(Finals) Weekend Warriors

By Richard Osborn

ALWAYS A HOT TICKET, FINALS WEEKEND AT THE CINCINNATI OPEN NEVER SEEMS TO DISAPPOINT. A FIVE-YEAR LOOKBACK:

2024

Jannik Sinner def. Frances Tiafoe, 7-6(4), 6-2
Aryna Sabalenka def. Jessica Pegula, 6-3, 7-5

For the second year in a row, the Cincinnati Open would prove a foreshadowing of things to come in Flushing Meadows, with both the men’s and women’s champs going on to win the US Open. It would be a Sabalenka vs. Pegula title match on both occasions, with the reigning world No. 1 going back-to-back to claim WTA 1000 and Grand Slam trophies (and a few well-earned ‘Margarynas’). For Sabalenka, a semifinalist at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in 2018 and 2022, it marked a breakthrough. “It just shows that, no matter what happened in the past, you can always change things,” she said. “That’s really good that I was able to kind of break the wall in this tournament.” Sinner, meanwhile, was his usual dominant self in turning back a challenge from the first-time ATP Masters 1000 finalist Tiafoe. Though often a reluctant birthday boy, the Italian’s 23rd, celebrated once again in Mason, won’t soon be forgotten. “Usually, I never like birthdays, but I take it as a good present,” he said. “It means a lot to me.”

2023

Novak Djokovic def. Carlos Alcaraz, 5-7, 7-6(7), 7-6(4)
Coco Gauff def. Karolina Muchova, 6-3, 6-4

Of all the finals in the storied history of the Cincinnati Open, which traces back to the summer of 1899 and remains the oldest U.S. tennis tournament still played in its original city, the Djokovic-Alcaraz thriller — at three hours and 49 minutes the longest best-of-three final in tour history — might just be the very finest. In fact, the three-time champion Djokovic would call the matchup, which pitted the most decorated player in the annals of the sport against the Open Era’s youngest-ever No. 1, “one of the most exciting and toughest mentally, emotionally, physically that I’ve ever had in my career.” Ohioans will remember Nole’s remarks aimed at his indefatigable challenger during the trophy ceremony: “Boy, you never give up!” Only weeks later, the Serb would wrap up his record-extending 24th Slam title in New York. Gauff, on our radar since 2019 when, at the age of 15, she shocked idol Venus Williams en route to the Round of 16 at Wimbledon, would truly come into her own that summer. The American topped the Czech powerballer Muchova to snare her maiden WTA 1000 crown in Cincinnati, then carried that momentum to her first major singles title at the US Open.

2022

Borna Coric def. Stefanos Tsitsipas, 7-6(0), 6-2
Caroline Garcia def. Petra Kvitova, 6-2, 6-4

‘Redemption’ was a recurring theme at the 2022 Cincinnati Open. Coric, once a #NextGenATP poster boy who reached a career-high No. 12 in the PIF ATP Rankings in 2018, had been through the wringer, slowed by everything from knee and shoulder surgeries to hamstring, abdominal and back injuries — by 2022 outside the Top 200 and all but an afterthought. The Croat put all that behind him in Cincinnati, where he outslugged Tsitsipas to become the lowest-ranked champion in ATP Masters 1000 history. “I have no words, to be honest. It’s just an unbelievable feeling,” he said. On the women’s side, Garcia, once ranked as high as No. 4 in the world but now relegated to the qualifying draw, reeled off eight straight matches — including three main-draw wins over Top-10 opponents — to become the first-ever qualifier to win a WTA 1000 tournament. “Pure joy” was how she described her achievement following her dismissal of the two-time Wimbledon titlist Kvitova. “I guess no one expected it. It’s a long way to come from qualies.”

2021

Alexander Zverev def. Andrey Rublev, 6-2, 6-3
Ashleigh Barty def. Jil Teichmann, 6-3, 6-1

The multi-sport wonder Barty was in peak form in her last full year on the WTA Tour, adding to her trophy count with titles in Melbourne (Yarra Valley Classic), Miami, Stuttgart, Wimbledon and Cincinnati. So dominant was the then-25-year-old baseliner that she didn’t drop a set through five matches in Ohio. “It’s a beauty, this trophy,” said Barty, admiring the Rookwood Cup. “I have some of my best memories here playing in Cincy. To now add a title to those nice memories is really cool.” Little did we know then that she would go on to capture the 2022 Australian Open title (the first Australian woman to do so since 1978), then promptly walk away from the sport for good. Zverev didn’t necessarily share Barty’s sentiment about the Queen City, and who could blame him? He was winless in his first six main-draw matches at the Lindner Family Tennis Center. But the German finally found his footing here in 2021, downing Rublev in the title match. “I really like Cincinnati nowadays,” laughed Zverev earlier this year in Indian Wells. “I found my happy place there in a way. I stay at the same house. My family usually comes, my girlfriend comes. It’s always a very familiar kind of situation for me now, which is very nice. I feel comfort in that.”

2020

Novak Djokovic def. Milos Raonic, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4
Victoria Azarenka def. Naomi Osaka, walkover

The COVID-19 pandemic forced everyone to readjust. The 2020 Cincinnati Open was no exception. In order to reduce travel, the tournament was temporarily relocated to the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, centralizing the event and the US Open in one venue. While the new environs took some getting used to, the usual cast of characters got busy doing their thing. Djokovic would withstand a three-set power-serving barrage from Canada’s Raonic, completing a double-career Golden Masters and matching longtime foe Rafael Nadal with his co-record 35th ATP Masters 1000 title. With Osaka unable to contest the women’s final due to a hamstring injury, the former No. 1 Azaranka would claim her first tour-level singles title in four years, and her first since giving birth to her son, Leo, in December 2016. (Osaka would heal on the quick and go on to capture her second US Open title.)