Men’s tennis is in a state of flux at the moment, but old masters like Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal are back and favourites to add to their glorious CVs at the US Open
The favourites
Roger Federer
As astonishing as ever despite turning 36 recently, the Swiss master heads to New York as the favourite to claim his 20th grand slam title, having spent the past eight months meeting adversity like it is a single-handed backhand waiting to be flayed down the line. Federer has not reigned at the US Open for nine years, but the five-times champion was a finalist in 2015 and has already won the Australian Open and Wimbledon this year, shattering any notion that it was time for the greatest player in the history of the game to let go of his racket. He is not entirely without doubts, though. There is concern about the stiff back that troubled him in Montreal and forced him to pull out of Cincinnati. However his awesome return from six months out with a knee injury is proof that Federer knows how to manage his body.
Rafael Nadal
Back on top of the world for the first time in more than three years, the Spaniard will regard this as a wonderful opportunity to win his third US Open title. However while Nadal has enjoyed a fruitful year, reaching the final of the Australian Open and romping to his 10th French Open title, it must be remembered that his return to No1 comes at a time when many of his main rivals are struggling with form and fitness. Injury problems for Andy Murray and Federer made Nadal’s rise inevitable, in spite of his underwhelming results in Cincinnati and Montreal. Fans of the Federer-Nadal rivalry are aching to see them in the final of the one grand slam where the two legends have never met. If Nadal is at his best, Federer is probably the only man who can beat him. Yet the 2010 and 2013 champion has struggled at Flushing Meadows recently: absent in 2014, he lost from two sets up to Fabio Fognini in the third round in 2015 and in the fourth round to Lucas Pouille last year. It will be fascinating to see how much he has left in the tank after an intense season.
Alex Zverev
The game’s brightest young star offered another outstanding display of his potential by outplaying Federer to collect his second Masters 1000 title in Montreal and add to the one he claimed at the expense of Novak Djokovic in Rome in May. The tall German with the long locks and expansive game is building quite the reputation for himself thanks to fearless performances against the greats of the game and he is widely tipped as a future world No1. The 20-year-old still has plenty to prove, of course, and has only reached the second week of a major once, losing to Milos Raonic in the last 16 at Wimbledon last month, but it does not look like it will be long before he is challenging for the biggest honours. Judging by his win over Federer, he possesses the necessary self-belief to pull off a stunning feat in New York. Nobody will be surprised if he goes deep into the tournament.
Marin Čilić
Men’s tennis is in a state of flux at the moment, with many of the top players worn down by the grind of the tour. Djokovic, Stan Wawrinka and Kei Nishikori are all out for the rest of the year, while Čilić has not played since Wimbledon, an adductor injury preventing him from defending his Cincinnati title. The powerful Croatian, who won the hearts of neutrals by weeping during his defeat to Federer in the final at SW19, should be a major contender in such an open field, but the 2014 champion might be rusty in the first week.
Three to watch
Grigor Dimitrov
The Bulgarian has returned to the top 10 after making the most of withdrawals elsewhere to win his first ATP Masters tournament in Cincinnati last weekend, dominating Nick Kyrgios in a one-sided final. The world No9 has not quite lived up to the hype surrounding him a few years ago and his flakiness makes it difficult to back him with much confidence, with his timid defeat to Federer at Wimbledon made a mockery of the Baby Fed nickname, but a man of his vast ability could go far if the draw opens up.
Dominic Thiem
The Austrian remains impressive on clay but less convincing on other surfaces. In Paris the 23-year-old demolished Djokovic in their quarter-final. But at Wimbledon the world No8 lost to the experienced Tomas Berdych and he has disappointed during the build-up to the US Open, falling to Kevin Anderson in Washington, Diego Schwartzman in Montreal and David Ferrer in Cincinnati. He faces a fight to better his fourth-round appearances in 2014 and 2016.
Nick Kyrgios
“Tennis is just a game,” the Australian said shortly before losing to Dimitrov in Cincinatti. It is one he plays better than most when he is fit and focused. But the problem is that moments like last week’s crushing win over Nadal are rare. The 22-year-old continues to mix flashes of brilliance with early retirements from matches and hints that he does not care enough about the sport. Before getting too excited about the world No18’s run in Cincinnati, remember that he has not been past the second round of a slam this year.
Keep an eye on...
With Djokovic, Murray and Wawrinka absent, there is a chance that we will see a few surprise faces in the latter stages. Look out for Denis Shapovalov, the Canadian teenager who stunned Nadal in Montreal. American fans will hope Sam Querrey can build on his semi-final appearance at Wimbledon, while John Isnerhas risen to 14th in the world after a strong run in Cincinnati, but Jack Sock’s form is not encouraging. Mostly the ground looks thin, though. Let’s all hope that 2009 champion Juan Martin del Potro is up for a resurgence, then.
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