The Torch Has Been Passed

As truly remarkable as it's been to watch the Big Three dominate men's tennis over the past two decades, we all knew that it end eventually.  And, with age and injuries catching up to both Federer and Nadal, we knew that day was coming relatively soon.  In fact, it's very possible that day has arrived.  Because this year's US Open was likely the coronation of the next great tennis champion.

Carlos Alcaraz is the US Open champion, and boy did he deserve it!  Three straight night matches that went five sets, two of which ended in the wee hours (including the latest finish in US Open history!)  Even the final, which only took four sets, lasted nearly four hours!  But it was all worth it.  Alcaraz, at 19, became the youngest US Open champion since Pete Sampras in 1990 and, much more significantly, became the youngest No. 1 ever!

And, frankly, Alcaraz's ascent to the top isn't all that surprising.  You could tell there was something special about him during his first run through the Grand Slam tournaments last year, and he backed it up this year with an incredible clay court season in the Spring.  It's not a stretch at all to suggest there are more Grand Slam trophies in his future.  Or that he'll be at the top of the men's game for a while!

We've been waiting for that guy to come around.  The one who would disturb the balance and regularly challenge the Big Three.  Of course, he didn't have to play any of them.  Federer and Djokovic weren't even there, and Nadal lost two rounds before he would've faced Alcaraz.  That doesn't take one iota away from his rise to the top, though.  Because, as I said, we needed a star for the post-Big Three Era.  And Alcaraz just might be it!

He's not even remotely close to alone, either.  The man he beat in the final, Casper Ruud, reached two Grand Slam finals this year.  Daniil Medvedev was the defending champion and isn't going anywhere.  Medvedev's title defense was ended by Nick Kyrgios, the Wimbledon finalist who may finally be living up to his massive potential.  And this list doesn't even include Olympic gold medalist Alexander Zverev. who's been out since that devastating ankle injury at the French Open but will most certainly be back.

For a long time, it was tough to envision what men's tennis would look like without Federer, Djokovic and Nadal.  It's no longer that hard.  This US Open gave us a glimpse of what to expect.  And, with new No. 1 Alcaraz leading the way, that future looks great.

Djokovic and Nadal aren't going away just yet, of course.  And Federer, hopefully, will be able to come back and say goodbye properly in 2023.  But their long era of dominance is over.  And, frankly, it's exciting to see what tennis without them will look like. 

Likewise, this US Open represented a changing of the guard on the women's side.  The entire first week was a Serena Williams lovefest, and rightfully so!  She's meant so much to not just women's tennis, but tennis as a whole, that she deserved all of it.  After she lost, though, officially ending her brilliant career, the second week became all about the new faces.

And, just like so many US Opens before, it was somebody new who hoisted the trophy.  World No. 1 Iga Swiatek has won the French Open twice, so her US Open title isn't completely out of the blue like Emma Raducanu or Bianca Andreescu.  And, just like her male counterpart Alcaraz, Swiatek may become the face of a new era in women's tennis.

On the women's side, that new era has been on its way for the past few years.  Serena's last Grand Slam title was in 2017, and all four Grand Slams have been wide open ever since then.  Case in point: all eight quarterfinalists at the US Open had never gotten that far in the tournament before.

The ironic thing about Swiatek winning is how she made news prior to the tournament about the tennis balls and ended up winning the whole thing.  Her point about the tennis balls was a good one, too.  At the US Open, the men use "heavy duty" balls and the women don't.  It's the only Grand Slam that uses different balls for men and women.  Why?  (I have no doubt this will be changed next year.)

That easily could've been an excuse and seen as the "reason" why Swiatek lost.  You know it would've been brought up in the press conference had that happened!  Instead, she said, "You know what?  It doesn't matter what type of balls we're using.  I'm gonna win the tournament anyway!"  Solidifying her status as the best women's player in the world at the moment.

They're both US Open champions, and they're both No. 1 in the world, but there's one big difference between Alcaraz and Swiatek.  Swiatek was already No. 1.  The US Open wasn't her coming out party.  That was the 2020 French Open.  So, you could argue that the changing of the guard in the women's game started two years ago!

Just like Alcaraz gave us a glimpse of what men's tennis will look like without the Big Three, Swiatek showed us what women's tennis can be without Serena Williams.  Does it look different?  Absolutely!  Will tennis be just fine?  Without a doubt!