US Open [Men] 2026 - Grand Slam

[Federberg]

Were we watching the same match. The majority of his groundies were poor. So many FH's and BH's in the net, I lost count. At one point he went on a 9 game losing streak. I'm sure some of that is fitness and conditioning related. He's not used to being out there for that length of time yet. The only shot he executed supremely was his volley. Taking nothing away from Ben who played the match of his life, but that's the kind of effort it was going to take. I hope he has another 1 or 2 matches like that left on his dance card, because that's what it will take to claim the title.

as I said I wasn't watching That's why I said I "got the sense". Through out the tournament he hasn't been serving with the same level of spite he had here last year or even in Australia. Thanks for the correction. All I saw was he got broken a lot and I assumed it was his serving

Anyway like you I think it'll take a colossal effort to beat Sasha. He seems to be playing very much within himself as he progresses through the rounds. But again.. I'm happy to be told I'm wrong. I'm not watching any of the night matches on this side of the pond

 

[kskate2]

as I said I wasn't watching That's why I said I "got the sense". Through out the tournament he hasn't been serving with the same level of spite he had here last year or even in Australia. Thanks for the correction. All I saw was he got broken a lot and I assumed it was his serving

Anyway like you I think it'll take a colossal effort to beat Sasha. He seems to be playing very much within himself as he progresses through the rounds. But again.. I'm happy to be told I'm wrong. I'm not watching any of the night matches on this side of the pond

Understood friend. I'm on this side of the pond and I didn't watch it all live. Got up this morning and watched the rest on replay. A good outing for him in his first tourney back. Zed will be tough to beat especially knowing there's no Chuck waiting for him in the final.

 

[El Dude]

How can you not like this guy?



I mean, he's probably over-indulging in Ibiza orgies, but can you blame the guy?

 

[mrzz]

Go, Kacha, go!


Bash them until your racquet starts bleeding!

 

[Shivashish Sarkar]

I would go with Novak all the way. He is the gutsiest player out there. The best player under pressure and the only guy who can play against the current and still make it.

 

[Shivashish Sarkar]

Roger was poetry in motion. no doubt.. If your family life depended on it who would be the one player that you would trust the most. Roger, Rafa or the all time slam leader Novak. I always said for me its Rafa because he played like someone was trying to take food from the Nadal family table. Its all about preference. If it was a female I would choose prime Serena SLAM Serena. I still say that the greatest competitors I have ever seen ever was Jordan, Tiger, Serena, Kobe and Rafa. I think when its all said and done when it actually kicks in everyone's psychic, knowing Nadal played with a dying bone in his foot since he was a teenager will be who is thought of in Godlike terms.

I would go with Novak. He is the gutsiest player out there. The best player under pressure and the only guy who can play against the current and still make it. Roger is nice and elegant but cannot grind a lot. Rafa can grind and has a powerhouse of energy but somewhat lacks teeth and doesn't have a gameplan on faster courts but Novak has it all the intelligence, the grit and the round the year mastery on most courts.

 

[Shivashish Sarkar]

Alcaraz is very charismatic and likable. I'd say Jannik is also very likable, but he seems more of a "strong silent type" so doesn't that Carlos smile. I really like the contrast in their personalities; you have to be a real shmuck to actively dislike either.

In a way, Sinner is like a nicer version of Lendl, but he also reminds me a bit of Borg, in terms of on-court demeanor. He never seems to get flustered or angry, very rarely upset. Carlos reminds me of an overgrown boy.

Alcaraz has more charisma and charm. Sinner is a down to earth professional. Alcaraz is the more marketable character. I find Sinner extremely boring.

 

[Shivashish Sarkar]

Okay just to go off on a tangent why didn't Denis Shapovalov develop more? When he first came I liked his game and everything and he had a lot of on court personality and charisma. Everything wore off eventually. He had a nice and stylish game too. Really liked him. So what exactly happened to him and he stalled?

 

[the AntiPusher]

I would go with Novak. He is the gutsiest player out there. The best player under pressure and the only guy who can play against the current and still make it. Roger is nice and elegant but cannot grind a lot. Rafa can grind and has a powerhouse of energy but somewhat lacks teeth and doesn't have a gameplan on faster courts but Novak has it all the intelligence, the grit and the round the year mastery on most courts.

And you were saying @Shivashish Sarkar *Rafa aggregated rip a stomach muscle from the semi final vs Alcaraz before he played injured in the Indian Wells final vs Fritz because of his friendship with the owner of Oracle Larry Ellison who owns Indian Wells. It was not a smart move and cost him his clay season. ...There is not a majority of players or fans would validate your claim that Novak is the gutsiest player on the tour during that era; Ask Novak. he would say Nadal .

Summary of Nadal's H2H vs. Current Top 20
b

Rank	Player	Nadal's H2H Record	Notes
#1	Jannik Sinner	3–0	Nadal won all 3 meetings on clay (including twice at Roland Garros).
#2	Alexander Zverev	7–4	Zverev won their most recent match at the 2024 French Open.
#3	Carlos Alcaraz	2–1	Nadal won their first two matches, but Alcaraz took their last battle in Madrid 2022.
#4	Félix Auger-Aliassime	3–1	includes a grueling 5-set win for Nadal at Roland Garros 2022.
#5	Novak Djokovic	29–31	The most prolific rivalry in Open Era history. Djokovic won their last meeting at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
#6	Flavio Cobolli	1–0	Nadal defeated him in Barcelona (2024).
#7	Alex de Minaur	4–2	Split their final two meetings during the 2024 season.
#8	Daniil Medvedev	5–1	Highlighted by Nadal’s historic comeback win in the 2022 Australian Open Final.
#9	Ben Shelton	0–0	They never faced each other in an official ATP match.
#10	Taylor Fritz	2–2	Fritz won at Indian Wells and the ATP Finals in 2022; Nadal won an epic 5-setter at Wimbledon 2022.
#12	Frances Tiafoe	2–1	Tiafoe famously upset Nadal at the 2022 US Open.
#14	Lorenzo Musetti	0–0	They never played an official match.
#16	Alexander Bublik	0–0	They never crossed paths on the tour.
#20	Casper Ruud	2–0	Nadal beat his academy graduate in the 2022 Roland Garros Final and 2022 ATP Finals.

 

[Shivashish Sarkar]

Ofc I am splitting hairs. It is just a personal opinion what I gave.

 

[Shivashish Sarkar]

Djokovic is 31-29 up against Nadal.
Djokovic is 27-23 up against Roger.

Both have retired.

Slam count is sealed.

So what am I missing here?

Yeah I could say one thing that even though I am citing one as the best the difference between these players is very minimal or neglible. They are all pretty close and not much is there between them. It's like comparing California and Florida.

 

[Shivashish Sarkar]

What I am saying is Djokovic is like just 3-4% better than the other two

 

[Shivashish Sarkar]

Obviously this is a subjective analysis and various opinions are always there.

 

[Shivashish Sarkar]

If someone said Rafa or Roger is GOAT that would also not be wrong. It's all subjective.

 

[Shivashish Sarkar]

And you were saying @Shivashish Sarkar *Rafa aggregated rip a stomach muscle from the semi final vs Alcaraz before he played injured in the Indian Wells final vs Fritz because of his friendship with the owner of Oracle Larry Ellison who owns Indian Wells. It was not a smart move and cost him his clay season. ...There is not a majority of players or fans would validate your claim that Novak is the gutsiest player on the tour during that era; Ask Novak. he would say Nadal .

Summary of Nadal's H2H vs. Current Top 20
b

Rank	Player	Nadal's H2H Record	Notes
#1	Jannik Sinner	3–0	Nadal won all 3 meetings on clay (including twice at Roland Garros).
#2	Alexander Zverev	7–4	Zverev won their most recent match at the 2024 French Open.
#3	Carlos Alcaraz	2–1	Nadal won their first two matches, but Alcaraz took their last battle in Madrid 2022.
#4	Félix Auger-Aliassime	3–1	includes a grueling 5-set win for Nadal at Roland Garros 2022.
#5	Novak Djokovic	29–31	The most prolific rivalry in Open Era history. Djokovic won their last meeting at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
#6	Flavio Cobolli	1–0	Nadal defeated him in Barcelona (2024).
#7	Alex de Minaur	4–2	Split their final two meetings during the 2024 season.
#8	Daniil Medvedev	5–1	Highlighted by Nadal’s historic comeback win in the 2022 Australian Open Final.
#9	Ben Shelton	0–0	They never faced each other in an official ATP match.
#10	Taylor Fritz	2–2	Fritz won at Indian Wells and the ATP Finals in 2022; Nadal won an epic 5-setter at Wimbledon 2022.
#12	Frances Tiafoe	2–1	Tiafoe famously upset Nadal at the 2022 US Open.
#14	Lorenzo Musetti	0–0	They never played an official match.
#16	Alexander Bublik	0–0	They never crossed paths on the tour.
#20	Casper Ruud	2–0	Nadal beat his academy graduate in the 2022 Roland Garros Final and 2022 ATP Finals.

Interesting stat. for sure Rafa was a powerhouse of energy and for sure had a lot of that raw sportsman spirit.

 

[Shivashish Sarkar]

If not Roger then either Rafa or Novak is the GOAT. I am going for Novak but that's just my opinion.

 

[Federberg]

I would go with Novak. He is the gutsiest player out there. The best player under pressure and the only guy who can play against the current and still make it. Roger is nice and elegant but cannot grind a lot. Rafa can grind and has a powerhouse of energy but somewhat lacks teeth and doesn't have a gameplan on faster courts but Novak has it all the intelligence, the grit and the round the year mastery on most courts.

depends on the version of Roger you're talking about. The Roger post 2011? Sure he wasn't able to grind like Rafa and Novak. But before that? He could pretty much match anyone. And he was as fast as anyone. It's odd that folks forget. It just didn't work for him against Rafa and Novak because his shots generally weren't able to penetrate the court at the pace he wanted to hit and maintain consistency. That's why he was forced to change how he played. Holding to the base line, taking shots on the bounce etc. A lot of miles in him at that point. But let's not act like it wasn't enough for everyone else on the tour apart from his trinity brothers. Go back and watch 2004/2005 Federer. He figured out that the way to beat Hewitt wasn't to try to hit him off the court, but just lockdown and out rally him, until he hit a shot that was too short and could be dispatched. I don't think any of the trinity was smarter or had better game IQ than the next. They just had different advantages in different situations. Unfortunately for Roger, they gradually phased out the conditions that were best for him. It's really as simple as that

 

[Shivashish Sarkar]

depends on the version of Roger you're talking about. The Roger post 2011? Sure he wasn't able to grind like Rafa and Novak. But before that? He could pretty much match anyone. And he was as fast as anyone. It's odd that folks forget. It just didn't work for him against Rafa and Novak because his shots generally weren't able to penetrate the court at the pace he wanted to hit and maintain consistency. That's why he was forced to change how he played. Holding to the base line, taking shots on the bounce etc. A lot of miles in him at that point. But let's not act like it wasn't enough for everyone else on the tour apart from his trinity brothers. Go back and watch 2004/2005 Federer. He figured out that the way to beat Hewitt wasn't to try to hit him off the court, but just lockdown and out rally him, until he hit a shot that was too short and could be dispatched. I don't think any of the trinity was smarter or had better game IQ than the next. They just had different advantages in different situations. Unfortunately for Roger, they gradually phased out the conditions that were best for him. It's really as simple as that

hm