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At the Intersection of Sports and Culture

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U.S. Open Tennis: A Premature Passing of the Torch

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To be clear, the 2014 men’s final of the U.S. Open did not represent an end of an era. Before Marin Cilic of Croatia dismissed Kei Nishikori of Japan in straight sets there were no funeral pyres lit, no songs of remembrance sung. The sadness that swirled through Ashe Stadium like the gulf stream had little to do with the quality of play or the crowning of an unfit champion as the 6’6” Cilic, with his rangy athleticism and powerful service game, gave the crowd plenty to cheer about.

No the real reason for remorse, the factor that few fans and ticket agencies anticipated, was that for the first time since the 2005 Australian Open a major men’s singles final took place without at least one member of the Big Four. But just because there was no Federer, Nadal, Djokovic or Murray does not mean that tennis is on the verge of a cosmic power shift. Over time, Monday night will prove to be more of an anomaly than a trend as the demise of men’s tennis current standard bearers is being grossly overstated.

The cause for concern comes from the fact that for nearly a decade the Big Four has brought both consistency and comfort to tennis fans. We could all count on tuning into a Grand Slam final and watching at least one of the sports all time greats compete. That familiarity is important to the brand of tennis and it’s not going away, at least not any time soon. Djokovic and Murray are still very much in the prime of their careers and even at the ripe old age of 33 Federer still covers the court with the grace of a man half his age. Nadal has battled back from injuries before and we can all but pencil him in for the finals at Roland Garros next June.

But when the torch is finally past to the next generation of men’s tennis stars fans must take comfort in the reality that new names and rivalries will rise and take shape just as they did before the Big Four when when it was McEnroe and Connors to Becker and Edberg to Sampras and Agassi and so on and so forth. Cilic and Nishikori might not be household quantities yet, at least not in this country, but eventually their names might be capable of lighting up the marquee as tennis’ next big stars.

Just not yet…

Greatness Before It’s Gone

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Royalty was crowned across the boroughs of New York City Sunday afternoon, as coronations honoring two of sports all time greats took place in front of legions of adoring fans.

In the Bronx, titans past and present came out to celebrate the Captain at Yankee Stadium. Names like Ripken. Torre. Jordan. Icons from the world of sports gathered on the field to acknowledge the many accomplishments of a player Derek Jeter whose sterling reputation and leadership off the field and in the clubhouse often overshadowed his truly remarkable career on the field where over the course of 20 seasons in pinstripes he collected over 3400 hits, 5 Gold Gloves and 5 World Series rings. With retirement only a few weeks away, and regardless of how his WAR continues to sputter, Jeter rides off into the sunset as one of the greatest Yankees and shortstops of all time.

As baseball celebrated a member of its pantheon, 10 miles away in Flushing Meadows at the United States Tennis Center, a queen was crowned as Serena Williams won her 18th Grand Slam championship, tying Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova for the most women’s single titles of all time. In dispatching the overmatched Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets Serena demonstrated yet again the near flawless combination of power and precision. There has never been, nor in all likelihood will there ever be again, a tennis player so physically gifted, so competitive that opposing players rarely seem like they belong on the same court. To say that Serena is in a class of her own is not an overstatement but rather an acceptance of fact.

As sports fans we typically wait to appreciate greatness until after it’s gone. With Derek Jeter and Serena Williams however it is important to acknowledge today that we are watching two of the best athletes to ever compete in their respective sports.

Both will continue to have their detractors. Jeter’s overrated because he plays for the New York Yankees and Serena’s on court outbursts an indication of an underlying petulance that prevent her from a universal embrace.

Yet, beyond the flaws and envy, what cannot be argued is that video reels and second hand stories will not do justice to their remarkable careers.

Therefore it is better to celebrate them in the now before it’s too late and we’re forced to look back with reverence and remorse, our memories offering nothing more than a fleeting glimpse of greatness.