Novak Djokovic is out of the picture, beaten by Alexei Popyrin in the third round, and immediately the fact is raised: for the first time since 2002, none of the three giants – he, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer – will have their name in the history of the four greats. Strange year, then. For now, glory for Jannik Sinner (Australia) and Carlos Alcaraz (Roland Garros and Wimbledon), waiting for the US Open to be decided, the resolution of which could go either way. Everything is open in the men’s draw. In any case, what has already been happening is underlined: the definitive transition from one era to another. The Serbian will continue to fight, as long as his knee respects him, but the new generation has definitively taken charge and the old guard continues to march towards the exit door that Federer opened two years ago.
Nadal is still active and, as far as we know, according to his own words, he has the will to continue competing. It is unknown how far his body and mind will allow him to travel, both eroded by so many injuries and so much time on the reserve list; the Balearic player has played 22 matches (distributed in seven tournaments) this year, and will reappear on the court in the context of the Laver Cup in Berlin —from the 20th to the 22nd of this month— and is exhausting all options before making a final decision, at 38 years of age. Federer retired at 41, but he had barely set foot on the court in the last two seasons that he was still active. And Djokovic is 37, and apart from an elbow injury, well repaired six years ago, he had barely suffered the scourge of physical misfortune. However, the meniscus in his right knee creaked in June —the same one that unseated the legendary Federer— and it remains to be seen how he reacts in the medium term.
In any case, despite having to undergo surgery, he achieved his true objective of the season, the Olympic gold. A monumental triumph in Paris. Another story has been his performance in the territory of the greats, where for one reason or another he has not managed to add a last notch or catch the coveted 25 that would have set him apart from the Australian Margaret Court. In Australia he was crushed by Sinner in the semi-finals; at Roland Garros the joint prevented him from playing the quarter-finals; miraculously he made it to London, but unlike the previous edition, the one everyone pointed to as the favourite in the final was Alcaraz and the Murcian responded. In general terms, a rather discreet game except for the majestic Olympic parenthesis, crowned with a masterpiece in the Chatrier.
There, Nole was completely empty. He gave it his all.
“Honestly, getting to the third round was a success,” he admitted after losing 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 to Popyrin, the world number 20 and recent winner in Canada. “I spent a lot of energy to win gold, so I came here not feeling fresh physically or mentally. I didn’t have any physical problems, but I was short of gas; you could see that from the way I played… I tried, but if you lose the foundations, the movement, the tempothe rhythm, everything… You can’t find your game, that’s all. It falls apart,” explains the Belgrade native, who won three Grand Slams last year, another the year before and another three in 2021; a collector himself, he had not been left without a trophy since 2017 and to find the other two times he didn’t win any trophies you have to go back to 2009 and 2010.
Medvedev, Zverev… and Sinner
“This US Open has been a mental struggle from the start,” he argues, now out of the running. And without him, the landscape that now remains in New York is as uncertain as it is attractive. His withdrawal and that of Alcaraz are an extraordinary stimulus for the rest of the contenders, with Jannik Sinner, in his position as number one, logically at the head. The Italian is progressing (6-1, 6-4 and 6-2 against Christopher O’Connell) and his game is gaining volume, increasingly incisive and supported by the endorsement of the previous week in Cincinnati, where he triumphed. Then the dust was raised by the clostebol issue – the double positive detected in March in Indian Wells – and as the days go by, the feeling that he is knowing how to internally manage the issue and that the noise around him, already in the round of 16, is losing strength is growing; it will be another matter whether he reaches the final level or if he rises to the top.
John G. Mabanglo (EFE)
“This (the eliminations) show that sport is unpredictable. Every time you drop a little bit in level, whether it be physical, mental, physical or game, in the end it has an impact on the result. The two players they lost to played incredible tennis, so these things happen. I focus on the things I have to do and then we’ll see what happens,” he says, knowing that he will meet Tommy Paul at the next station and that, having taken advantage of the motorway, an ideal launching pad, the real ramps await him. That’s where the Russian Daniil Medvedev and the German Alexander Zverev are sharpening their teeth, both above other lighter candidates. The former won the tournament in 2021 and is enjoying a court that suits him like a glove, also a finalist in 2019 and 2023, and the latter will try to get rid of the thorn of the final lost in 2020 against Dominic Thiem, as well as take the definitive step into the territory of the greats that has been so difficult for him.
After 22 years, the three myths have also resisted. While Federer does business and enjoys the Swiss mountains with his family, Nadal works tirelessly in the shadows to recover his lost competitiveness and Nole leaves New York without any reward, beyond having tried despite having arrived without sufficient spirit or artillery. He loses a place in the list – he is virtually fourth, and could even drop to fifth – while fans are still digesting the course of events, which reveal an exceptionality: two of the top three male seeds have fallen in the first week, a circumstance that had only previously occurred twice since the birth of the Open Era (1968): in 1973, when Ilie Nastase and Arthur Ashe fell early, and in 2000, when Andre Agassi and Gustavo Kuerten were eliminated. Tennis is definitely already drawing a new era after two extraordinary decades.
BOUZAS, WITHOUT OPTION AGAINST PEGULA
After the hectic night before, Galician Jessica Bouzas lost this Saturday to her namesake Pegula by a double 6-3 (in 1h 10m). The 21-year-old Spaniard came up against one of the most in-form players on the circuit, who had recently conquered Montreal and also reached the final of Cincinnati, as well as enjoying a significant consistency in the tournament; for the third consecutive year she will play the round of 16, this time against the Russian Diana Shnaider.
Bouzas leaves with the good feelings she has acquired and after having landed in the third round again. Two more triumphs on a great stage and since Wimbledon, a notable rise in the ranking. She is now 59th, only behind Paula Badosa among the Spanish representatives. The Catalan, now the only Spanish representative, will fight this afternoon in the quarterfinals (17.00, Movistar+) with the Chinese Yafan Wang (80th).
Apart from this, the day took away the man who eliminated Alcaraz in the second round, the Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp. After the huge win against the player from El Palmar, a 6-3, 6-4 and 6-2 favourable to the Englishman Jack Draper.
You can follow EL PAÍS Sports on Facebook and Xor sign up here to receive our weekly newsletter.
