An old joke: A tourist gets in a cab in New York and asks, “You know how to get to Carnegie Hall?” — “Practice, chief, practice.”
Jannik Sinner put it that way when asked for a few words upon receiving the trophy following his straight-set win over Taylor Fritz: “I practice every day.” And, he added, he dedicated this win, this first triumph of an Italian man at the U.S. Open, to his beloved, gravely ill aunt. She was with him, through practice, through matches, he was with her. (READ MORE: A Touch of Grace at US Open)
He kept it short, fast intense sets. She would not have the strength for the five-set epics that are typical of tournaments on the Slam circuit.
If you had any doubts about Jannik Sinner, ranked no. 1 in the world, being the best player in the draw, the sequence at the end of the third set settled the issue. Serving at 15-30, the set tied at 3-3, he caught an impossible shot to his ad (backhand) corner — the shot itself evidence of how well Fritz was hitting. The Californian, top American, and world no. 14, kept improving even after losing the first two sets, and he was ready for Sinner’s great get. He put it away to the other corner and this one Sinner could not reach. 15-40: no big deal, he is used to taking charge when he needs to. But this time he did the unexpected, doubled on break point.
Four-to-three, and a momentum shift to Fritz, but appearances can be deceptive. He doubled on his first serve, almost as if to apologize to Sinner for handing him the break. He then made three points and, incredibly — Fritz’s serve is mighty and powerful — doubled again to make it 40-30. Incredibly again, he shanked on the next point to make it deuce and give Sinner a chance at getting the break back. But no, a superb serve pulled Sinner over the alley and his return went into the net, following which Fritz aced him on the T: 5-3. A fourth set was in the offing — and maybe a fifth.
Appearances are deceptive. Three-to-five and Sinner’s first serve hit the T at 124 mph for an ace. A second big serve to the T Fritz returned long. As if to take a breather at 30-love, Sinner doubled. These two never double and it looked like they were playing mind games all of a sudden, I give you a free point, let’s see if you can keep it. More likely they were both on edge and anyway Sinner took the next two points easily. (READ MORE from Roger Kaplan: Twentysomethings Into Men’s Finals at US Open)
At 5-4, Fritz could still count on his big serve, his ability to hit back against Sinner’s enormous pace and even generate some of his own, but at 30-30 Sinner got the break point with a shot that just edged the paint on the baseline (and that Fritz got to but sent back long). Possibly unsettled by a point he thought he had, on the next one he netted what looked like a routine volley as they both approached the net for a drop-shot duel. Suddenly the lead was gone.
Sinner on serve at 5-all still managed to double one more time, but steadied himself and held, putting Fritz in the position of having to serve to save the set or lose the match.
The championship match. The first one contested by an American on this hallowed court since 2003. The first one on any Slam court since 2009. Both of those involved Andy Roddick, winner in 2003 and loser (at Wimbledon) in five thrilling sets to Roger Federer, one of the best Wimbledon finals. That was the weight Taylor Fritz was carrying; and he wanted terribly, and rightly, to show the 24,000 fans packed into the Arthur Ashe Stadium that Americans are back in the biggest league, a force to be reckoned with in the Slams, a great power, again.
The U.S. Open is always a great tournament, but this year’s was filled with plot turns in both the women’s and men’s draws, as the top seeds were upset. However much this helped smooth their way to the finals, what Taylor Fritz and Jessica Pegula showed — well, you know. America is back because there are young Americans who work hard and believe. (READ MORE by Roger Kaplan: Americans in U.S. Open Finals!)
Naturally, both Taylor Fritz and Jessica Pegula sounded dejected, even as they congratulated the winners and gracefully accepted their finalists’ silver dishes (and big checks, but we can talk about money some other time); who would not be? They did very well because they played well. They are good. They know the mountains they must scale, Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz — and Frances Tiafoe, Tommy Paul; Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek — and Emma Navarro, Coco Gauff; others for sure. Speed, control, brains; practice; beloved aunts: the world is wide open and yours to take.
A Marine honor guard was on hand, as always, for the finals and Old Glory, and if the last Slam of the year marks the end of summer, tennis boys and girls, of whatever age, know summer is without end.