As the sun set on Flushing Meadows on Sunday evening, Rod Laver still is the last man to win the Grand Slam.
Novak Djokovic’s bid ended in the U.S. Open finals when he played shakily and nervously in the first two sets and lost in three sets, 4-6, 4-6, 4-6, to No. 2 seed Daniil Medvedev at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Djokovic had won the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon and needed the Open to complete the historic sweep known as the Grand Slam, which hasn’t been done since Laver’s 1969 milestone. The defeat also keeps Djokovic at 20 majors — still tied with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
Djokovic had terrific fan support, even applauded when, in an unseemly manner,he smashed his racket and damaged it during the second set as Medvedev went up a game point. There were scattered boos at Djokovic’s temper tantrum but he was cheered heavily when he went back onto the court with a new racket.
Djokovic received a standing ovation as he took the court to start the match but never got into his groove as Medvedev served brilliantly in the first set after he broke Djokovic in the first game.
Medvedev, in winning his first major, served eight aces and notched three service winners in the opening set and never came close to facing a break point. Djokovic served well after the opening-game break in the first set but couldn’t touch Medvedev, who won 90 percent of his first serves.
Djokovic came into the finals having played five-and-half more hours than Medvedev during the fortnight.
Medvedev, a 2019 Open finalist, had dropped just one set in his first six matches while Djokovic played five four-setters.
But nerves with all the pressure on him may have also did in the 34-year-old Serbian.
The celebrities were out for Djokovic, with Brad Pitt, Bradley Cooper, Alec Baldwin, Ben Stiller, Chuck Scarborough, Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, Kim Clijsters and Henrik Lundqvist all in attendance.
