Alcaraz, Swiatek usher in refreshing change
A new champion is born in New York. When Carlos Alcaraz woke up on Monday morning with the US Open trophy, he would have realised he had done something no one had achieved in 50 years. A teen world No 1. That, though, isn’t the shock. Sports buffs following men’s tennis in the last 18 months or so knew it was just a matter of time. He came in with loads of talent but crucially married that talent with hard work and performance. He had won main draw matches at the tour level as a 16-year-old. Wins in the Grand Slams followed soon after.
The hype train was in overdrive, but unlike other top men’s players, he had already won a Major in a blink. What’s so exciting about the Spaniard is his ability to make the sport a day-out at the local cinema. His athleticism, shot-making and no-holds-barred approach when tackling the biggest of points have already made him a crowd favourite. Alcaraz is cut from a different cloth. You can already say he’s the real deal. The last teen to be this sure of himself on the men’s side was perhaps Rafael Nadal more than 15 years ago. The next challenge for him is to show he can do this in a field comprising Novak Djokovic.
While it would not be right to claim that the era of the Big Three is over, you can safely say that the biggest challenge that the troika would encounter is here. There was also the emergence of somebody similar among women, just as Serena Williams seemingly called time on her career. Enter Pole Iga Swiatek, who coasted to a third Major. Unlike in the men’s field, the women haven’t had a figurehead who has dominated the sport over the last few seasons. That is set to change with Swiatek.
The 21-year-old has won two of the last three Slams, and her overall game is well developed to excel on multiple surfaces. Perhaps, Alcaraz, Swiatek and the next-gen players like Casper Ruud and Frances Tiafoe could be the refreshing change tennis has been eagerly waiting for. From the Indian perspective, though, the US Open was the culmination of a disappointing season. None of the players managed to enter the third qualifying round in singles, a fair reflection of the levels we are at right now. Something that needs to change fast.