We played a spirited 2 hours of tennis yesterday at the Yunnusobod National Tennis Club. In the first doubles set, Owen and Nadia defeated Oliver and me 6-4. We then moved to rotating singles sets of three for the remaining time. Owen has surpassed all of us! Oliver was a bit rusty but is such a better player due to playing more. Both of them are good athletes. Nadia and I love tennis and spending time together with the boys was so rewarding.
We are looking forward to following the first Grand Slam Tournament of the season, the Australian Open. I read 1.1 million people attended last year’s AO over the two-week tournament. I usually do a post previewing the ATP season and this year is no exception. My favorite player, Novak Djokovic ended the 2024 season ranked #7. He is the last of the “Big Three” left and his defeating Carlos Alcaraz in last summer’s Olympics to earn his first Gold Medal was the highlight of the season. It was the one goal that he wanted to reach before retiring. He is 37 years old and is established as the greatest player of all time. Older players are always at risk of an injury ending their career, so I am hoping he can stay healthy and have a chance of getting another Grand Slam title. It is all gravy at this point in his career.
The top players, Jannick Sinner (#1 – 73 wins – 6 losses in 2024), Carlos Alcaraz (#3 54-13) and Daniel Medvedev (#5 46-21) are better than Nole at this point in his career. He will need some luck in the draws to get him a Grand Slam this season. I hope he gets one! There are several Americans who have stepped up, including Taylor Fritz (#4 53-23) and Tommy Paul (#12 45-19). I really would like an American to win a Grand Slam. It has been 22 years (2003) since Andre Agassi (Australian Open) and Andy Roddick (US Open) since an American won a Grand Slam. Fritz lost in the US Open final to Sinner last year. Can he or Tommy Paul get to the top? I also see Americans Frances Tiafoe (#18) Ben Shelton (#21) and Sebastian Korda (#22) sitting a couple of tiers below the top group. Other stories to watch is will Alex Zverev (#2 69-21) finally win a Grand Slam. He is the most successful player who never won a Grand Slam. Jannick Sinner is clearly the best player in the world and won 8 titles last season. I listened to a fascinating interview with John McEnroe on Andy Roddick’s podcast, Served. He pointed out the evolution of the game to bigger, taller players dominating play. Alcaraz will have to fight through that being only 6 feet tall, against Sinner, Zverev, Fritz, Medvedev, all over 6-4.
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