Rafael Nadal and Daniil Medvedev may be among the favourites to win the US Open, starting in New York on Monday, but Spanish teen Carlos Alcaraz is the future of tennis, feels Indian tennis icon Vijay Amritraj.
“There were years when we got used to seeing the top few men winning all the grand slams. It was all (Roger) Federer, Novak (Djokovic) and (Rafael) Nadal. But now you have the Medvedevs, the Tsitsipas’s, the Sinners, the Alcarazs. It is a whole new generation that has come up,” Amritraj said during a virtual interaction on Friday. “Among them I feel Alcaraz is the real deal. He is a complete player. He has spectacular movement. The media termed him as the next Nadal very quickly. That may put a little pressure on him. But I feel he can handle it and he is the future of our game.”
Asked how far into the tournament can Serena Williams go this time, having already declared this will be her last grand slam, Amritraj said: “It really doesn’t matter. This US Open is more about her retirement than her performance. When you have won so much you are by far the greatest… there is no question about it.
“Perhaps the last time we spoke so highly about a tennis champion was Steffi Graf when she won the Golden Slam. But what Serena and her sister Venus have done for tennis is the single greatest achievement in any sport. You can talk about Tiger Woods, Usain Bolt, Carl Lewis, Michael Schumacher — any sport — I think the sisters supersede all of them.”
Talking about who might win the US Open this time, Amritraj said it just might be a bit tough for Nadal who has not played on hardcourts for a while. “It may be tough for him to play five-setters. It may not be a cakewalk. Medvedev is the top seed and a natural favourite. But I feel this time the field is a lot more open. “Among women, of course there is Iga (Swiatek). Her winning streak had been fantastic. But what makes women’s tennis so exciting now is the fact that anyone can win.
“Last year here we had two teenagers in the final who came from nowhere. When Emma (Raducanu) defeated Leylah (Fernandez) she became the first qualifier to reach and win a major final. “At Wimbledon this year, we had Elena Rybakina lifting the trophy. So anything can happen.” The US Open will be live on Sony Six and Sony Ten from August 29.
