Croatian Marin Cilic had too much ammunition for Japan’s Kei Nishkori, and that was the difference in the US Open final at Flushing Meadows this morning.
Cilic never lost control of the one-sided decider, winning 6-3 6-3 6-3 in just an hour and 43 minutes.
It was his first Grand Slam victory, and the second outside the big four this year, along with Stanislas Wawrinka’s win at the Australian Open.
It doesn’t matter where you look at the straight sets stats, Cilic was calling the shots.
Aces – Cilic 17-2.
Break points converted – Cilic 11 of 13 (85%), Nishikori one of nine (11%).
Fastest serve – Cilic 134mph, Nishikori 118mph.
Unforced errors – Cilic 27 to 30.
Total points won – Cilic 93 to 68.
To be fair to Nishikori, he had two marathon matches leading into the final, while Cilic had a virtual armchair ride by comparison.
Nishikori took over eight hours to beat Stan Wawrinka in five sets, and Novak Djokovic in four, while Cilic took a mere 3 hours 50 to down Tomas Berdych and Roger Federer, both in straight sets.
But then the old saying that a good big man will generally beat a good little man, holds water as well.
Cilic stands 198cms, Nishikori 178cms – giving Cilic so much more wing span advantage in long baseline rallies.
It was great for both to reach their first Grand Slam finals, but it wasn’t a decider for the ages. Apart from a few bright moments, it was all rather “ho-hum”
Cilic was seriously dominant throughout, with his weapon of a forehand complementing his booming serve, and Nishikori simply struggled to keep up through all three sets.
But that wasn’t the case in the man’s doubles, where the American Bryan twins Bob and Mike set a new Slam record of 16 wins, and a career record of 100 ATP titles.
And for the future of Australian tennis, 17-year-old Victorian leftie Omar Jasika enjoyed Flushing Meadows with the double – winning the boys singles, and doubles finals.
Nick Kyrgios was the last Australian to win a Slam boys singles when he took out the Australian Open title last year, and before him Luke Saville won the Australian Open and Wimbledon crowns in 2012.
Both are still on the right track.
So the future for Australian tennis is looking good after a long drought, but be patient, don’t hold your breath waiting.
But today is Cilic’s day.
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