When the schedule for the United States Open men’s singles draw was released, not a few quarters saw fit to look ahead to a potential Round of Four match between Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer. There was reason for the heightened anticipation, to be sure; they contended for the Wimbledon championship when they last met, and their encounter had to be decided via an unprecedented fifth-set tiebreaker. And with fellow Big Three stalwart Rafael Nadal expected to emerge from the other half of the bracket, a humdinger of a final appeared to be in store.
Significantly, little ink was devoted to the prospect of an upset or two prior to the aforesaid meetings. Not that a development contrary to expectations was rare. Rather, it was that the marquee names hitherto proved all but immune to unforeseen outcomes. Unless and until they went up against each other, their progress was the closest tennis had to a sure thing. As always, though, Stan Wawrinka didn’t care for conventional wisdom and steeled himself for the task at hand; for all his inconsistent play since undergoing a couple of knee surgeries two years ago, he’s a three-time major winner who knows how to produce the biggest shots in the grandest of stages.
And so Wawrinka didn’t just anticipate doing well against Djokovic in their fourth-round encounter. He looked forward to victory, and not simply because he wound up with the hardware the last time they faced each other at Flushing Meadows. Even three years removed from his four-set triumph, he exuded confidence that belied his aggregate 5-19 slate against his longtime rival. Also in his favor was an apparent left shoulder injury that seemed to bother the World Number One on occasion.
Lo and behold, Wawrinka did wind up advancing to the quarterfinals when the battlesmoke cleared. He certainly hit the ground running, putting his opponent on the defensive from the get-go with booming serves and precise groundstrokes. Meanwhile, Djokovic was less than primed to withstand the pressure; clearly ailing, he displayed none of the point-construction skills that hitherto enabled him to dominate the sport. Typically accurate with placements, he committed a whopping 38 unforced errors through two sets and change.
Djokovic tried, and for a while in the second set, he appeared ready to take the measure of Wawrinka. Unfortunately, the latter was too good yesterday, and he needed nothing less than his level best to keep pace. Instead, he had a handicap that not even a visit from the trainer prior to the start of the third set could help overcome, compelling his retirement and sealing his earliest exit in a Grand Slam tournament since 2006. Disappointed with the turn of events, the crowd rained boos on him as he left the Arthur Ashe Stadium.
The reaction was decidedly unfair, but Djokovic chose to consider it with grace. Parenthetically, Wawrinka was right to treat his accomplishment without an asterisk; he played so well that he would have conceivably beaten anybody at full strength. In any case, the US Open is readying for another titleholder. Its defending champion has fallen by the wayside. A new one is ready to be crowned.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.
