US Open 2023: Alcaraz-Djokovic in tennis' transition, Gauff wants to continue Williams' legacy and other talking points

US Open, the last Grand Slam of the year, gets underway on Monday (28 August) and there are quite a few topics and players to focus on at Flushing Meadows in New York. We take a look at the major talking points going into the two-week major at Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Djokovic returns Novak Djokovic made a winning return to tournaments in the USA by clinching the title in Cincinnati. Now, he would play at the US Open for the first time since 2021. Djokovic was unable to compete at Flushing Meadows last year because he was not allowed to fly into US as an unvaccinated foreign citizen. The federal rules barred him from play other tournaments in Indian Wells, Miami and Cincinnati as well. Read | US Open draw: Djokovic faces Muller on return; Swiatek, Gauff on collision course Was there resentment? “No, there was no anger. It was last year during the Open that I felt it’s a pity that I’m not there. I felt sad for not being able to participate,” Djokovic said on Friday . “But this year, I mean, is this year. I don’t think about what happened in the last year or last couple of years. Just focusing my attention to this year’s tournament.” [caption id=“attachment_9959011” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] File image of Novak Djokovic at the 2021 US Open. AP[/caption] The last match for the 36-year-old at US Open was pivotal. A visibly distraught Djokovic was beaten in straight sets by Daniil Medvedev in the final and it denied him a calendar-year Grand Slam. The achievement of winning all four major titles in a year has not been achieved by a male player since Rod Laver in 1969. That loss hasn’t stopped Djokovic. He’s still winning and continues to chase records. After moving clear of Rafael Nadal with 23rd major title at the French Open, the Serb has set sights on the 24th and equalling Margaret Court’s record for most major titles won by a male or female player. A 24th Grand Slam would put him one ahead of Serena Williams for most in the Open Era. Alcaraz goes for a repeat [caption id=“attachment_11231441” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Carlos Alcaraz roars after winning a point over Casper Ruud in the US Open men’s singles final. AP[/caption] Earlier, Djokovic would be THE favourite for most Grand Slam titles but not anymore. Carlos Alcaraz has relegated Djokovic to A favourite. The Spaniard’s heroics in the Wimbledon final denied the Serb a third straight major title. They produced a 3.5-hour-plus showdown last week in Cincinnati to highlight that the final at All England Club wasn’t a one-off. Djokovic believes Alcaraz’s relentless style is reminiscent of Nadal, who misses this year’s US Open due to injury. “Each point is a hustle. Each point is a battle. You feel like you’re not going to get maybe in total five free points in the entire match,” Djokovic said of Alcaraz. “You’ve got to basically earn every single point, every single shot, regardless of the conditions.”

Defending champion Alcaraz is once again on the opposite side of Djokovic’s draw and they can only meet in the final. As tennis moves on from now-retired Roger Federer and Nadal entering his final hurrah, the sport’s momentary transition to the Djokovic-Alcaraz rivalry is a dream for organisers and fans alike. Gauff eyes breakthrough maiden Grand Slam title [caption id=“attachment_13017432” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Coco Gauff snapped a seven match losing streak against Iga Swiatek to move into the final of Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati. USA Today Sports/Reuters[/caption] Coco Gauff has only lost one match since her disappointing first round exit at Wimbledon. She won titles in Washington and Cincinnati , WTA 500 and WTA 1000 events, and made it to the quarter-finals in Montreal. Coco Gauff’s revival comes a year after Serena Williams made an emotional farewell at Flushing Meadows. The 19-year-old, who idolised the now-retired Williams, enters the tournament with hopes of landing her first Grand Slam title. Read | US Open: Nick Kyrgios, Paula Badosa, Bianca Andreescu missing from field The remarkable run on the hardcourts included a semi-final win against World No 1 and reigning US Open champion Iga Swiatek in Cincinnati. It was the first time Gauff had beaten the Polish four-time Grand Slam singles champion in eight meetings - after losing 14 sets in a row. The World No 6 says her recent success is built on learning how to win even when not playing well.

“I think that’s what makes a champion - how you’re doing on the days you aren’t feeling so great,” she said after her win in Cincinnati. If Gauff’s upward trajectory continues, there is a strong chance she can become only the fifth Black woman to win the US Open in the Open era, following in the footsteps of Serena and Venus Williams, Sloane Stephens and Naomi Osaka. With Serena retired, Gauff is aware of being compared with the legend of the sport and more importantly, with being seen as an inspirational figure. “It’s something that I don’t take lightly,” Gauff said. “Sometimes I guess it increases the pressure because I know that this community of people, the community of people of color, black people, look up to me a lot. “Especially with Serena retiring, people consider me the next leader or something of tennis. “I don’t put myself in that box because Serena is the G.O.A.T. for a reason. It’s ‘greatest of all time’. I’m part of all time, so I don’t know if I’ll be able to go as far as she did. That’s the dream. “For me, it’s just trying my best to be the best version of myself and being the best Coco on and off the court. I try to pay attention to how I present myself and the causes that I support off the court.” Swiatek looks to defend title [caption id=“attachment_11227321” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Iga Swiatek triumphed over Ons Jabeur to win the US Open for her third major title. AP[/caption] Last year, Iga Swiatek arrived at the US Open with her 37-match winning streak snapped at Wimbledon. In the preparatory tournaments, she went 4-4 and was upset with the quality of balls in play for the women (both men and women will use the same equipment this year). As the cool kids say, New York was not her “vibe.” She had not gone beyond the fourth round and the crowd, and the city didn’t match her personality. But, by the end of the two weeks, she held the trophy aloft. Only in two of her matches was she pushed to a third set. The Polish player says she is gradually learning to live with the fact that as World No 1, she is the player everyone wants to beat.

“If you want to be the best player in the world, you have to be ready for that,” Swiatek said. “You shouldn’t really overanalyse it or think about it. You should just play the game the same way as you would if your ranking would be lower. “You just have to use the experience and the confidence, but still remember that the most important thing is to develop as a player.” For Swiatek, there are important things beyond the action on the court. She is against the war in Ukraine and has spoken about player well-being, online abuse, and mental health. WTA headed to Saudi Arabia? [caption id=“attachment_11588731” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Caroline Garcia beat Aryna Sabalenka in straight sets to win the year-ending WTA championships in Fort Worth, Texas. AP[/caption] WTA Finals have moved from Shenzhen in 2019 to Guadalajara in 2021 and Fort Worth in 2022. There is still no venue for this year’s edition with not much time to go. To make things complex, Saudi Arabia are one of the leading contenders to play host. A country that has a poor human rights record, where homosexuality is illegal, political dissenters are severely punished and women’s rights activists are arrested. Saudi Arabia has already landed the men’s tennis tour’s Next Gen ATP finals in Jeddah through 2027. WTA CEO Steve Simon said he and a few players had visited the country to evaluate the situation with dialogue ongoing. “It would be great, yeah, if the decision were made earlier,” Swiatek said. “Especially when we were in Fort Worth, they kind of assured us the decision is going to be made at the beginning of the year. It is a little bit annoying, but as players, there’s nothing we can do, because it’s all about business and negotiations that WTA has, so we kind of have to wait.” Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur, last year’s US Open finalist, said she would support a tournament in Saudi Arabia. “As an Arab player, I’m very excited to be there. I am someone pushing for a change, pushing to give more and more opportunities, especially for women,” Jabeur said. Jabeur insisted that sport could help power change. “I know in Saudi they’re changing things and they’re evolving,” she said. “I’ve been there last year to give a speech and interview. It was very nice meeting a lot of amazing women there. For me, I was trying to push to have something, tennis, there in Saudi. “I think it’s a great step. I think it’s something that could help the Arab world to have more tennis players, to get more involved in sports.” City that never sleeps meets sport that doesn’t Andy Murray and Thanasi Kokkinakis played a marathon match at the Australian Open earlier in the year that began after 10pm and finished at 4:05am. The Briton banded late-night tennis a “farce.” Some players were also not pleased with late finishes at the French Open. Last year, Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner’s classic five-setter got done at 2:50am in the latest-ever finish at the US Open. Yet, USTA are sticking with their 7pm start time , for night sessions, even as players have called for play to be scheduled better. 50 years of equal prize money At the 1972 US Open, Billie Jean King won the US Open and pocketed $10,000, which was $15,000 less than what men’s champion Ilie Nastase did. It led USTA to make the 1973 US Open the first Grand Slam to offer equal prize money to both men and women. The 50th anniversary of that achievement will be celebrated this year in New York. Australian Open followed the US Open with equal pay measures in 2001, five years before the French Open. Wimbledon was the last in 2007, with Venus Williams helping lead that push. This year, the US Open winners will each get $3 million, with total player compensation rising to $65 million. “Women are just starting to get the investment,” King said. “I think we’re at the tipping point where people think there’s money in women now.”