, 2011. A new non-equity tour started in October 2012 played its final performance on March 23, 2013. Another non-equity tour launched on January 20, 2018. The tour ended its US run in Kansas City and then toured throughout Japan August & September 2018.
@tiny...sometimes I pull for the underdog(s) as well but not today. I'd like to see Serena join Martina N. & Chrissie in the Club of Eighteen. But, I personally think that Serena has stood atop a relatively weak field throughout her career, unlike Martina and Chrissie who had to go through each other, and Steffi Graf with whom Monica Seles swept the floor before that unfortunate attack on Seles by a crazed Graf fan.
The dream tournament to me would feature Billie Jean King, Martina N., Chrissie, Steffi, Monica, Serena, Venus, and Justine playing each other with similar rackets, training, and fitness with each at the height of her powers. It's tough to compare champions across generations. And as fond as I am of what both Serena and Steffi did on the court, Martina Navratilova still gets my vote for G.O.A.T taking into account her records in singles, doubles, and mixed as well as how long she stayed at #1 and the number of tournaments she won in her career. Martina was not warmly embraced by American tennis fans after defecting from her native country, the former Czechoslovakia.
Were you aware that Monica Seles' native country Yugoslavia does not even exist on the world map any longer?
I kept forgetting that the US Open moved the men's final to Monday a few years ago. Kept looking for the game today.
A Chorus Line revival played its final Broadway performance on August 17, 2008. The tour played its final performance on August 21, 2011. A new non-equity tour started in October 2012 played its final performance on March 23, 2013. Another non-equity tour launched on January 20, 2018. The tour ended its US run in Kansas City and then toured throughout Japan August & September 2018.