World’s best shrugs off drugs saga as American dream crushed in US Open stunner

It has been a testing few months for Sinner, who found himself in the midst of a doping saga and more recently has been worrying about the health of an aunt who was particularly close to him, he said on Arthur Ashe Stadium after his triumph in 2hr 15min.

“This title for me means so much. The last period of my career was really not easy,” he said.

“My team who supports me every day, the people who are close to me, I love tennis. I practice a lot for these kind of stages but I also realise off the court there is a life.

“I would like to dedicate this title to my aunt because she is not feeling well health wise. I don’t know how much longer I will have her in my life. If there would be a biggest wish, I would wish everyone the best health, but unfortunately it is not possible.”

Spanish sensation Carlos Alcaraz has an edge on natural surfaces, having completed the “Channel Double” at Roland Garros and Wimbledon over the northern summer.

But Sinner is supreme on hard courts where the bounce is truer, as evidenced by his successes in the two hard court majors this year and also the other premier events on the surface.

Of the Masters events on hard courts this year, Alcaraz defeated Sinner in a semifinal in Indian Wells when picking up the title, only for Sinner to bounce back to win the Miami Open. He had previously defeated Alex de Minaur in the final of a tournament in Rotterdam.

When the circuit returned to North America, he fell to Andrey Rublev in a quarterfinal of the Montreal Masters that was claimed by Australian Alexei Popyrin.

But he was dominant in Cincinnati when too strong for Frances Tiafoe and again through much of the US Open. He is just the fourth man in more than 50 years to win their first two major titles in the same season.

After dropping the opening set of the tournament against American Mackenzie McDonald, the only other set he lost for the fortnight was against 2021 champion Daniil Medvedev in the quarterfinals.

“I did pretty well, I guess. We just went day by day, trying to practice well … and believing in myself, which is the most important,” he said.

“I am very happy and very proud to share this moment with my team. I would like to thank everyone for being so fair in this amazing arena. It was an absolute pleasure.”

It is the first season since 2002 that no member of the Big 3 — Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic — managed to win a major title and it is not surprising that Alcaraz and Sinner, the two stars tipped to lead the next generation, have dominated the majors.

Sinner and Alcaraz present as the future of the sport but the Italian praised the performance of Fritz, who looked a little flat after progressing to his first major final via a highly-physical five set encounter against compatriot Frances Tiafoe on Friday night.

“Taylor, I know how much work he puts in. You are doing an amazing job. It is so nice to see you in big stages like this and I am quite sure you are going to play in many of these,” Sinner said.

Fritz, who will return to the top 10 courtesy of his stellar fortnight, said the level Sinner is playing at is amazing. He apologised to a capacity crowd inside Arthur Ashe Stadium that included Taylor Swift and her partner Travis Kelce, along with three-time Superbowl winning quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

“Being an American at the US Open is incredible,” he said.

“ I know we have been waiting for a champion for a long time and I am sorry I couldn’t get it done this time, but I am going to keep working and hopefully I will get it the next time.”

Sinner was supreme throughout the fortnight despite the controversy that unfolded prior to the tournament beginning.

It was revealed the 23-year-old, whose run of dominance on hard courts began when he defeated de Minaur to win the Montreal Masters in August, 2023, had tested positive to a banned substance twice in March.

As an investigation continued behind the scenes, Sinner was allowed to keep playing given his team identified almost immediately the source of the likely contributor — his masseuse — that resulted in the positive test.

He was subsequently found to be at no fault in August, but it inflamed criticism from some rivals who claimed there was one rule for the wealthy or successful when it came to serving temporary suspensions and less leeway for lower-ranked players.

To be clear, Sinner was found to have done no wrong and the Italian followed each step required of him once alerted to the banned substance in his system.

But he did sack his training staff as a result of the contamination and was subjected to a series of questions about the saga on the eve of the tournament.