By Owen Lewis

Roger Federer is the most successful men’s tennis player in history. He has won 20 major titles over the past sixteen and a half years — let’s see how they stack up against each other. These are ranked based on emotional magnitude, quality of play and opposition, and historical value.
20. 2005 Wimbledon
Federer was the two-time defending champion in London, and the 2005 Championships arrived when the Swiss was peaking in his grass-court mastery. After dropping a set to Nicholas Kiefer in the third round, Federer cruised to his third straight Wimbledon title, easily outclassing Lleyton Hewitt and Andy Roddick in the semifinals and finals without losing a set.
19. 2006 Australian Open

Federer’s position as the world’s best player was secure at this stage of his career, having won three slams in 2004 and an additional two in 2005. He was a solid favorite to win the title, and would do so — but the run to the Norman Brooks trophy wasn’t completely smooth. In the fourth round, Federer saw Tommy Haas fight back to level their match from two sets down before putting him away 6-2 in the fifth, and in the quarterfinals Nikolay Davydenko engages Federer in a tense four setter that eventually fell to the Swiss: 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (7), 7-6 (5). The final pitted Federer against young Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis, who came out strong — the underdog went up a set and a break, but Federer locked in and rolled through the rest of the match: 5-7, 7-5, 6-0, 6-2. Though Federer endured some testing matches, this tournament is one of the few that a fan might struggle to remember if reminiscing about Federer’s career. Overall, the 2006 Australian Open reaffirmed that Federer was secure in his position as the top-ranked man, but wasn’t especially dramatic or emotional for the Swiss.
18. 2007 Australian Open

Though even less dramatic than the 2006 tournament down under, this ranks higher because Federer reached his highest level of play during the fortnight. He won the title without dropping a set, becoming the first man to do so in a major since Bjorn Borg in 1980. In the semifinals, Federer utterly dominated Roddick with a flurry of precise passing shots, aces, and attacking tennis, winning 6-4, 6-0, 6-2 in under two hours. He was made to work slightly harder in the final, but still disposed of Fernando Gonzalez 7-6 (4), 6-4, 6-4. Bonus points for the beautiful backhand winner struck on match point.
17. 2006 U.S. Open

Federer’s early slams (2004-2007) are difficult to rank because he won them so dominantly. He entered the 2006 Open as the two-time defending champion and top seed, and delivered on his status during the tournament, losing just two sets on his path to victory. The final against Roddick had its tense moments — after Federer ripped off the first five games of the match, Roddick got his teeth into the contest and won the second set. The third was a seesaw battle, with both players saving break points early on. Eventually, though, Federer proved the stronger and broke Roddick to take the set 7-5. He then rolled through the fourth, 6-1, dashing his opponent’s hopes in yet another slam final. Federer hit his forehand beautifully during the match, and in winning the tournament capped a spectacular year in which he won three slams.
16. 2005 U.S. Open

This final was similar to the 2006 four-setter against Roddick, but probably carried a tad more historical weight. Federer faced off against Andre Agassi, the great American player that won eight majors from 1992 to 2003. Agassi’s career was drawing to a close, but he had made a heroic run to the final, reaching the title match on the back of winning three straight five-setters (including an absolute epic against James Blake in which he came from two sets down to win in a final set tiebreak. Check it out here: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IgEtpIM71tg). As in the 2006 final, Federer took the first set comfortably before losing the second. Agassi’s return game was firing as he took the frame 6-2, and his fine form carried over into the third as he took a 4-2 lead. It then appeared that the American was on his way to a hold for 5-2, but Federer shanked a backhand that floated into the corner for a winner, and this proved the tide-turner. The set went to a tiebreak, and Federer dominated it 7-1. Agassi wrote in his acclaimed autobiography Open that “In the tiebreak he goes to a place I don’t recognize. He finds a gear that other players simply don’t have.” The Swiss ran away with the match after the scintillating tiebreak, winning the fourth 6-1 to claim his second U.S. Open title. The crowd had been mostly in favor of Agassi, but by match’s end they and other tennis fans likely recognized that while Agassi’s era was coming to an end, he and others had been usurped by a truly great player.
15. 2004 Wimbledon

Title defense is often difficult. With the pressure of maintaining a title, players sometimes wilt under the gaze of expectation and surrender their hard-won trophies. With Federer having won his first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon the year before, he returned in 2004 with new weight on his shoulders as the favorite to win. The Swiss reached the final with ease, where he absorbed a stern test from Roddick. The American had lost in straight sets to Federer in the Wimbledon semifinal the year before, but started positively in 2004, breaking in the first game and taking the first set 6-4. Federer then seemed to have emphatically turned the tide when he went up 4-0 in the second set, but Roddick impressively clawed both breaks back, leveling the frame at 5-all. Federer managed to close out the set 7-5, and fought back from a break down in a third to win it in a tiebreak. The fourth also went to the Swiss, 6-4, who sank to his knees and screamed in triumph after slamming an ace out wide to claim the title. Federer was quickly making the grass courts his domain, and Roddick and others were quickly falling in the shadow of Federer’s impressive all-around game.
14. 2004 U.S. Open

Federer’s first title in Flushing Meadows was likely more emotional than his following victories in 2005 and 2006, but he won the final with almost shocking ease. His adversary was two-time slam champion Lleyton Hewitt, and from the start Federer was in the mood. He won 6-0, 7-6 (3), 6-0, playing with immense confidence. The Swiss played Agassi in the quarterfinals, who handed him his toughest match of the tournament — Federer managed to win the fifth set 6-3. Winning the U.S. Open secured his status as the best player in the world — he had already won the Australian Open and Wimbledon that year, and his mastery on grass and hard court was becoming evident.
13. 2004 Australian Open

Federer, having won his first slam at Wimbledon in 2003, had failed to immediately back up his success at the U.S. Open, falling to David Nalbandian in the fourth round. Andy Roddick went on to win that tournament, and gained the number one ranking as a result. So Federer was the second seed heading into Melbourne Park in 2004, but his performance left the audience with the general perception that he was the world’s best. The Swiss got his revenge over Nalbandian in a four-set quarterfinal, then beat Juan Carlos Ferrero and Marat Safin in straight-set affairs to win the title. Consolidating his success from 2003 was likely a massive confidence boost to start the 2004 season, and as an added bonus the victory gave him the number one ranking for the first time. He wouldn’t let it slip for over four years.
12. 2010 Australian Open

This tournament indicated the end of Federer’s utter dominance. From mid-2003 on, he had dominated tennis for a solid five years before Rafael Nadal dethroned him at the 2008 Wimbledon. Even with Nadal’s arrival on the scene, though, Federer had won 15 of the 26 slams prior to the Australian Open in 2010. He would win his 16th major in Melbourne, beating Andy Murray in the final 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (11). For the first two sets, he was imperious, hitting with great depth and power off both wings and rendering Murray a helpless spectator to many of his winners. The third set was far closer, but Federer was a touch steadier at the end of the tiebreak. This tournament doesn’t earn its rank because of the match, though. After hoisting the trophy, the Swiss wouldn’t win another slam for two and a half years. For that, this victory is probably a bit sweeter in hindsight.
11. 2018 Australian Open

With this being the most recent slam Federer has won, it has probably become more treasured in the two years following like its predecessor on this list. Federer had won two slams in 2017, ascending to #2 in the world, and was the favorite to win this Australian Open for the first time in several years. He played brilliantly throughout the first six rounds, not dropping a set (though his semifinal opponent, Hyeon Chung, retired after a set and a half), and looked every bit the player that had won the title in 2017. In the final against Marin Cilic, Federer cruised through the first and third sets, but lost a close second and saw his break lead and later his advantage in the match disappear in the fourth. In the fifth, Federer fought well to hold serve initially, winning his first service game with a beautifully angled crosscourt backhand. He raised his game as Cilic’s dipped, and the Swiss soon owned the final set 6-1. It was a record-extending 20th major title, and continued his renaissance from 2017.
10. 2008 U.S. Open

This slam likely brought immense relief as well as joy upon the moment of triumph. Having won five straight Wimbledon Championships from 2003 to 2007, Federer entered the 2008 U.S. Open without the SW19 title to his name for the first time since 2002. He had also fallen in the final of the French Open to an inspired Nadal, winning just four games in the process, and his Australian Open loss to Novak Djokovic meant that he had not yet won a major in 2008. Winning the title in Flushing Meadows was a much-needed reminder of his greatness. The road to the final wasn’t easy — Federer endured a tough five-setter in the round of 16 against Igor Andreev, and defeated Djokovic in a four-set semifinal. He rolled Murray in the final, sandwiching 6-2 sets around a closer 7-5 affair. Federer played with the confidence of a four-time U.S. Open champion, utilizing his surprise firepower on the forehand to take control of the baseline rallies. The victory salvaged his 2008 season, making fans think twice before pronouncing his decline.
9. 2007 U.S. Open

Some might be surprised at how high this ranks. It earns its spot because Federer beat Djokovic in the final, the only time the Swiss has emerged victorious in a major final against Djokovic (the next time they met at such an occasion was at the 2014 Wimbledon, at a time when Federer had declined a bit and Djokovic was the best player of the previous few years). As a result, the 2007 U.S. Open carries a bit more historical importance than, say, the 2005 or 2006 tournaments. The final was a close straight-set match, but that’s an understatement — Djokovic had five set points in the first set that all went begging, and two more in the second that he also failed to take in the 7-6 (4), 7-6 (2), 6-4 loss. Still, Federer had been pushed. With the win, he claimed his fourth straight U.S. Open title and his 12th Grand Slam. It was the third year in which he had won three of the four majors, and it looked certain that he would surpass the men’s all-time record of 14 held by Pete Sampras.
8. 2006 Wimbledon

As the list shows, Federer had been dominant at the Australian Open, Wimbledon, and the U.S. Open since 2004. But there are four majors on the tennis calendar, and Nadal had locked down the French Open over the previous two years. In 2005 as a nineteen-year-old, he beat Federer in the semifinals, and a year later came from a set down to beat the Swiss in the final. So while Federer lorded over grass and hard courts, Nadal ruled the clay. But in 2006, Nadal surprised critics who had him pegged as simply a clay-courted by making the Wimbledon final. There was immense pressure on Federer to win the match — lose, and Nadal, his biggest rival would encroach on Federer’s grass court kingdom, without suffering even a scratch on his clay empire. The Swiss did manage to hold off his younger challenger, defending his title with a 6-0, 7-6 (5), 6-7 (2), 6-3 victory. The match showed that while Nadal dominated the clay, Federer’s grip on the grass was not yet weakening. Many articles stated that winning was a relief for Federer — Nadal had been up a break in the second set before getting tight when it came time to serve it out, and showed some impressive grit and will.
7. 2017 Wimbledon

This one was difficult to rank. It wasn’t as hard-fought as many of the other tournaments on this list, as Federer sailed to his eighth Wimbledon title without dropping a set, but it was a very emotional victory. Having not won in London since 2012, Federer entered Wimbledon 2017 as one of the favorites. After a six-month injury lay-off at the end of 2016, the Swiss reestablished himself by winning the 2017 Australian Open and following it up by achieving the rare “Sunshine Double”: winning Masters 1000 tournaments Indian Wells and Miami back-to-back. He continued his fine form from the first half of the year and played a fantastic Wimbledon. In the quarterfinals, he beat 2016 finalist Milos Raonic in straight sets, in the semifinals he beat 2010 finalist Tomáš Berdych in straight sets, and he completed his run with a demolition of hobbled 2014 U.S. Open champion Marin Cilic in the final. Federer was emotional after winning the match, delighted at having reclaimed his beloved Challenge Cup. In addition to being a meaningful effort, the victory meant that Federer extended his 18-15 lead over Nadal in Grand Slams to 19-15, in a race that is currently desperately close at 20-19.
6. 2012 Wimbledon

From mid-2003 to early 2010, Federer’s dominance had seen few interludes sans his relinquishing of the Wimbledon title in 2008. But after winning the 2010 Australian Open, the Swiss began to decline a bit, a dip in form that coincided with Nadal’s peak later in 2010 and Djokovic’s rise in 2011. Those two players would win the next nine slams following the 2010 Australian Open, while Federer shifted from the spotlight to the side of the stage. He didn’t win a major for two and a half years after that 2010 victory in Australia, but at Wimbledon in 2012 he reminded players and fans alike of his immense talent. Federer played Djokovic in the semifinals, who had won three of the four slams in 2011, including Wimbledon, and had beaten the Swiss in the semifinals of the French Open just six weeks earlier. Virtually all the pundits made Djokovic the favorite, and rightly so — he had won four of their last five meetings in majors. But Federer conjured up the spirit of 2003, beating the defending champion 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 after claiming a closely contested third set. In the final he played Murray, who was under tremendous pressure to win — he is Scottish, and no British man had won Wimbledon in over seventy years. Murray delighted the London crowd by winning the first set, but Federer won a closely contested second with a beautiful backhand volley, and rolled through the next two sets. Having gone so long, by his standards, without winning a slam, the Challenge Cup must have felt like heaven in Federer’s hands. Because of this, the 2012 Wimbledon ranks high on the list.
5. 2007 Wimbledon

I can’t believe how low I ranked this one; I figured it would be 4th or higher, and definitely above the 2003 Wimbledon, Federer’s first slam title. But in interviews, the Swiss has referred to the latter as one of his favorite moments on Wimbledon’s Center Court, so it gets the four spot. Still, the 2007 Wimbledon is one of Federer’s best ever wins and I think it remains understated thanks to the amazing 2008 final. He played Nadal in the final for the second straight year — who had developed his game over the twelve-month span, and beat Federer again in the 2007 French Open final. Nadal provided even more testing opposition than he had in 2006 — he and Federer produced a magnificent five-set battle filled with momentum shifts and line-kissing shots. Eventually Federer pulled out the match, winning 7-6 (7), 4-6, 7-6 (3), 2-6, 6-2. The score in the fifth set is a bit misleading — Nadal had four break points early in the frame, putting heavy pressure on Federer’s serve, but the Swiss saved all four break chances. He played unbelievably well in the last few games of the match, breaking for 4-2 with a trio of gorgeous forehand winners, holding for 5-2 with three aces and another unreturned serve, and breaking again for the title with another flurry of winners, including an emphatic overhead smash on match point. If 2006 was emotional for holding off Nadal, 2007 was even more so because of the match’s incredible tension. It was Federer’s fifth consecutive Wimbledon title, tying Bjorn Borg’s quintet from 1976 to 1980, and elevated him to the status of one of the best grass court players ever.
4. 2003 Wimbledon

The slam that started it all. Before the 2003 Wimbledon Federer had shown promise, such as when he beat seven-time champion Pete Sampras in the fourth round two years prior. But he had lost in the first round in 2002, and some were beginning to peg him as a wasted talent. In 2003, though, the Swiss came to Wimbledon with purpose, advancing to the semifinals. He met Andy Roddick in the last four, who at that point was similarly regarded as a young, skilled player with lots of potential. The match was expected to produce the next star of the sport, and the eventual winner of the tournament. Many projected a close match won by Roddick, but Federer impressed the world with a brand of tennis rarely seen to that point — his defense took the breath away, as he reached Roddick’s blazing groundstrokes and volleys time and again. He also attacked well, driving forehands past the American and flying to the net to win points with clinical volleys. His passing shots were on point — Roddick was constantly frustrated by Federer’s ability to get to an approach shot or volley and flick well-angled crosscourt passes past his outstretched racket arm. Federer won in straight sets, and would defeat Mark Philippoussis in the final without dropping a set as well. His dominance in the final two rounds indicated that he would be a threat at Wimbledon for a long time (and that ended up being an understatement).
3. 2009 Wimbledon

This was the tournament that saw much of the tennis world pronounce Federer “the greatest of all time”. In winning it, the Swiss surpassed Pete Sampras’s men’s record of 14 Grand Slam titles. The 2009 Wimbledon doesn’t rank so high just for that reason, though; it took a massive fight to claim the title. Playing without winning the title the previous year for the first time since 2003, Federer reached the final having lost just one set, but there he faced an epic battle against an old foe: Andy Roddick. As this list shows, Federer had dominated the American in big matches, often winning comfortably. But for the 2009 final in London, Roddick entered the match with a strategy and fought Federer to the brink. He won the first set 7-5, and was in prime position to win the second: the set went to a tiebreak, and Roddick took a 6-2 lead. With four chances to take a two-set lead, it seemed that he was about to get a choke hold on the match, but Federer pulled back to 6-5 with a finessed backhand winner and two unreturned serves. At 6-5, Roddick came to net, but missed a very makeable backhand volley by several feet. From there, the Swiss won the tiebreak 8-6 and another one in the third set, 7-5. Roddick won the fourth, and had two break points with Federer serving at 8-all in the fifth, but the Swiss finally broke through after more than four hours, breaking Roddick for the first time all match to narrowly win the fifth set 16-14. The victory set Federer on a path that no male tennis player had walked before, and had emotional value as the champion regained his Wimbledon title after losing it in 2008.

2. 2017 Australian Open

Some might rank this major in the top spot, but the 2009 French Open was just a bit more crucial to Federer’s legacy. Still, winning the Australian Open in 2017 was an unexpected triumph, and one that required an almost superhuman effort. Where to start? During his Wimbledon semifinal against Milos Raonic the year before, Federer suffered a fall in the fifth set that injured his leg. He would lose the fifth set 6-3, and it seemed that retirement was imminent. Instead, the Swiss arrived in Melbourne in 2017 well-rested and with a new weapon. He had modified his one-handed backhand that Nadal had preyed on for years, hitting it harder and flatter and slicing less often. His draw was menacing — even with top seeds Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray losing early, Federer had to play tenth seed Tomas Berdych in the third round, fifth seed Kei Nishikori in the fourth round, fourth seed Stan Wawrinka in the semifinals, and ninth seed (but biggest career rival against whom, at this point, he had a 2-9 record in slams) Nadal in the final. The Swiss beat all of them, with his incredible tournament culminating in a five-set defeat of Nadal. He showed will and patience to come back from 3-1 down in the decider, hitting his backhand beautifully for eight winners in the set. Returning at 4-3 and deuce, he won one of the best Australian Open rallies in history, ending it with a forehand winner down the line on the stretch. Federer said after the match that the French Open in 2009 was the only slam that he could compare it to, and he was as emotional as he’s ever been after winning the title. It was his first major in four and a half years, so holding the trophy after such a long drought must have feet indescribably good.

1. 2009 French Open

For all of Federer’s dominance in the 2000s, the one big title missing from his collection was the French Open. He reached the semifinals in 2005, and the final for each year from 2006-2008, but each time was frustrated by Nadal, his topspin forehand, and his unparalleled clay-court skills. But in 2009, Nadal lost in the fourth round to Robin Soderling, and suddenly Federer had a very winnable path to his first French Open title. It ended up being extremely difficult, even without Nadal in his path — in the fourth round, the Swiss fell behind 6-7, 5-7, 3-4, 30-40 to Tommy Haas of Germany. Facing a break point that would set up Haas to serve for the match, Federer hammered an inside-out forehand winner for deuce. Some consider this to be the most important shot of Federer’s career. He would win that match, taking the next three sets 6-4, 6-0, 6-2. In the semifinals, the Swiss endured another tough five-setter, this time coming back from two sets to one down and getting the better of Juan Martin del Potro. Federer then played Nadal’s conqueror Soderling in the final, and barely made a misstep all match, winning 6-1, 7-6 (1), 6-4. This is the highest ranked slam on the list because it is Federer’s only French Open title. It completed his career Grand Slam (winning each of the four major titles across a career). The current phenomenon that has taken over the tennis world is the GOAT debate, the decision between who of Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic is the best men’s tennis player ever. Nadal and Djokovic have also won the career Grand Slam, and if Federer hadn’t won the French Open in 2009, he would surely be out of the running in the debate. For that, it is Federer’s most treasured and important major title.

By Owen Lewis

Preamble

Many complaints have been made about the ATP Cup: its proximity to the Australian Open, the addition of yet another team event that doesn’t include the WTA, the admittance of low-ranked players…the new event got off to a rocky start. But however much merit these criticisms have, let’s face it — we’ve had some electric matches this week. Many players have united behind Nick Kyrgios’s initiative to donate money to the disastrous fires in Australia, and the gestures of goodwill have reminded fans and players alike what a great community tennis is, and the ATP Cup participants have thrown themselves into the brand-new tournament with vigor. Players who don’t usually occupy the spotlight such as Alex de Minaur, Denis Shapovalov, Kacper Zuk, and Dusan Lajovic have enjoyed fine form in the past couple ties, indicating a 2020 season full of promise. We’re at the tail end of proceedings now; the four teams that made the semifinals are Spain, host nation Australia, Serbia, and Russia, with the matchups being Spain-Australia and Serbia-Russia. The latter tie is going on right now, and Lajovic has just beaten Russia’s Karen Khachanov 7-5, 7-6 (1), meaning all the pressure falls on Daniil Medvedev to beat world No. 2 Novak Djokovic in order to keep his team alive (ties consist of two singles matches and one doubles match, and the first team to two wins is the victor of the tie). At first glance, it seems like a huge ask of the 23-year-old Russian to topple 16-time major champion Djokovic, who leads the head-to-head 3-2, but Medvedev has had a breakout 2019. In fact, he has won their last two meetings: a comprehensive 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 victory on the clay of Monte-Carlo, and a very impressive 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 comeback on the hard courts of Cincinnati. In the latter match, Medvedev was serving at 3-6, 3-3, love-30, then decided to start hammering his second serve. He aced his way back into the match, blitzing a stunned Djokovic and breaking the accomplished Serb three times in a set and a half. Medvedev’s game features a rock-solid backhand, a big serve, and fantastic movement for a player as tall as he is (six-six). As he showed in Cincinnati, he has an unusual ability to adapt his game when a match is going badly, adjusting his strategy to fit a situation. He very nearly handed Rafa Nadal a second-ever career loss from two sets up in a major at the U.S. Open final in September. Yet, Medvedev is probably still a slight underdog. Though he finished 2019 somewhat weakly by his standards, Djokovic had been ranked number one for much the year, winning two majors. He, like Medvedev, is undefeated this week and is battle-ready, having survived a testing three-set match against Shapovalov that went to a final set tiebreak. Djokovic’s backhand is one of the few that is even more fearsome than Medvedev’s, his forehand is a huge weapon as well and his serve can get him out of trouble. He saved a break point with a second serve ace this week! Going up against one of the most mentally strong players on the circuit, Medvedev faces one of the biggest challenges in men’s tennis. Yet he should have a game plan, having beaten the Serb twice before. It won’t be an earth-shattering upset if Medvedev wins — far from it. But I’ve still got Djokovic in three sets, 6-3 in the third. Should be a good match, their meeting in Cincinnati was highly entertaining.

First set: Djokovic 1-0 Medvedev (italicized name indicates next server)

Djokovic to serve first. He so rarely is broken to start a match, and he begins positively here, drawing a netted forehand from Medvedev with a well-angled crosscourt forehand. Another error from the Russian makes it 30-love, and Djokovic has three game points when he feathers a forehand drop shot that Medvedev has no hope of getting to. Medvedev then nets a backhand, and that’s a great start from the Serb.

Djokovic 1-1 Medvedev

Medvedev wins the first point with a stretch volley — Djokovic’s running backhand pass almost snuck by the lanky Russian but he was able to get to it. He sends a forehand well long for 15-all, then slams an ace down the middle. He follows it with a double-fault, though, and faces pressure at 30-all. Djokovic calmly swings a backhand winner down the line. Break point. Medvedev saves it in style, with a backhand down the line that landed right in the corner and forced an error at the end of a long rally. The Russian draws a netted stretch backhand from the Serb, and he has the hold when Djokovic sends a second serve return long. He did well to survive that early break point there.

Djokovic 2-1 Medvedev

Djokovic sends Medvedev from corner to corner with ruthless efficiency. The Russian does well to stay in the point, but soon enough the court opens up and he unloads an inside-out forehand winner. 15-love. He forces an error for 30-love, then double-faults. It’s Medvedev’s first point won on the return, but he can’t get a second, firing a forehand return long off a second serve. Djokovic holds with an ace down the tee.

Djokovic 3-1 Medvedev

Djokovic is timing the ball well early, so it’s crucial that Medvedev get a couple comfortable holds on the board to assert himself. He makes a poor start, netting a gimme of a backhand pass. Djokovic then manages to return a massive serve, but eventually hits just long. 15-all. The Russian tries to smear the sideline with a crosscourt backhand, but his aim is awry and he’s in a hole at 15-30. A bad call forces the players to replay a point in which Djokovic had the advantage, and the Serb is annoyed when Medvedev levels at 30-all with a big serve. The Russian is called for a foot fault, and an amazing rally ensues off the second serve. Both players send each other scrambling, and finally a Djokovic drop shot and a dink to the open court earn him his second break point. Medvedev sees it off with a service winner. Deuce. Djokovic tries another drop shot, and though Medvedev gets to it without issue he sends his riposte long! Djokovic is applying plenty of early pressure to the Russian’s serve, but again he can’t take the break point when Medvedev dupes him with a clever drop shot. A great return followed by a massive forehand winner brings up a third break point of the game, and this time Djokovic converts when Medvedev nets a low volley!

Djokovic 4-1 Medvedev

Djokovic wins yet another point with the dropper — again Medvedev gets to it, but he smacks his forehand straight at the Serb who easily blocks it into the open court. It’s soon 40-love. Things are getting away from Medvedev quickly. He pulls back one point when Djokovic drills a forehand wide, but the Serb consolidates the break comfortably with a service winner. Djokovic has made a brilliant start, and Medvedev needs to find his footing quickly. He should consider playing a bit tighter to the baseline in order to counter the world No. 2’s drop shots.

Djokovic 5-1 Medvedev

Medvedev sends Djokovic wide with an angled forehand, but the Serb’s response is even better and he easily puts away Medvedev’s desperate reply. Another break here would be a disaster for the Russian, whose first serve percentage is under 50% at the moment. Medvedev again chases down a drop shot, but belts an easy backhand into the net. That’s the third or fourth time that this has happened. A deep return from Djokovic draws a missed forehand. And the Serb breaks to love, winning the point with ANOTHER drop shot!

Djokovic wins the first set 6-1!

Here’s a half-chance, finally, for Medvedev to break, though it’s probably come too late to save the set. The Serb with a rare unforced error for love-15, then his second double fault makes it love-30. Medvedev can’t take advantage, though — a missed backhand by the Russian and a service winner even the game at 30-all. I may have spoken too soon, however; a good return from Medvedev forces a Djokovic to stretch and he nets a forehand. It’s Medvedev’s first break point, and it goes begging when he lifts a forehand well long. He then slices a return wide. Set point. We’re back to deuce when Medvedev crushes an inside-out forehand, a sliding Djokovic unable to keep the ball in play. He has a second chance to take the set when a Medvedev forehand clips the tape and sits up, allowing Djokovic to bash a forehand into the open court. Medvedev’s return slaps the net and there’s the first set!

Second set: Djokovic 1-0 Medvedev

If Medvedev gets broken here, it’s a very long way back, so it’s just as well for the Russian that he storms to a 40-love lead, landing his first serves with more frequency. He’s not out of the game yet, though: a double fault and a missed lob leave him at 40-30. And excellent Djokovic defense draws an error for deuce! This game is feeling more and more crucial. Wow. Medvedev goes for an overhead off a ball that didn’t bounce high enough, and flails it into the net. He then nets a volley and Djokovic is in the ascendancy early in the second set.

Djokovic 1-1 Medvedev

If Medvedev doesn’t break back here, I don’t see him having a way back. Djokovic lofts a slice long for love-15, but clocks a backhand winner to level. He’s been near-perfect so far and the Russian just can’t come up with a response. A service winner makes it 30-15, and Djokovic then wins a rapid exchange at the net that started with…a drop shot. Medvedev lands one of his best shots of the match, though, scything a vicious slice backhand that snuck by the Serb. Djokovic then misses a forehand under pressure, and this game is suddenly a bit more interesting at deuce. The world No. 2 reaches advantage with a smash, but it’s deuce again when he narrowly misses a backhand down the line. A wrong-footing backhand flies past Medvedev, but he bites back with a forehand pass. This game’s turning into a scrap. Djokovic nets a backhand and the Russian has a look at a break point. It comes and goes as Djokovic slams a service winner out wide. But Medvedev finally wins a point at net! He returns a short ball with a biting crosscourt backhand, and Djokovic’s lob floats beyond the baseline. We have a fifth deuce as the Serb saves the break point with another service winner, and he bounces a smash into the seats for advantage. He lands a big serve out wide, but goes for a swing volley from a very deep position in the court and pounds it into the net. Medvedev has a third break point when Djokovic goes long with a backhand, and the Serb saves it with a gorgeous drop volley at the end of an enthralling rally. Deuce number seven. Wow. Djokovic has won 14 of 18 points at net to 5 of 15 for Medvedev. A dropper followed by a putaway volley give him advantage, but the Russian defends well on the next point and slaps a forehand winner. This game’s been going on for what seems like forever (but is only 14 minutes in reality). A Djokovic miss brings up break point number four, and Medvedev takes it! He chases down yet another drop shot and somehow flicks a forehand past Djokovic. That could potentially be huge.

Djokovic 1-2 Medvedev

Medvedev needs to hold here, but it’s easier said than done as that last game might have sapped a lot from the Russian. But he’s clinical in this game, reaching 40-15 from love-15 with a pretty volley. He holds to 15 with a service winner, and the momentum in this match has very much shifted. Djokovic would do well to stay focused in his next service game.

Djokovic 1-3 Medvedev

Djokovic, after winning seven of the first eight games, has lost the last two. He double-faults, his third, for love-15. Medvedev’s got some belief now. The next point is a long, exhausting rally that ends with the Russian netting a backhand. Djokovic’s not making his first serve this game, though, and another long rally ensues. Medvedev wins this one, shrewdly returning Djokovic’s drop shot in kind and ending the point with a smash. The Serb throws in his second unforced error of the game, and now is in as much trouble as he’s been in all match at 15-40. He picks a good time to land a first serve, following it with an inside-in forehand winner, but at 30-40 he loops a forehand wide. Almost instantly after the ball landed out, Djokovic began thrashing his racket against the blue Sydney court. Medvedev has broken twice in a row, and now looks to be in prime position to win the second set — what a shift!

Djokovic 1-4 Medvedev

Medvedev is on a serious run here, and Djokovic in a lapse of some sort. At 15-love, the Serb tries a drop shot but misses it wide. It’s soon 30-all, however — Medvedev belts a forehand long, and then hits a poor dropper that Djokovic whips down the line for a winner. The Russian misses another forehand by a wide margin, and almost out of nowhere, it’s break point at 30-40. And that’s the point of the match! Djokovic is first on top, then Medvedev gets control. The Serb makes one incredible sliding, straining forehand return, but it’s not enough as the Russian drills a backhand winner on the 31st shot of the rally. A service winner follows for advantage, with the Serb netting a forehand return. Djokovic crouched after the point as if he were cramping — that rally took a lot out of him. Medvedev is called for a foot fault for the fourth time this match, but he stays collected and a good second serve draws another missed return. The Russian has turned this match into an absolute grind after that non-event of a first set, and now Djokovic seems to be the one struggling.

Djokovic 2-4 Medvedev

Djokovic gets the first point when Medvedev returns a drop shot wide, but the feeling is that he was fortunate to win the point. He misses a backhand down the line by a couple inches for 15-all. The next point is just what the doctor ordered for Djokovic, a good serve sets up a hefty forehand winner. The Serb seems to be the one suffering more in the long rallies, and he wins the next point for 40-15 and the game with a service winner. He’s stopped the rot.

Djokovic 3-4 Medvedev

Medvedev falls behind love-15 with a loose groundstroke, but it’s soon 15-all and 30-15 as the big serves start to rain down. Another big first delivery draws a weak return, but Medvedev picks the wrong side with his forehand and Djokovic produces a great backhand pass that the Russian can’t quite get back over the net. Danger at 30-all, but Medvedev averts it with a drop shot. Djokovic responds with one of his own — Medvedev goes for a forehand down the line but just misses it. That would have made it 5-2. Djokovic then unloads a trademark backhand winner crosscourt. Break point. Medvedev sprints up to a drop shot for what feels the thousandth time, and his reply is good enough to win the point. He nets a groundstroke, though, and is under pressure again. And there’s the break! Medvedev floats a forehand slice wide, and Djokovic raises his fist, drinking in the cheers of the crowd. Back on serve.

Djokovic 4-4 Medvedev

Djokovic did so well there to reverse the momentum again. To say that this has been an attritional set is an understatement; there have been so many brutal rallies in the past couple games. Djokovic races to 30-love behind some good serving, but ropes a backhand down the line long. Holding here would put immense pressure on Medvedev to hold in the 4-all game, and Djokovic does just that, blasting a service winner and manufacturing a ridiculous half-volley pickup winner at net.

Djokovic 4-5 Medvedev

Medvedev opens with a service winner, but a Djokovic backhand off a drop shot is too good and it’s 15-all. Another big serve makes it 30-15, but the Russian goes long with a forehand and here comes a massive point at 4-all, 30-all. Medvedev does well to stay calm, landing a strong first serve and winning the point with a volley winner despite a couple amazing retrievals by Djokovic. The Serb forces deuce with an excellent drop shot; Medvedev got there but missed his dink. He makes up for it with an ace — what a time to get a free point. Another brutal rally, and Djokovic ends it emphatically by blasting a forehand down the line that clips the baseline. Second deuce. Another ace makes it advantage, but it’s deuce again when a backhand limps beyond the baseline. They rally, backhand to backhand, before Medvedev runs around a ball to hit a forehand and hammers it inside-out to win the point. Djokovic is hanging on in this game, though, forcing a fourth deuce with a dazzling forehand winner down the line. Medvedev goes on the offensive, but the Serb somehow gets back two overheads before slicing wide. The quality is so high at the moment, and Medvedev holds when a strong second serve earns a missed backhand return. Huge. Djokovic to serve to stay in the set.

Djokovic 5-5 Medvedev

What Medvedev wouldn’t give for a break here. Things look positive for him early on, as Djokovic misses a backhand down the line for love-15. That shot hasn’t been entirely reliable tonight. It’s 15-all after a huge serve, though, and this time Djokovic lands his backhand down the line, and Medvedev can’t hoick it back in. Another service winner brings up two game points, and the Serb holds with his third unreturned serve of the game.

Djokovic 5-6 Medvedev

After a lengthy baseline duel, a Djokovic drop shot clips the net and falls over. HawkEye shows that it was just out! 15-love. Medvedev gets a serve-plus-one, raking his forehand deep into the left corner for a winner. His next forehand flies out, and a Djokovic inside-in forehand forces an error for 30-all. Gut-check time for the Russian. He misses a first serve, then smashes a second-serve ace out wide! That was incredibly gutsy. Djokovic can’t believe it. Medvedev’s not out of the woods yet, however. He shanks a forehand and it’s deuce. He serves big out wide again and Djokovic’s return sails long. An overruled call on a Medvedev forehand that kisses the baseline forces them to replay the point, and the Russian double-faults! Third deuce. Medvedev needs first serves. He misses out wide, but his second is good and an aggressive inside-out forehand causes Djokovic to block a backhand pass just wide. He holds when the Serb goes for a drop shot and wings it into the net. Medvedev’s earned at least a tiebreak with that impressive hold of serve. What a back-and-forth, desperately close set this has been — and it’s not over.

Medvedev wins the second set 7-5!

Serving to stay in the second set again, Djokovic begins as he did the previous service game by falling behind love-15. Medvedev, under no pressure, pushes a backhand long. That miss had to hurt. Djokovic nets a forehand for 15-30! The next two points are huge. An amazing volley from the Serb wins the first — he serve-volleyed, and Medvedev ran down his first effort, whipping a forehand at Djokovic’s body, but the world No. 2 masterfully deflected it for a winner. But he follows it with a double fault! Set point. Djokovic tries to serve-and-volley again, but this time Medvedev reaches his volley and stretches a beautiful backhand past him! After 76 minutes, the Russian has grabbed the second set, and it feels like the third could go to either player.

Medvedev survived incredibly tough service games at 4-all and 5-all, highlighted with a second-serve ace at 5-all, 30-all. Incredible resolve from the world No. 4 to break back at the start of the set in that 15-minute game, and he will serve to start the deciding set.

Third set: Djokovic 0-1 Medvedev

Djokovic is somehow supposed to play the doubles after this match if he loses. He may well win the ATP Cup for his country, but at what cost to his chances at the Australian Open? A weary miss from the Serb at 15-all brings up 30-15, but Djokovic comes to net behind a fine approach and the game’s even. A big moment right away at 30-all in this third set, and it’s Djokovic who cracks first in the rally, netting an inside-out forehand. Game point. The Russian returns a drop shot with a firm crosscourt backhand, and the Serb misses his pass. With that, Medvedev leads the match for the first time in the one hour and 55 minutes for which this contest has raged.

Djokovic 1-1 Medvedev

Djokovic takes a 30-love lead, first flicking a drop volley winner and then belting a swing volley, forcing Medvedev to miss a forehand on the run. Another drop volley earns him three game points. The Russian pulls back a point with a sliding, spinning drop shot, but Djokovic holds to 15 when Medvedev lifts a forehand long.

Djokovic 1-2 Medvedev

Service winner. 15-love. Ace. 30-love. Medvedev has gotten better as this match as gone on, and he somehow finds a beautiful angled forehand winner for 40-love. Djokovic goes for a reckless return winner and misses it by a ways. Medvedev holds to love — is the Serb tiring a little?

Djokovic 2-2 Medvedev

This game begins with two more exchanges of bruising, penetrating groundstrokes. Medvedev wins the first, Djokovic the second. The Russian then moves to 15-30 with a gorgeous backhand winner off a drop shot. Here comes the first test of the third set. Djokovic gets to 30-all with a serve-plus-one, and 40-30 when Medvedev volleys just long. The Russian bosses yet another baseline rally, forcing Djokovic to slice long with a viciously angled drop shot. Djokovic serve-volleys again, sticking a backhand effort out of his opponent’s reach. The crowd chants “Nole!” between the points, and Djokovic holds with a service winner.

Djokovic 3-2 Medvedev

It’s Medvedev’s turn in the pressure cooker as he finds himself down love-15. It’s soon love-30 as the Russian doesn’t do enough with a swing volley, allowing Djokovic to bend a pretty forehand pass over the net that draws a missed volley. The Serb raises a fist to the crowd, whose cheers shower the court. It’s 15-30 after a big serve, and 30-all when Medvedev reaches a drop shot, cracks a crosscourt backhand, and Djokovic lobs wide. That’s becoming a common pattern. Djokovic has a break point after some glorious hitting from the baseline — Medvedev challenges the forehand winner with no quarter. He saves it with a forehand winner — such was Djokovic’s will and desperation to reach the ball that his racket flew out of his hand. The Serb goes long with a simple backhand, acts as if he’s going to smash his racket, then remembers that it’ll cost him a point and thinks better of it. His decision is rewarded as a Medvedev error brings up deuce again. The Russian lashes a beautiful forehand winner down the line for advantage — this has become a great match. On the next point, Djokovic somehow reflexes back a huge serve, then shows amazing foot speed to get to a drop shot. He wins the point with a backhand volley into the open court. Deuce. And now a double-fault from Medvedev! Break point again, and after the umpteenth baseline battle, a Medvedev shot clips the tape, Djokovic dashes forward, delivers an outstanding stretch volley, and plops his next volley for a winner into the open court! Djokovic holds his arms aloft as the crowd goes bananas. Wow. What a way to get the break.

Djokovic 4-2 Medvedev

My feeling is that Medvedev needs to break back here to preserve his hopes of keeping Russia in the ATP Cup. Medvedev enjoys a stroke of luck as his return clips the tape and falls over for a winner, then lets loose with a dazzling backhand winner down the line! Love-30. Djokovic, ever calm under pressure, conjures a service winner for 15-30. Another huge rally ensues on the next point, won by the Serb when his backhand down the line forces an error from Medvedev. A big point at 30-all, and Djokovic spins an ace out wide! Game point. And the Russian balloons a lob long. A massive hold.

Djokovic 4-3 Medvedev

A must-hold game here for Medvedev, and it gets off to a poor start as he double-faults. Djokovic is well ahead in the next point, but the Russian lands a defensive slice on the baseline and the world No. 2 hits long. A welcome service winner brings up 30-15, and a powerful backhand down the line from Medvedev induces the error. Another service winner seals a hold to 15. The Russian did well to keep his head there after the double-fault to open the game; he’s kept himself in contention.

Djokovic 5-3 Medvedev

Djokovic aces for 15-love before Medvedev pokes a backhand miles long. That looked a tired shot. The Serb double-faults — he’s hit quite a few this match — giving his opponent a glimmer of hope in this game. Another Medvedev backhand misses the court comfortably. Two game points. And Djokovic finds a backhand winner to hold. Medvedev will serve to stay in the match.

Djokovic 5-4 Medvedev

Medvedev moves ahead 15-love with a good serve, then Djokovic misses a drop shot. The Russian holds to love with more big serving. The Serb to serve for the match. He couldn’t close the deal against Shapovalov, instead having to win the contest in a tiebreak. Can he get it done here?

Djokovic wins 6-1, 5-7, 6-4!

Djokovic bangs a big serve down the middle and Medvedev’s return floats long. The latest lung-busting rally follows, one that sends the Russian sliding and gasping across the court, and ends with a brilliant forehand winner from Djokovic. 30-love. Medvedev somehow lands an inside-out forehand winner that clips the baseline, then the Serb slides a backhand wide. 30-all, and a chance for the Russian. Djokovic misses a first serve by several feet, makes a second. Medvedev makes a belief-defying retrieval off a forehand down the line, spins a drop shot, and passes Djokovic with a nerveless forehand. Break point. The Serb lashes a backhand that clips the line — it might have been wide, but Medvedev didn’t challenge — and goes on to win the point with a forehand. Djokovic shockingly nets a short backhand. Second break point. The Serb so rarely shows nerves when serving for a match, but we’re seeing it here. AND AN INSANE RALLY AT THE NET!!! Djokovic makes two superhuman stretch volley returns, Medvedev thinks he’s won the point only to see a ridiculous, impossible Djokovic stab volley thwart him. It’s still deuce, though, and Medvedev gets a look at a second serve. The next rally makes the heart beat out of the chest. The tension is unimaginable. Finally, Medvedev goes for a drop shot and nets it. That was a terrible play. Match point. Medvedev saves it with an unbelievable inside-out backhand winner behind Djokovic. That was so ballsy. And Djokovic fires a forehand well long. Break point. This is nuts. Djokovic produces a great serve, then a forehand that Medvedev can’t reach, though he tries, sprinting like hell and almost getting there. And now an ace for Djokovic’s second match point. The quality and the tension of this game has been indescribable, and it all comes to an end when finally, mercifully, a Djokovic forehand is too much to handle. WOW.

What a match. WHAT A MATCH. Djokovic showed nerves in that last game that I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen from him, but found a way to overcome them all the same. And what will from Medvedev to prolong the match as he did, when he hit that backhand winner to save match point it appeared that he might be about to start an insane comeback. Djokovic showed the vigor of a champion in that last game, though, and agonizingly dragged himself across the finish line.

So, Serbia are to move on, facing either Australia or Spain in the final. A terrific, heroic match from Djokovic, but at what cost? He’ll likely be exhausted for the final, and one wonders if his efforts in the ATP Cup will impact his play in Melbourne. Time will tell. Thanks for reading. Bye!

By Owen Lewis

Alexander “Sascha” Zverev is currently ranked seventh in the world at the age of twenty-two. He is the second-youngest man in the top ten, has and beaten Federer, Djokovic, and Nadal in the last fourteen months. From these facts alone, one might think that even bigger and better days are ahead for the young German — but a closer look at his career arc may indicate otherwise.

Zverev was expected to be a future star on the circuit as early as 2017 — three years ago, at the opening of the season, he was ranked 24th. Since then, he’s jumped 17 spots, yes, but at the beginning of 2018 he was as high as 4th and a year later he sat in the same spot. So the German had a breakout 2017, but since the end of that season, his ranking has actually dipped. Zverev struggled mightily for parts of 2018 and much of 2019, losing a handle on his serve completely at times. His double-fault tally skyrocketed, leading to mental unravelling during matches and a lack of confidence. Unfortunately for Zverev, it looks like this could continue in 2020 — in his last match, against Stefanos Tsitsipas at the ATP Cup, the German managed ten winners across the 1-6, 4-6 loss. He also served up ten double-faults. Most top players have a positive ace-to-double-fault ratio for any given match, and even more often hit more winners than double-faults. This is a disastrous stat for Zverev; the 10 service errors he coughed up is the equivalent of two and a half games’ worth of points. That’s nearly half a set, and when this is put in perspective it’s no wonder he won just five games in the match.

This storm of double-faults from the racket of Zverev is nothing new. At the last major, the 2019 U.S. Open, he hit 16 doubles to 11 aces in his four-set round of 16 loss to Diego Schwartzman. And in the latter half of his 2019 season, hit as many as 20 double-faults in a best-of-three match. With the twenty self-inflicted errors equating to five games, Zverev is in essence handing his opponent almost 40% (5/12 games) of the points they need to win two sets. Additionally, the shaky serve doesn’t only give away free points, it creates mental demons. With an unreliable second serve, Zverev undoubtedly feels more pressure to get the first one in, which could result in more misses. On the second serve, the German likely feels the nerves, especially on break points, and weak serves float into the box when he can find his target.
When at his best, Zverev is imperious — he has a huge first serve, clocked at up to 140 mph, and can be extremely difficult to break when he has confidence behind his long right arm. His backhand is among the game’s best: a two-hander that can be a weapon, a solid rally shot, or a piercing pass if an opponent comes to net. His own volleying is average, but his game doesn’t really present a need to approach — by simply out-rallying his adversaries from the baseline and sometimes following in a massive serve or groundstroke to the net, Zverev should be able to beat most other players. His forehand is not his best shot, but he can hit it with great power, it’s accurate, and at its best it opens up the court for the German to slam easy putaways for winners.
Just a couple months ago, Zverev played brilliantly for almost two sets against 20-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer, only to see five match points pass him by as Federer willed the match into a decider. Zverev played the third set with the vigor and determination of an all-time great, winning it 6-3. So what causes the dip from that kind of form to his recent loss to Tsitsipas? It may be because of confidence.
Much of Zverev’s play is centered around confidence. His backhand, while one of the better shots in the entire men’s game, can lose pace and direction when he hits it without conviction, and his forehand becomes unreliable if he lacks self-belief. His serve issues have already been highlighted, and these three points, if in conjunction, lead to disasters for Zverev. He had lost his previous four matches to Tsitsipas, possibly causing him to play with less purpose and confidence than usual. He started out especially poorly, losing the first set 6-1 — the sixth consecutive set he had dropped to the Greek. His first defeat to Tsitsipas came at the 2018 Rogers Cup, and this can be pinpointed as the turning point in the rivalry.
Skip back a year and a half. Zverev was the top young gun on tour, with a career-high ranking of #3 (behind only Federer and Rafael Nadal). For context, at the same time, Dominic Thiem was eighth, Tsitsipas was twenty-seventh, and Daniil Medvedev was sixty-eighth. Currently, Zverev has fallen to seventh, while the trio of formerly lower-ranked players have leapfrogged the German to fourth, sixth, and fifth respectively. Curiously, while his peers have risen in the rankings and gained poise over the past year and a half, Zverev seems to have done the opposite. Back to that Rogers Cup match against Tsitsipas. It was their second meeting, and Zverev had won the first 6-2, 6-4 with all the calm ruthlessness a fan might expect from the higher-ranked athlete. Their second match seemed to be following in the same vein when the German went up a set and 5-2. Zverev was lashing serves at well over 200 kph, coolly unloading backhand passes, and making Tsitsipas’ down backhand look more like a liability than a weapon. But he unraveled. With Zverev serving for the match at 5-3, Tsitsipas upped his aggression and was rewarded with a 15-40 opening. Perhaps unsettled at the pressure his serve was facing for practically the first time all match, the German hit a short forehand well long. The set went to a tiebreak, and Zverev had a match point on his serve at 6-5, and two more later in the tiebreak. He failed to convert any, and lost the breaker 13-11 when he clocked a sitting backhand well wide. A demolition of his racket followed, causing some whistles from the crowd, and the shift in momentum was more observable to the senses than Zverev’s bright-blue-and-pink shirt. Serving to stay in the match at 4-5, 30-love, the German lost four consecutive points — including a double-fault on match point. He hit “just” six in the long contest, with the more crucial stat this time being his break point conversion rate. While Tsitsipas scored four from four, Zverev managed to create fourteen opportunities but could only convert five. This was one of the first matches in a long series during which Zverev played poorly on the biggest points, and possibly caused him to lose some confidence in his ability.
Zverev also has a shocking lack of good results at major tournaments. While Thiem and Medvedev both made a slam final this year, and Tsitsipas a semifinal, Zverev only advanced as far as the quarterfinals (and won just nine games in a straight-set loss to Novak Djokovic). His results at the other three majors this year? Fourth round, first round, fourth round. His loss in the round of 16 at the Australian Open was particularly jarring. He clashed with Milos Raonic, a Canadian with a feared serve and an imperious net game. Zverev broke in the first game for what seemed a crucial advantage — Raonic is difficult to break for even the best of returners, so some expected the early lead to be potentially decisive. Zverev responded by losing twelve of the next thirteen games. As the number four seed, he fell behind to a lower-table player 6-1, 6-1 with no apparent physical issues. He smashed a couple more rackets in the steep downward slide, and would go on to lose the third set in a tiebreak. The break point he converted in the opening game would be the only chance he earned all match. He also seems to be allergic to five-setters — several times in 2018 and 2019 he lost in early rounds of slams in five-setters. The commonality: he got demolished in the final, crucial set. Zverev has lost his share of fifth sets 6-0, 6-1, or 6-2. This lack of concentration or physical endurance doesn’t bode well for his future quests to win a slam, but at 22 years old, he has ample time to fix these problems.
So Zverev’s game is in turmoil as the 2020 tennis season begins. It’s very possible that the German will fix his serve and confidence issues this year, but if he doesn’t, more players will pass him in the rankings.

Thanks for reading! Comment or tweet me @tennisnation with any feedback or questions.

By Owen Lewis

1. Jannik Sinner (ranked 78th)

This one will come at a surprise to few. Sinner, an Italian player who turned eighteen last August, turned heads by winning the title at the NextGen ATP Finals in Milan last year. In the final, he faced Alex de Minaur, a young Australian with amazing speed and court coverage, and demolished him 4-2, 4-1, 4-2 (at this event, sets are played to four games with no-ad scoring and a tiebreak at 3-all). Sinner’s aggression on second serve returns and his clear-headedness when facing break points (saving nine of nine) left de Minaur frustratedly asking his coach for solutions on the changeovers (through the headsets that the tournament allows). While he is yet to win a match at a Grand Slam, he played well against three-time major champion Stan Wawrinka in the first round of the 2019 U.S. Open, losing a tight four-set contest. Now that Sinner is ranked highly enough to consistently make main draws at slams, it likely won’t be long before he starts to play deeper into the biggest tournaments. At the Australian Open, given his ranking, he could draw one of the Big Three in the first round, but if he has a winnable opening match and an opportunity to gain momentum, I could see Sinner advancing to the third or fourth round in Melbourne Park.

2. Fernando Verdasco (ranked 49th)

Many (and probably most) tennis fans know Verdasco best for his epic 7-6 (4), 4-6, 6-7 (2), 7-6 (1), 4-6 loss to Rafael Nadal in the 2009 Australian Open semifinals. Since the desperately close, five-hour, fourteen-minute match, Verdasco hasn’t been the same player, frequently playing poorly in the big moments of matches and often losing having held match point (off the top of my head, I can think of three recent occasions: the 2017 Doha semifinal against Djokovic, in which he missed out on five match points, the third round of the 2019 Australian Open against Marin Cilic, in which he double-faulted when serving on match point in the fourth set tiebreak and blew a two-set lead, and the second round of the 2019 U.S. Open against Hyeon Chung, in which he shanked a forehand on match point and lost his grip on yet another two-set advantage). But even at a hefty 36 years of age, Verdasco is blessed with a big serve and one of the better forehands in the game. On his best days, his lefty forehand can overpower almost anyone, and his backhand, while not up to the standard of his other wing, is not a glaring weakness. Verdasco could certainly lose in the first or second round of the Australian Open, but I think the powerful lefty can upset a higher-ranked player and advance to the fourth round or beyond.

3. Su-Wei Hsieh (ranked 32nd)

Hsieh has one of the most unique games on the women’s circuit, and of any player for that matter. She can pull off unexpected drop shots from unusual positions, often frustrating and wearing down her opponents. She also loves to engage in cat-and-mouse points, and many of her matches feature her drop-shotting and lobbing her adversaries, sending them scrambling from net to baseline and back again. Hsieh has a number of impressive upsets under her belt, having beaten then-No. 1 Simona Halep in the third round of the 2018 Wimbledon, and has scored wins against Caroline Wozniacki, Karolina Plíšková, and Naomi Osaka in 2019. While ranked higher than all of the other players on this list, Hsieh, unlike a typical world number 32, is capable of upsetting the highest-ranked players in the draws, and has done so on several occasions. She made the fourth round of the Australian Open in 2018, and if she squeezes every drop out of her quirky, unlike-any-other game, she can certainly improve upon that result.

4. Cori Gauff (ranked 68th)

Okay, this entry will probably be even less surprising than Sinner. But there can’t be a list like this that doesn’t include young American Cori “Coco” Gauff. At just fifteen years old, Gauff captured the hearts of fans around the world by beating her childhood (well, earlier childhood) idol and five-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams in the first round of the 2019 Wimbledon and stretching her dream run to the round of 16. In the third round, Gauff beat Polona Hercog from 6-3, 5-2 down, saving two match points along the way. And her fairytale charge through the draw ended at the hands of eventual champion Simona Halep — nothing to cry about there. At the U.S. Open last September, she backed up her spectacular Wimbledon result by reaching the third round before falling to two-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka (Osaka, in a beautiful gesture of sportsmanship, invited a tearful Gauff to join in the post-match on-court interview with her, resulting in an emotional moment for both players and their families). The American’s game is mature far beyond her fifteen years, featuring a powerful forehand, a reliable two-handed backhand, and mental strength that keeps her grounded and focused in matches. As she gains age and experience, her already impressive shots will rise in power and precision, and at the Australian Open I think Gauff can make another run well into the draw.

5. Hyeon Chung (ranked 128th)

Chung had his breakout tournament at the 2018 Australian Open, beating fourth-seed Alexander Zverev in the third round and backing it up with a straight-set upset of then-12-time Grand Slam champion and all-time great Novak Djokovic. He displayed a shockingly Djokovician game in the two matches, producing winners from defensive positions off of both wings and sliding around the hard court like it was his personal skating rink. Chung would win his next match as well, comfortably beating fellow surprise quarterfinalist Tennys Sandgren in straight sets, but brutal blisters on his feet forced him to retire midway through the biggest match of his life against Roger Federer in the semifinals. Since January 2018, injuries have riddled Chung’s career, keeping him out of the majors and other tournaments. But at the 2019 U.S. Open, Chung came from 1-6, 2-6 down to beat Verdasco in the aforementioned five-set epic in the second round. He would go on to lose to current world No. 1 Nadal in his next contest, but the tournament offered a glimpse at the Chung of early 2018. Ranked as low as he is now, he isn’t even guaranteed an entry into main draw at the Australian Open, but if he is given a wild card or earns a spot through qualifying, and gets a winnable first-rounder, it’s a possibility that he can advance deep into the draw. His game is definitely strong enough to see him make quarterfinals of majors, and if the South Korean can keep his body healthy, it might just happen in Australia this year.

By Owen Lewis

In August 2018, I had the privilege of attending the Rogers Cup in Toronto. We had a day pass for the quarterfinals, meaning we would get to see four matches: Grigor Dimitrov/Kevin Anderson, Stefanos Tsitsipas/Alexander Zverev, Robin Haase/Karen Khachanov, and Rafael Nadal/Marin Cilic. The quartet of contests delivered on all counts, showcasing a wide spectrum of quality and emotions throughout the day. Between the second and third matches, I went to a side court and caught the end of Djokovic and Anderson’s doubles match (Anderson was playing just a couple hours after his win over Dimitrov!) for no extra charge. It was a spectacular day of tennis, one that caused me to examine the experience next to watching tennis on television at home.

The first match of the day, Anderson-Dimitrov, offered a new look at the geometry and perspective of tennis. Our seats were adjacent to the net post, and relatively high up in the stadium. Right away, I noticed a huge difference between attending a match and watching it on a television — at home on my couch, the view was limited to a rectangular lens, but here in Toronto I had to turn my head or eyes to keep up with the point. Sometimes Anderson, a six-foot-eight South African, would nail 140 mph serves that zipped past me before I could register them; seeing the match in person gave me a better appreciation of the precision it took to hit aces and the physical exertion required to reach steaming groundstrokes. The contest was quite one-sided, with Anderson winning 6-2, 6-2. Though Dimitrov was unable to conjure a response to the South African’s huge serves, he had a loyal cohort of fans that didn’t cease their chants until he walked off the court.

After a break of an hour or so, Tsitsipas and Zverev emerged to battle on the same court where Anderson had routed Dimitrov. At this time, Zverev was the premier player of the “NextGen”, having beaten Federer and Djokovic. Tsitsipas was ranked considerably lower, but had scored a win over Djokovic of his own in the previous round (now, Tsitsipas is ranked a spot above Zverev, who struggled with his game for much of 2019). The match was extremely straightforward for nearly two sets; Zverev took the first set easily and went up a break in the second, exploiting Tsitsipas’s one-handed backhand with his more reliable two-hander. But with Zverev serving for the match at 5-3, Tsitsipas upped his aggression — it was noticeable even from a seat high above the court that he was hitting his backhand with more pace. When Tsitsipas broke back, the crowd, excited at the prospect of a more competitive match, threw themselves behind the young Greek. The set came down to a tiebreak, which was eventually won by Tsitsipas 13-11, causing the fans to go absolutely bananas. The roar was deafening, and it quickly morphed into boos and whistles as Zverev shattered his racket on the dark blue court. Tsitsipas went on to take the match, 6-4 in the third, and was rewarded by a massive ovation from the crowd that his recently adopted the Greek. Watching a match on television, a viewer can obviously hear the cheers and boos, but it’s so much more intense to be there; it’s as if the fans can sense the players’ emotions. After Zverev quickly left the court, Tsitsipas stayed behind to sign autographs, and I heard a fan say “you’re in the big time now, buddy”. I was able to run down closer to the court after some fans left, and I was close to the victorious Greek when he threw his towel and wristbands into a group of screaming supporters. Being at this match live was incredible, the momentum shifts were palpable and the atmosphere was far more intense than it would have been had I watched it on a screen.

Between the morning and afternoon matches, we walked around the grounds for a while before realizing that we could walk into any of the smaller stadiums for free. Djokovic and Anderson were playing doubles together, and they were playing on a side court against Nikola Mektic and Alexander Peya. The pair of top-ten singles players were down a set when I squeezed onto the edge of a row of backed bleachers. I remember Djokovic missing a couple volleys, the champion seeming uncomfortable at the net. Still, he and Anderson had several chances to take the second set. They ended up losing in straight sets anyway, however, to the tune of 7-5, 7-5. Being on the side court was another new experience — the sounds from adjacent courts were easily audible, and the stands were crammed with Djokovic fans — I heard several next to me cheering in Serbian. The doubles match showcased another “hidden” facet of a tennis tournament: when at home, usually only the marquee singles matches are on Tennis Channel during big tournaments, and seeing a mix of singles and doubles gave me a better grasp of the Rogers Cup as a whole.

The third match of the day, Haase-Khachanov, was perhaps the least enthralling (though Anderson-Dimitrov was a blowout, the South African hit many clean winners that made the contest aesthetically pleasing). The match featured the lowest seeds, with both men having upset higher-ranked players to reach the quarterfinals. Khachanov won a fairly straightforward match, but that didn’t stop the crowd from getting involved — a boisterous fan berated Haase throughout the two sets, at one point yelling “Robin has stopped caring”. Haase couldn’t have enjoyed the distraction; the quarterfinal was one of the more important matches he would play in 2018, but he wasn’t able to ignore the fan or overcome Khachanov’s power game. After the match, I ran down to the tunnel that led onto the court where the victorious Khachanov was signing autographs. Some people were taking pictures with the Russian, and I found it funny that he didn’t really smile in any of them, instead slightly tilting up the edges of his mouth and looking as focused as he did during the match. Having bought a Rogers Cup hat earlier in the day, I managed to squeeze close to the rail at the edge of the seating area and hand it to Khachanov, who signed it with a black Sharpie.

The final match of the day was the most anticipated: Nadal, the number one player in the world, against Cilic, a powerful player capable of beating anyone on good days. By the time the warmup began, the lights were illuminating the show court as night descended in Toronto. As Nadal prepared to serve to open the match, the chatter in my section of the crowd failed to cease. Nadal turned and looked over at us, hands on hips, and we waved back, smiling. Cilic began the match incredibly well, pummeling Nadal’s second serve and breaking in the Spaniard’s second service game. The crowd was comprised mostly of Nadal fans, and their urges and pleas grew more desperate as Cilic continued to apply pressure on the return. With Nadal serving at 1-3 and break point, a single thought crossed my mind: there’s no way Nadal is about to go down a double break. But he did — Cilic banged a forehand return that was clearly a winner to everyone as soon as it left his racket. I was shocked, but normalcy restored itself shortly after — Cilic did win the first set 6-2, but as he so often does, Nadal forced his way into the match by defending well and frustrating his opponent into errors, who was having trouble maintaining the furious play of the first few games. When Nadal completed the comeback, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4, and I saw his arms pump in one of his trademark celebrations, the rush that ran through me was unlike anything I’ve experienced while watching tennis on a screen. Sometime in the middle of the second set, a fan started a fight in a section opposite ours, and when grabbed by security he gestured to the crowd to cheer for him. Everyone booed instead, giving off a sense of camaraderie.

So, what’s the best way to watch tennis? Let’s break down the head-to-head (this will be partly opinionated). I personally prefer the angles of television tennis; for example, when an ace is hit I think the cameras capture the accuracy better than my eyes do. It’s also possible to record matches, allowing fans to watch them at flexible times, and no commute is necessary if you have a TV at home. But hearing a cheer from a crowd that you’re a part of is just so much cooler than hearing it from a speaker. The atmosphere at a match that you attend is far more intense than anything that a television shows, and being able to see the players and their routines on the changeovers is interesting as well.

Overall, my verdict is that it’s a matter of personal preference — in my case, I really like the angles the cameras give on the show courts on television, but I’m really glad that I actually went to some matches, they offered so many new perspectives on the sport that I didn’t have before. If you’re considering attending a tennis tournament, I highly recommend it!

By Owen Lewis

At the start of 2009, Rafael Nadal was ranked number one in the world.  In 2008, he had won the French Open, Wimbledon, the Olympic gold medal in singles, and helped Spain to the Davis Cup title.  His win at Wimbledon, in particular, affirmed his status as the best player in the world — he had dethroned Roger Federer, the five-time defending champion.  Over the previous couple years, Nadal had hounded Federer, beating him in four Grand Slam finals and proving an immovable obstacle at the French Open. But his 2008 Wimbledon title was an absolute gut-wrencher for Federer — grass was the Swiss’s best surface, one on which he had been near-invincible on since 2003.  Nadal adapted his tactics for the 2008 match, having steadily improved his game, and ripped Federer’s hands off the golden trophy in a five-set epic that ended when Federer’s forehand slapped the net amidst the fading light on Center Court. The loss left Federer, then a 13-time Grand Slam champion, devastated. Nadal had proved his most deadly adversary, and was the only player to have beaten him in a slam final.  Not only was Nadal coming out on top of most of their important matches (to this point he led the head to head 12-6), but he was playing the important points with more poise — in the four matches prior to the Australian Open final, Federer had produced more break points than Nadal but hadn’t been able to convert many. This was down in part to Nadal’s nearly unparalleled mental strength, but also was because of the Spaniard’s tactics.  Nadal’s lefty forehand had proved awesomely effective in unraveling the Federer backhand — Nadal hits his forehand with tremendous topspin, causing the ball to leap off courts to shoulder or eye level, and the resulting shots are extremely difficult to time consistently with a one-handed backhand like Federer’s. When the Swiss resorted to a backhand slice, usually an effective shot against other players, Nadal would drill inside-out forehands, crossing up Federer for winners.  

Nadal might have been the favorite to win this match, but his semifinal dispelled any notion that Federer wouldn’t be favored.  While the Swiss dismisses American Andy Roddick with minimum fuss in his semifinal, Nadal clashed with fellow Spanish lefty Fernando Verdasco.  Verdasco was the fourteenth seed, and most expected the match to be a stroll for Nadal on his way to his first Australian Open final, but they were quickly forced to reassess their expectations for the match.  Verdasco fired an astonishing 95 winners, blasting forehands past Nadal at all kinds of angles and speeds. Nadal eventually defeated his countryman, but not before five hours and fourteen minutes of exhausting defense.  Worse for Nadal, his semifinal was the second one, giving him less rest than Federer before the final. But Nadal defied the pundits’ expectations, beating the Swiss in a four-hour, twenty-three minute battle. His tactics were absolutely instrumental in the victory, as was his heart.  

The Match

Nadal won the first set 7-5, winning five of the last six games.  Federer had enjoyed a 4-2 lead, but Nadal bit back with a couple amazing winners hit on the dead run.  The Spaniard then turned up the heat at the end of the set, breaking Federer easily at 5-all. He was hitting his backhand harder than normal, ripping crosscourt winners that left the Swiss stock-still on the baseline.  Set point was a microcosm of the frame — Federer fired a forehand down the line that drew a defensive sliced reply from Nadal, but the Spaniard’s incredibly quick feet brought him back to the center of the court, and he was perfectly positioned to receive Federer’s next forehand.  Nadal knocked a crosscourt backhand that pulled Federer way out of position, then drilled a forehand down the line behind the Swiss for a winner.  

While Federer leveled the match by winning the second set, it featured a couple moments of genius from Nadal that showcased his carefully prepared tactics.  Over the course of the match, Nadal fired virtually every serve to the Federer backhand, taking advantage of the Swiss’s reluctance to consistently attack his serves.  But at crucial moments, Nadal often mixed up his serving placement, shocking Federer with serves to his forehand. With the Spaniard serving at 1-2, Federer reached break point with a massive inside-out forehand winner.  Receiving with the advantage, Federer took a step to his left, reasonably expecting that Nadal would serve wide to his backhand just as he had for the entire match. But the Spaniard unloaded an ace straight up the middle, completely fooling Federer.  Commentator Dick Enberg remarked, “Oh, he crossed him up!”  

“Guess he kept that one in his back pocket,” Patrick McEnroe agreed.  Nadal would go on to hold, and four games later faced break points again: after fighting back from 15-40 down, he found himself staring down a third break point when a fierce Federer forehand proved too much to handle.  As Federer prepared to receive, McEnroe stated “If I were Federer here, Dick, I would think about taking one step over to his left and maybe one step back [to prepare for the wide serve to his backhand].” Nadal blasted another ace down the tee, drawing impressed laughs from the commentators.  

Nadal would go on to lose the second set, and was under pressure for much of the third — when serving at 4-all, he saw Federer take a love-40 lead.  The general consensus among the commentators was that Nadal needed to win the third set to have any hope of winning the match, and the Spaniard stepped up his game at the tensest moments — he started to pound inside-out forehands, changing his game plan from the crosscourt barrage he had been aiming at the Federer backhand, and began to crush his own backhand crosscourt at the corners.  This aggressive style saw him scrub out all three break points at 4-4 and another three at 5-5. After saving the first trio of break points at 4-4 and reaching advantage, Federer fought back by winning an extremely attritional rally that saw Nadal stagger when his final backhand smacked the net.  

“And that’s a body blow landed by Federer there!” cried McEnroe. 
“He’s hurting,” agreed Cahill. But the Spaniard responded with class, likely recognizing that it wouldn’t be in his favor to play another long rally on the deuce point. He avoided such a situation by crossing Federer up yet again with a serve to his forehand, this time flinging an ace out wide on the deuce side.  He took the game when Federer looped a forehand long, and the Melbourne crowd roared in admiration of the Spaniard’s effort.  

When Nadal ripped an inside-out forehand winner to save the final break point in the 5-all game, Darren Cahill cried, “Oh, how can you not admire this guy?  He’s unbelievable!” On the six break points he faced, Nadal fired two forehand winners, muscled a brutal crosscourt backhand that Federer could only clip with his racket, forced Federer to net an extremely difficult backhand pass on the run, sent down an unreturned second serve, and watched Federer whip a forehand long.  It was unbelievably gutsy play under pressure, with the Spaniard somehow suppressing the nerves and adjusting his tactics to play more aggressively. After escaping the danger at 5-all, Federer was just 4 for 17 on break points, while Nadal was 4 for 5. The numbers suggest that Federer was making more of an impression on the return, but Nadal’s incredible play under pressure had made him the more opportunistic player and had kept him in the match.  

The third set went to a tiebreak, and after losing the first point on his serve Nadal was perfect for the rest of the breaker, staying solid on serve.  At 3-all, Federer badly missed a forehand and Nadal made the most of his next two serves, scything a crosscourt forehand winner for 5-3 and stretching to produce a tremendous backhand volley winner for 6-3.  Federer then double faulted to hand Nadal the third set.  

The set is a classic example of someone winning a frame despite the opponent playing better — Federer produced six break points in the set to Nadal’s two, and held serve more easily.  But Nadal was willing to take chances on the break points at 4-all and 5-all, and was the far steadier player in the tiebreak.  

Federer fought back again, winning the fourth set to even the match.  Nadal finally failed to take advantage of some break points, missing out on five chances at 2-all despite winning the point of the match.  But the Spaniard rolled to the title in the fifth, taking a surprisingly lopsided set 6-2. He served better than he had the whole match, losing just three points against serve.  The one chance Federer might have had to break came when he returned down 1-3. He battled back from 40-love to 40-30, but Nadal took the game with — you guessed it — a rare serve to Federer’s forehand.  Perhaps thinking too much of the match’s magnitude, Federer’s shots lost some conviction, but Nadal stayed true to his game plan, attacking the Federer backhand until it broke down. He didn’t need to face any situations of intense pressure like the two games at the end of the third set, breaking Federer at 5-2 up to win the title.  

With the epic victory, Nadal registered his fifth win over Federer in a slam final and his sixth win over the Swiss in slams.  He later added four more, defeating Federer in the semifinals of the 2012 and 2014 Australian Opens, the final of the 2011 French Open, and the semifinal of the 2019 French Open.  In each match, his tactics served him well as he unraveled Federer’s elegant game. But the 2009 Australian Open final was perhaps the best example of Nadal’s ability to think clearly and attack Federer’s weaknesses under pressure.  

By Owen Lewis

2017 was a rollercoaster of a year in men’s tennis, with a collection of epic matches. Unquestionably, the match with the most drama and highest quality was the second Australian Open semifinal between Rafael Nadal of Spain and Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov . Here’s a comprehensive summary of this epic battle.

First set: 6-3 Nadal

Nadal was the heavy favorite for this match, and begun by attacking Dimitrov’s one-handed backhand as he had done successfully to Roger Federer for years. But Dimitrov, a dynamic player with a complete game, immediately showed that he was up for the challenge. With Nadal serving in the first game down 15-30, he pulled Dimitrov wide with his lefty topspin forehand- but after a few shots were exchanged, Dimitrov pulled the trigger on his backhand, firing a beautiful winner down the line from well outside the sideline. Nadal dug in afterwards, saving both break points to hold. Dimitrov responded well with a love service game, capping the effort with an ace out wide. Nadal’s forehand was beginning to find its range, and at 1-all, 15-all, he attacked Dimitrov’s backhand with a series of whipping crosscourt topspin forehands. Eventually, one of the replies landed short, and Nadal walloped an inside-out forehand winner from close to the net. The Spaniard held to 15 with a viciously angled forehand winner. At 15-all in the next game, Nadal pounced, slamming a crosscourt backhand winner and breaking serve with a forehand passing shot that Dimitrov could barely get a racket on. He then backed up the break with an easy hold for a 4-1 lead. Dimitrov refocused after the loss of three straight games, holding to 15 with three impressive winners off the ground: two from the forehand and one from the backhand. Often enough, though, one poor service game is all it takes to lose a set. Dimitrov held again for 3-5, but Nadal served out the set to 15, feathering a delicate drop volley for a winner on set point.

Second set: 7-5 Dimitrov
The second set was much less straightforward than the opening frame, featuring beautiful shots mixed with sloppy play and many momentum shifts. Dimitrov crushed a few forehand winners to hold in the first game, and an amazing point ensued with Nadal serving at 0-1, 15-all. The Spaniard chased his opponent from corner to corner with spitting crosscourt and inside-out forehands, then approached the net and fired down an overhead. Dimitrov defended amazingly well, reaching all of Nadal’s bullets and sending back lobbed replies. Finally, the Bulgarian netted a backhand off a Nadal volley. While Dimitrov ran a ridiculous amount during the point for no reward, his efforts conveyed that he would not be rolling over after losing the first set. Nadal held, but Dimitrov would break through in his opponent’s next service game. The 15th seed bashed a backhand winner down the line to open the game, then followed it up with a steaming forehand down the line for love-30. Dimitrov broke to love when Nadal smacked a forehand wide, taking a 3-1 lead. He consolidated his advantage with a hold to 30, sealed with a punishing forehand down the line that forced an error from Nadal. The Spaniard stayed in touch, holding for 2-4, then soaked up three forehand winners from Dimitrov in the next game before unloading on a gorgeous backhand pass to earn a break point. Nadal was rewarded for his patience when Dimitrov double-faulted to put the set back on serve. The momentum appeared to be firmly on Nadal’s side when he went up 30-love, but Dimitrov pulled back a point with an aggressive inside-out backhand return that set up a simple volley winner. The Bulgarian worked his way to break point, and unbelievably, Nadal double-faulted to drop serve, giving Dimitrov a chance to serve for the set at 5-3. He was unable to deliver on his opportunity, however — at 15-all, Nadal let loose with some huge forehands, and Dimitrov eventually netted a regulation forehand to gift the break back. Nadal still had to serve to stay in the set, and Dimitrov applied severe pressure throughout the return game, earning a set point at 30-40. The Spaniard saved it with brilliance, running down a heavy crosscourt backhand from Dimitrov and spanking a 90 mph forehand winner down the line from well behind the baseline. The Bulgarian would have three more set points in the game, but was unable to convert any of them, with Nadal slamming an ace down the middle to save the final one. Dimitrov did well to recover from the disappointment of missing so many chances, holding for 6-5 and finally landing the decisive blow in the set: breaking Nadal at 15 to win it 7-5.

Third Set: 7-6 (5) Nadal

With the match tied at one set all, the third set would likely prove a crucial one, as the winner would take a two sets to one lead. And the frame would prove a high-quality, extremely closely contested battle. Easy holds were exchanged for 1-all, at which point Dimitrov saved a break point with an immense swing volley winner. He reached advantage with the help of a net cord, then crushed an ace out wide to hold. Nadal, serving at 1-2, 15-love, powered a few crosscourt forehands into Dimitrov’s backhand corner, earning weak replies. Uncommonly for the sharp Spaniard, he missed the moment to go inside-out for a winner — Dimitrov snuck a slice to Nadal’s backhand side, then drilled a forehand winner off the weaker reply. At 15-all, determined not to make the same mistake, Nadal ripped the inside-out forehand on his first shot after the serve, and was rewarded with a clean winner. Dimitrov hit back with a gorgeously precise backhand winner down the line, but Nadal came out on top after a long rally to hold for 2-all. The Spaniard held another break point in the next game and was able to convert this time when Dimitrov floated a sliced backhand long. The Bulgarian applied pressure in the next service game, and had two break points at 15-40. Nadal saved both, and then a third with an unfussy backhand volley. Dimitrov earned a fourth chance with an inside-in forehand winner, though, and Nadal smacked a forehand wide to restore parity at 3-all. Several easy holds followed the exchange of breaks, and the set went to a tiebreak. The Spaniard took the early advantage, grabbing a mini-break for 3-1 with an error-forcing crosscourt forehand. Dimitrov pushed back, but when serving at 4-3 an excellent, wrong-footing forehand down the line from Nadal gave him the upper hand in the point, and the Bulgarian missed a backhand soon after. Dimitrov hurled an ace down the middle for 4-5, and Nadal misfired with a forehand to tie the breaker, drawing gasps from the crowd. At 5-all, on Nadal’s serve, an epic rally ensued with both players making extraordinary defensive shots. Eventually Dimitrov looped a forehand just wide of the sideline, handing Nadal a set point, and the Spaniard took a two-sets-to-one lead when Dimitrov netted a forehand.

Fourth Set: 7-6 (4) Dimitrov

Few expected the 15th seed to make a comeback from this position, but Dimitrov began the fourth set positively, holding from deuce in the third game. He then had a half-chance to break at 15-30 in the ensuing game, but Nadal fought him off with the help of a laser-precise backhand pass down the line at 30-all. The Bulgarian again fought to 15-30 in Nadal’s next service game, but again Nadal scuppered the danger with strong hitting from the back of the court. The set would go to another tiebreak — Dimitrov had to serve to stay in the match twice, but both times delivered, holding to love with an ace for 5-all, and holding to 15 with a forehand winner for 6-all. Dimitrov would play the stronger tiebreak this time, surging to a 6-3 lead thanks to some clinical volleying. Nadal saved one set point with a hissing crosscourt forehand pass, but Dimitrov took his second chance with a massive serve down the middle that Nadal could barely get a racket on. Dimitrov’s reaction was not as emphatic as when he won the second set — perhaps thoughts were already turning to a fifth set battle.

Fifth Set

The deciding set of this match featured high-quality shots under pressure and intense drama. Fans were on the edge of their seats from the get-go as Nadal took a 15-40 lead in Dimitrov’s first service game. The Bulgarian saved both break points, the first with an unbelievably brave forehand winner down the line (on the dead run!). He fought to advantage, but Nadal hauled the game back to deuce with a vicious forehand return winner down the line. Dimitrov managed to hold, firing an inside-out forehand dart on game point. It then became Nadal’s turn to feel the heat as Dimitrov battled to 30-all on his serve, then punched an impeccably timed backhand winner down the line. He followed the spectacular shot with a long forehand, though, and Nadal held for 1-all. At 15-all on Dimitrov’s serve, Nadal threw up a lob, and on his way to retrieve it, the Bulgarian stumbled as if his leg had cramped, and put a hand on the court to steady himself. Astonishingly, he stumbled back, hit a shot with his back facing the court to prolong the rally, then bashed an inside-out forehand winner on the next shot. At 30-15, Dimitrov approached the net, hit a brilliant short half-volley, and when Nadal dinked crosscourt the 15th seed replied with An outrageous forehand down the line almost while doing the splits. These amazing shots helped Dimitrov to a comfortable hold, and Nadal responded in kind for 2-all. The Bulgarian’s next service game was more testing, but he managed to repel a break point and sealed the game with a solid smash. Nadal again held with little fuss, and clawed his way into yet another Dimitrov service game. The underdog was up for the challenge, producing a drop volley winner at 30-all and a forehand missile on game point. With Nadal serving down 3-4, Dimitrov had his opportunity. He worked his way to 15-30, then played a fantastic point. He returned a wide serve with a slice return that looked as if it was going out, but curved back into the court and dropped into the right corner. Dimitrov then took control of the point by whacking a backhand down the line, following it up with a forehand deep into Nadal’s backhand corner, and hammering an emphatic smash to win the point. Facing two break points that would set up Dimitrov to serve for the match, Nadal then found his best tennis. At 15-40, the Spaniard hit some deep, patient ground strokes before fooling Dimitrov with a well-angled crosscourt backhand and then striking the killer blow, a clean backhand winner down the line. At 30-40, he sent down a strong wide serve, then bashed a forehand down the line and put away Dimitrov’s weak reply with a clinical volley. Having reached the quasi-safety of deuce, Nadal romped to the net again behind a powerful inside-in forehand and punched another volley winner, Dimitrov nowhere near it. When the Bulgarian netted a forehand on the run, Nadal celebrated his great escape wildly, then got back to business. With Dimitrov serving at 4-all, Nadal took the first point with a ridiculous forehand winner, hit down the line but from the center of the court, and hit on the run. He reached break point at 30-40, and with the match hanging in the balance yet again, it was the Spaniard who rose to the occasion. Dimitrov drilled a couple inside-out forehands to Nadal’s own forehand, then sprinted to the net. Nadal fired a forehand pass down the line, Dimitrov managed to get it back, but his block volley sat up for Nadal to motor forward and crash a backhand winner down the line.
Serving for the match, Nadal reached 30-love, but Dimitrov leveled at 30-all, refusing to go down after over four hours and fifty minutes of battle. The Spaniard had match point at 40-30, but Dimitrov saved for deuce with a brave smash. Nadal reached advantage a second time, but again the Bulgarian repelled him, crushing a forehand down the line. A third match point arrived in short order, though, and finally Nadal was through to the final when Dimitrov knocked a backhand long.

So, what made this match the best contest of 2017?
-The length. The match stretched on for four hours and fifty-six minutes, with high quality throughout.
-The tension. The drama of the two tiebreaks and the nail-biting action for practically the whole fifth set made for excellent sporting theater.
-Grace under pressure. Both players delivered incredible winners at some key moments, the decisive one being Nadal’s nerveless aggressive play to save the break points when down 3-4.
-Momentum shifts. In the second and fifth sets in particular, each player had leads, and saw the other fight back.
-The quality. Each player hit some spectacular shots, like Dimitrov’s one-handed backhands down the line (I can’t stress enough how hard it is to hit that shot successfully) and Nadal’s brutal forehands.

By Owen Lewis

At the tail end of 2016, Andy Murray went on a tear, winning tournament after tournament to finish the year and snatching the number one ranking from Novak Djokovic. Many expected him to be hugely successful in the following couple years — but after a mediocre first half of 2017, Murray was struck down with a hip injury. After the tragic misfortune, the three-time major champion went under the knife and attempted to rehab in order to return to the top of the game, but his long road back from surgery was littered with obstacles and pitfalls. Murray captures many of the devastating, joyous, and heart-rending moments of his comeback in Amazon Prime’s brilliant original documentary, Andy Murray: Resurfacing.

To be clear, this isn’t a documentary that keeps the viewer on the edge of their seat through sheer tension (like Strokes of Genius), it’s a story that tells things how they are and keeps people rooting for Andy Murray. Resurfacing captures less of the tennis tour’s grind than the grueling, agonizingly slow process of overcoming an injury. Many of Murray’s fellow tennis players, family members, and doctors/physios speak about the skilled Brit, and the production wisely left swear words uncensored. This brings a greater sense of intimacy to Murray’s story, allowing the watcher to get closer to the emotions of him and his team. Though this is the case in practically every show or documentary, I was struck by how unaware of the cameras people seemed to be when they weren’t talking directly to them. When scenes of family interaction or training came up, I thought Wow, this must be how they act/train all the time.

Murray’s actions and emotions in Resurfacing give a sense that he is very human, and even relatable — he’s not a machine, and gets frustrated often. But perhaps a stronger message is that he is ridiculously dogged and determined. In his desire to be able to play at a high level again, the Scot weathers pain on the court and while walking, patiently seeks out new options when his current plan is unsuccessful, and stays the course when his rehab takes far longer than expected. Also, though clearly disappointed over the rocky road back to tennis, he remains a good friend, father, and husband to his team and family.

No one can be expected to go on forever, however, and after almost two years of pain and roadblocks Murray decided to lay down a finish line. The two-time Wimbledon champion stated he felt that he had done everything he possibly could to return, and just couldn’t get traction. In early 2019, he said in a press conference that he would play the Australian Open, take a couple months off, and retire his glorious career at Wimbledon. Yet, during a five-set epic in the opening round Down Under, the Melbourne crowd reminded Murray why he loved tennis. The Murray of old showed up to Rod Laver Arena — while clearly hampered by his hip, he fought like a lion and extended what originally appeared a straightforward contest to five sets. Although he lost the match to Roberto Bautista Agut after a four-plus-hour grind, the crowd support inspired Murray to continue his quest to reclaim his brilliant form of earlier in his career. The Scot settled on another hip surgery, this one more severe than the first — a hip replacement. Emboldened by Bob Bryan’s successful surgery of the same type, Murray took the brave step and went under the knife for a second time.

After so many irritants and potholes on his path back to tennis, Murray was finally rewarded for his unbelievable perseverance, and the pain that had hounded him for almost two years began to fade. He returned to the doubles court, winning the Fever-Tree Championships with Feliciano Lopez in a tear-jerking dream run. In another fan-pleasing move, Murray partnered with 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams in the mixed doubles at Wimbledon. They lost in the second round, but Murray was back on the court and enjoying it. As for singles? He played solo at the Cincinnati Masters later in the year, and though the documentary’s timeline ends before this, he won the Antwerp tournament, beating rival Stan Wawrinka (who sent him a massive teddy bear as a get-well gift when Murray got the hip replacement) in a comeback three-set battle. He may not be all the way back to his glowing form of 2016, but expect to see him battling at the majors next year. In singles.

If you’re a tennis fan or simply a Murray fan, I encourage you to check out Andy Murray: Resurfacing. You can watch it on Amazon Prime.

By Owen Lewis

It’s a long five weeks until we get to see tennis’s best slug it out on the blue Plexicushion courts of Melbourne Park, so here’s an early projection of how the top ten men’s players will fare Down Under.

#1: Rafael Nadal: Nadal should feel good about his chances going into the first major of 2020. At the event this year, he made the final easily despite ending 2018 injured. Though his lack of testing matches and confidence cost him in the one-sided loss to Djokovic in the final, he played well for most of the tournament, which should give him confidence. Additionally, his last two matches have been impressive comeback three-set wins against Stefanos Tsitsipas and Daniil Medvedev. One of Nadal’s biggest problems is that he has not beaten Djokovic or Federer in a hard court match for several years. Federer has adapted his backhand so that Nadal just hitting the ball there won’t be effective enough — I think that to beat Federer, Nadal needs to pummel the backhand, taking care to drill his crosscourt forehand with increased pace in order to provide a sterner test to the Federer backhand. As for Djokovic, Nadal will need to consistently hit his forehand down the line. If he leaves his groundstrokes short like he did in the 2019 final, Djokovic will hit him off the court. The Spaniard’s other issue is that the hard courts take a toll on his body — in 2010, 2011, and 2018, he was struck with injury during the tournament, and ended up retiring in 2010 and 2018. Worse, he was forced to miss the event entirely in 2013 thanks to a knee injury and illness. By reading this, it may seem like Nadal has a huge uphill battle ahead of him if he wants to win the title, but things aren’t as dire as they might sound. Despite his lopsided loss in the 2019 final, Nadal reached the final with ease. So barring any physical problems, the Spaniard needs to concentrate on forming an aggressive game plan against Federer or Djokovic should he play either of them.

#2: Novak Djokovic: The favorite to win. Djokovic is the defending champion and has a total of seven Australian Open titles to his name. However, his status as the man to beat is slightly more shaky than it has been in previous years — Djokovic, since his win at Wimbledon in July, has ridden a streak of average form and results. His last match of the year was a rather flat straight-set loss to Federer, but he should have no shortage of confidence at his favorite major. Djokovic often has a match in the middle of the tournament in which he plays a poor match, and drops a set to a lower-ranked player. If he can get through a test in the early rounds, he will likely find his best form in the semifinal or final. He hasn’t lost to Federer in a Grand Slam since 2012, and has been undefeated in slams against Nadal since 2014. Djokovic has a mental edge over Federer — watch their 2019 Wimbledon final as evidence — and has a 19-7 record against Nadal on hard courts. So Djokovic would go into a clash with either Federer or Nadal as the favorite, and is the most likely to win the 2020 Australian Open. Still, he’s shown some vulnerability in 2019 — look for a hard hitter such as Dominic Thiem to potentially challenge the defending champion.

#3: Roger Federer: Many love watching the old great rolling back the years as he plays. But as Federer grows older, these moments grow fewer and farther between. As of late, though, Federer has been able to rest effectively in the offseason, and it’s paid dividends in the form of Australian Open titles in 2017 and 2018. In 2019, he suffered a disappointing loss against Tsitsipas in the fourth round, failing to convert any of the 12 break points he earned. If Federer can avoid physically punishing matches in the first three or four rounds, look for him to make the semifinals or finals. I expect his biggest problem will be a potential semifinal with Djokovic — Federer hasn’t beaten the second-ranked Serb in a major since 2012. He has performed well against Nadal recently, especially in the past three years, winning six of their last seven matchups. And his recent win over Djokovic shows that he’s capable of beating the Serb as well. But Federer is the most likely of the top three seeds to be severely tested in an early round, and his age of 38 radiates doubt at his ability to win twenty-one sets over the two weeks. It would be foolish to write Federer off, however; he is certainly capable of winning the 2020 Australian Open. But he will need some luck.

#4: Dominic Thiem: A player with an all-around game and the ability to hammer the ball on both forehand and backhand, Thiem’s results in majors outside the French Open are surprisingly lacking. His forehand is among the game’s best, and he hits it with tremendous pace — during his recent epic 6-7 (5), 6-3, 7-6 (5) ATP Finals victory over Djokovic, Thiem’s forehand was hit at an average of 85 mph. Armed with the massive speed, he achieved the rare feat of hitting through the imperious Djokovic defenses. His backhand in no slouch either: he can also hit it incredibly hard despite playing with a one-hander. He has the game to beat anyone in the world, and has proved it this year, recording two wins over both Federer (both on hard court) and Djokovic (one on hard court and one on clay) and one against Nadal (on clay). His success at Indian Wells, Shanghai, and the ATP Finals this year indicate that Thiem can stick around in Melbourne until the latest rounds of the tournament. If Thiem can play up to his ranking, stay consistent in the early rounds and avoid early losses against unseeded players (like his first round losses at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open), his powerful baseline game will present a significant threat to any player. Thiem has played five-set epics with Djokovic and Nadal (defeating the former and narrowly losing to the latter), so his physical endurance shouldn’t be an issue. I expect Thiem to make a deep run Down Under.

#5: Daniil Medvedev: Medvedev had a fantastic summer and a breakout U.S. Open in 2019, reaching the final in Flushing Meadows and pushing Nadal to the brink in a thrilling match. He cooled off somewhat after the effort, losing to Jim Chardy at the Paris Masters and going winless at the ATP Finals. He has a world-class backhand, a great serve, and possesses great defensive ability. On the other hand, his forehand isn’t a particularly consistent weapon. At the 2019 Australian Open, he gave Djokovic his most difficult match of the tournament, pushing the seven-time champion to a tough four-setter. I think he will improve on his fourth-round result of the 2019 tournament, but it’s certainly possible that he will lose early — he fell in the first round of the French Open and Wimbledon this year.

#6: Stefanos Tsitsipas: Tsitsipas is another player who has wins over each of the Big Three (he’s beaten Nadal and Djokovic once each this year, and Federer twice). His belief in his own ability should be at an all-time high after winning the ATP Finals, but I just can’t see him winning the Australian Open. The deepest he’s ever gone at a major is the semifinals at Down Under in 2019, but he was routed, winning just six games against Nadal. He’s certainly capable of matching his 2019 result, but I think he’s equally capable of losing in the first or second round. He played exceptionally well before his semifinal at the 2019 Australian Open, made the final of Madrid, and got the biggest tournament win of his career at the ATP Finals, but his first round losses at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open indicate that an early upset is very possible. If he can beat lower-ranked players in the first four or five rounds of the tournament, I think he can acquit himself well against the world’s best, but I don’t think he can get past Djokovic or Nadal.

#7: Alexander Zverev: The seventh-ranked men’s player has a lack of good results in majors. He’s never made a Grand Slam semifinal, or even won a set in a quarterfinal, and I don’t think that the 2020 AO will provide his first. He often folds in fifth sets, with a lengthy list of 6-0 and 6-1 capitulations to his name, and has had major serve problems this year (including a period in which he hit twenty double faults per match), and he just doesn’t seem mentally steady enough to make much of an impact in the majors yet. For me, Zverev is the most likely player in the top ten to lose in the first or second round of the tournament. Yet, when he’s on, his game is spectacular. He’s beaten Federer and Nadal in 2019, possesses a two-handed backhand that is probably second to only Djokovic’s, and when his serve is on song he can fire 140 mph bullets into the service boxes. Still, I think that as of now his inconsistency is too big of an obstacle to overcome, and if he makes the semifinals I’ll be surprised. Will Zverev win a major eventually? More than likely. He’s twenty-two, and time is on his side. But I think it’ll be another couple years before his time comes.

#8: Matteo Berrettini: Many players on this list are capable of beating anyone in the world when they’re at their best, but I don’t feel that way about Berrettini. He has yet to beat Federer, Djokovic, or Nadal, unlike his young peers Zverev and Tsitsipas. But his game is still one to be feared — the Italian is tall, and possesses a huge serve as well as a mighty forehand. He had a breakout 2019, reaching the semifinals of the U.S. Open. His straight-set loss to Nadal at that stage showed that he still has a ways to go before becoming a champion, however — he played well in the first set, and had a good game plan (forehand drop shots to take advantage of Nadal’s deep return position), but blew a 4-0 lead in the tiebreak and missed two set points. After losing the opening frame, Berrettini won just five games for the rest of the match. I think that he can potentially make the quarters or even the semis if he can avoid a Big Three player until the last four, but it will be a considerable surprise if he makes the final. His backhand isn’t enough of a weapon yet to pose a serious threat to all-around players like Djokovic, Federer, and Nadal, but like Zverev, he is capable of developing it as he is just twenty-three.

#9: Roberto Bautista Agut: Bautista Agut had a great 2019, beating Djokovic twice and advancing to the Wimbledon semifinals. He lost in the first round at the U.S. Open, but has a very solid all-around game. Neither his forehand or two-handed backhand stick out as a weakness to be attacked, his serve is average but is able to get him out of sticky situation sometimes, and his movement and fitness are goof. What may hurt him is his general lack of huge weapons — while he has few to no easily observable weaknesses, he also doesn’t really have a shot that he can rely on for winners. His forehand has decent power to it, but it’s not in the same league of the top four seeds’ forehands. Because of this, I think he’s in danger of being overpowered by a player with heftier shots. It would surprise few if he played up to his seeding, reaching the fourth round or quarterfinal of the Australian Open, but it’s very difficult to see him getting past any of the top three seeds.

#10: Gael Monfils: Monfils is able to involve the crowd in a match perhaps better than anyone else, and has every shot in his repertoire to boot. He is among the top three or four players at producing tweeners and behind-the-back shots, sometimes for winners. He can be inconsistent however, and is more susceptible to injuries than most, with his ailing body sending him out of several tournament draws this year. He had a strong U.S. Open, losing in a five-set epic to Berrettini in the quarterfinals. I feel like a broken record writing this — he could make a surprise run to the semifinals, but I highly doubt he’ll go further than that.

Agree or disagree with my projections? Leave a comment or email me @owenlewis11801@gmail.com. Thanks for reading!

By Owen Lewis

Djokovic and Nishikori are both top-ten players with lengthy resumes. Djokovic is a 16-time major champion, while Nishikori has yet to win a major, but made the final of the 2014 U.S. Open and is a formidable opponent for anyone on tour. Both play with two-handed backhands; both backhands are gorgeous. They are effective in hammering deep returns, staying consistent in rallies, and taking control of points. The one difference is the amount of firepower. Djokovic is the taller and more powerful player, and that additional heft in his game is perhaps what propelled him to all-time greatness. The lack thereof in Nishikori’s game is perhaps what has held him back from achieving more than he already has (as well as his little physical durability).

At the 2018 U.S. Open, these two backhand maestros met in the semifinal. Djokovic played a strong, clean match and earned match point at 6-3, 6-4, 5-2 and advantage. The match point brought to light everything that is special about both backhands.

The point started with Djokovic serving, and he drilled a first serve wide to Nishikori’s backhand. Nishikori returned a topspin crosscourt backhand deep to the deuce court. Djokovic didn’t give any ground, and fired an almost identical shot back over the net. The first two shots of the point highlight the backhands as fantastic holding shots, able to maintain a neutral rally for ten, fifteen, twenty, or more shots in a row. As Djokovic’s shot arrived at Nishikori’s backhand, the smaller player changed the tempo of the point, taking the ball significantly earlier and ripping a crosscourt backhand at a tight angle. The shot was beautifully timed — it landed perhaps a foot from the sideline, and carried considerable pace. Djokovic’s reply showed his physical strength, and flexibility, however. The Serb took three rapid sidesteps to his left, then went into a slide in an effort to reach the ball. Nishikori, expecting a defensive crosscourt reply, took a couple steps inside the baseline, cheating slightly to the left of the centerline. Djokovic managed to hit one of his trademark shots, though — a backhand down the line at full stretch. The shot landed deep in Nishikori’s right-hand corner for a clean winner. The backhand down the line had been struck with incredible pace and precision, and Nishikori was caught standing inside the baseline and in the left half of the court. After pulling off the amazing winner, Djokovic celebrated with yells and pumps of the arm, and would go on to win the final in straight sets for his 14th Grand Slam title.

So, what did Nishikori do wrong in that point? Nothing really — he hit an exceptional backhand, but fell victim to an even more spectacular shot. And this compares their games in a nutshell — if Nishikori’s backhand is a solid rally shot, Djokovic’s is just a bit more solid. If Nishikori can hit a backhand winner on a certain ball 90 times out of 100, Djokovic can probably do it 91 or 92. Djokovic’s improbable winners are just a little more dazzling, his pace just a little higher, and his body more durable. Nishikori has one of the best return games among active players, but Djokovic has the best return game of all time. These are subtle differences, but they are what separate a champion from a great player (game-wise, arguably an equally important characteristic is the ability to perform under pressure).

Thanks for reading!