The last grand slam final of the year – the men’s US Open final. The 1st seed, Djokovic, was up against the 2nd seed, Medvedev. Djokovic was going for history as he aimed to get career grand slam number 21 and surpass Federer and Nadal. He was also playing for the calendar grand slam which was last achieved by a male back in 1969 when Rod Laver achieved it.

Djokovic was serving first and and went up in his service game 40-15 before losing 4 points in a row and handing the first break of the match to the Russian. Medvedev started off strong as he took his first service game to 15. Djokovic then went down 15-40 before winning 4 straight points and he was on the board. A nervy start from the world number 1. A love hold from Medvedev and Djokovic was serving again in a blink of an eye. Both players held serve comfortably until the end of the set. Medvedev dropping only 3 points on serve. An astonishing feat against one of the best returners the game as ever seen. At the beginning of the second set the crowd expected a resurgent Djokovic. He held serve to love and then was up 0-40 in Medvedev’s service game. A poor drop shot but Djokovic didn’t put it away and Medvedev was still in his service game. An ace and an unforced error and somehow to the crowd’s disbelief Djokovic hadn’t broken. Medvedev won the next 2 points to make it 5 points in a row and we were level at 1-1. Djokovic didn’t have an easy service game this time. He had to fend off a break point but he managed to hold and lead 2-1. Djokovic was still surprisingly not interacting with his box or the crowd. The nerves were definitely showing. Another long Medvedev service game where he had to save 2 more break points but he held and it was 2-2. A poor service game from Djokovic and Medvedev had the first break of the 2nd set. That was enough as his serving came right and held comfortably for the rest of the set. He led by 2 sets to love and was 1 set away from crushing Djokovic’s dream and 1 set away from his first grand slam. Djokovic led his first service game 30-0 before Medvedev won 4 straight points and he led by 2 sets and a break. A tough hold followed and he led 2-0. Once again Djokovic couldn’t convert his game points and to the surprise of many Djokovic was a double break down and it looked like the pressure had got to him. A quick hold from Medvedev and he led 4-0. It was going to take something special to get back into the match now. A hold from each player and Medvedev was a game away from winning the US Open. Djokovic held his nerve and forced the Russian to serve it out. Medvedev was 40-30 and it was championship point. The crowd was noisy and wouldn’t keep quiet which meant there was a lengthy delay before Medvedev served. A double fault and Djokovic was still in the match. Another double fault and now for the first time the nerves were getting to Medvedev. A unforced error and Djokovic had broken for the first time in the match. A quick hold and Medvedev had a second chance to serve it out as he led 5-4. 3 solid points after being meant he led 4-15 and a further 2 championship points for the Russian. Once again though he served a double fault. Thankfully for Medvedev he found a first serve which wasn’t returned and he was the US Open Champion. What a US Open 2021. 2 first time champions, major upsets, close matches, the US Open had it all.

Medvedev scored 16 points on day 14 with Djokovic scoring 5. This meant that some people scored a massive 21 points which influenced the leaderboard. With Medvedev winning it means that no one managed to pick both the male and female winners. NB: The teams in yellow picked 1 of the winners, either Medvedev or Raducanu. The teams in red picked none of the winners.

Congratulations to ‘Lorna’s Leaderboard’ as she becomes the 4th different winner of Jared’s Fantasy Tennis League. In second place just 8 points behind and moving up 1 spot was ‘Chalk Dust’. ‘Guys and Dolls’ dropped a spot but still remained on the podium in 3rd place. ‘Stentastics’ finish in the top 5 for the second time in a row. 3rd place at Wimbledon and now 4th place at the US Open. The last prize position was taken by ‘Rough’ who moved up 2 spots to come 5th and grab the last prize position.

Prizes for the US Open 2021:

1. Lorna’s Leaderboard – R1000
2. Chalk Dust – R500
3. Guys and Dolls – R250
4. Stentastics – R150
5. Rough – R80

I want to say a huge thanks to everyone who entered throughout the year. I hope it has been great fun and I hope you are as excited as me for the Aussie Open in 2022.

Men’s final:

• Medvedev(2) beat Djokovic(1) – 6-4; 6-4; 6-4

Jared

Jared matriculated in 2020 from Wynberg Boys High School in beautiful Cape Town, South Africa. His passion for tennis afforded him the opportunity of travelling to Europe. He is a quizmaster and a fantasy organiser.