Last 5 players to make their Grand Slam breakthrough at US Open ft Daniil Medvedev, Andy Murray
The US Open, especially in recent years, has seen a spate of players making their Grand Slam breakthroughs.
It's not difficult to understand why. With the tournament coming at the end of an exhausting North American summer, many players tend to struggle with the heat and humidity in the country at this time of the year. This invariably has led to many first-time Major winner at Flushing Meadows.
To put that into context, since the turn of the century, eight players have made their Major breakthrough at the US Open. That's almost as many at the three other Majors combined - Australian Open (3), Roland Garros (4), Wimbledon (2) - in the same period.
An unforgettable run 🤩
Go inside @rogerfederer's five-peat between 2004 and 2008 at the US Open.
On that note, here's a look at the last five players to win their first Grand Slam title at the US Open:
#5 Daniil Medvedev - 2021
Daniil Medvedev was the last man standing at the US Open last year. Two years after falling short against Rafael Nadal in his first Major final at Flushing Meadows, Medvedev was not in a similar mood at the 2021 US Open.
He produced a near perfect campaign at Flushing Meadows, dropping his only set of the fortnight against Botic van de Zandschlup in the last eight. Medvedev then beat first-time Major semifinalist Felix Auger-Aliassime to reach his second US Open final in three years.
Facing Djokovic in the final, the Russian won in straight-sets to deny the Serb a historic calendar year Grand Slam as Medvedev entered the Grand Slam winner's circle.
Earlier in the year, Medvedev lost to Djokovic in the Australian Open title match.
Daniil Medvedev stuns Novak Djokovic in straight sets to win the #USOpen https://t.co/Ksup0ClAEI
A year later, the World No. 1 - in the potential absence of the 'Big 3' of Roger Federer, Nadal and Djokovic - would be a huge favourite to go back-to-back at Flushing Meadows.
#4 Dominic Thiem - 2020
After falling short in his first three Major finals, Dominic Thiem was fourth-time lucky at the 2020 US Open. The Austrian had to do it the hard way, though, recovering from two sets down to prevail in a fifth-set tiebreak against his good friend Alexander Zverev.
Thiem started his campaign by cruising through the first set for the loss of a set - in the third round against 2014 winner Marin Cilic. The Austrian reeled off two more straight-set wins but seemed to meet his match against Zverev.
However, Thiem dug deep, coming within two points of defeat before becoming the first US Open winner in the Open Era to recover from two-sets-to-love down in the final.
THIEM'S TIME IS NOW ⏰
Dominic Thiem is a #USOpen champion. https://t.co/morydl1MSY
The Austrian is also the first player born in the 1990s to become a Major winner and the first Austrian to do so in more than two decades.
#3 Marin Cilic - 2014
Marin Cilic enjoyed the finest fortnight of his career at Flushing Meadows in 2014. He blitzed past five-time winner Roger Federer in straight sets in the semifinals, playing lights-out tennis to reach his first Major final.
Cilic then repeated the trick against his fellow first-time winner Kei Nishikori, becoming the first Croatian Major winner since Goran Ivanisevic in 2001. Incidentally, Cilic also won his quarterfinal clash against Tomas Berdych in straight sets.
#Cilic is the champion! The No. 14 seed wins his first Slam title, d. #Nishikori 6-3, 6-3, 6-3. #usopen http://t.co/zzEra5dBhV
The 14th seed had a rough start to his campaign, dropping three sets en route to the second week, which is where his tennis reached another level. Cilic is one of the lowest seeds to triumph at Flushing Meadows.
#2 Andy Murray - 2012
Andy Murray entered the Major winner's circle at the 2012 US Open. Determined to avoid becoming the first player in the Open Era to lose their first five Major finals, Murray started like a house on fire against defending champion Novak Djokovic in the final.
The Scot opened up a two-sets-to-love lead before Djokovic won the next two to force a decider. Murray, though, reclaimed the ascendancy of proceedings, dropping just two games in the decider against the injured Djokovic to become the first British Grand Slam winner in 76 years.
Andy Murray claims his first #tennis Grand Slam title, winning a five-set epic at the #USOpen against Novak Djokovic bbc.in/Qa2Jmy
Murray dropped just one set in the first week before things got tough in the second. The Scot survived a couple of four-set clashes against Marin Cilic and Tomas Berdych in the next two rounds before beating Djokovic in five to register the biggest win of his career.
The 35-year-old has stood on the winner's podium of a Major twice since then - both at Wimbledon (2013 and 2016).
#1 Juan Martin Del Potro (2009)
Juan Martin Del Potro produced one of the biggest recent upsets at Flushing Meadows when he beat five-time reigning champion Roger Federer in a five-set final in 2009.
The then 20-year-old looked down and out as Federer moved to within two points of a two-sets-to-love lead on serve. However, Del Potro broke back to level proceedings before Federer took the all-important third set.
The Argentine then came within two points of defeat in the fourth set before forcing a decider, marking the first time in 10 years a US Open final went the distance. Del Potro would concede just two games in the fifth set, blitzing powerful forehand winners past a stunned Federer, who failed to muster a response.
11 years ago today, 20-year-old Juan Martin del Potro stopped Roger Federer's 5-year title streak and won his first Grand Slam 🏆
@delpotrojuan I #USOpen
https://t.co/8e5otynDbT
In the process, Del Potro became the first Argentine Major winner since Guillermo Vilas (1977). Meanwhile, Federer narrowly failed to become the first player since Bill Tilden (1925) to do a six-peat at the the New York Major.
Defeat meant the Swiss failed to become the first player in the Open Era since Rod Laver (1969) to win the surface Slam, having won Roland Garros (clay) and Wimbledon (grass) earlier in the year.