A mostly upset-free men’s draw at the 2014 US Open will climax with a final between two opponents nobody could have predicted would reach their first Grand Slam final.
Kei Nishikori and Marin Cilic will meet in the first Grand Slam final not to feature any of tennis’ so-called “Big Four” since the 2005 Australian Open, when fourth seed Marat Safin toppled local hope Lleyton Hewitt in four sets to win his second Grand Slam title.
Never before has a Grand Slam final ended up being between two underdogs, but there’s no doubt that tennis fans would love nothing more than for some fresh new faces to take over after a decade of domination by Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
And that’s exactly what will happen when Japan’s Nishikori and Croatia’s Cilic meet on Tuesday morning (AEST).
Looking at the road to the final of both players, we can see that the two players have removed five top-eight seeds out of a possible six.
Nishikori’s scalps included Wimbledon semifinalist Milos Raonic, Australian Open champion Stan Wawrinka and world number one Novak Djokovic, whom he also defeated at Basel in 2011.
Among Cilic’s victims include former Australian Open finalist Marcos Baghdatis, former Wimbledon finalist Tomas Berdych and 17-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer.
Their ability to put out the big names is what makes Tuesday morning’s final the battle of the giant-killers. And whoever wins will forever etch their name into tennis history as a Grand Slam champion.
Both will also look to put some recent poor history at the tournament behind them. Nishikori lost in the first round last year to British qualifier Daniel Evans, while Cilic missed last year’s tournament due to a doping ban.
As far as experience goes, Cilic is the only one of the two finalists who has previously reached a Grand Slam semifinal, having gone that far at the 2010 Australian Open, losing to Andy Murray.
He is the first Croat, male or female, to reach a Grand Slam final since his coach, Goran Ivanisevic, famously won Wimbledon in 2001 as a wildcard entry ranked 125 in the world.
For the Japanese, this is uncharted territory, having never previously gone past the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam tournament. Prior to the US Open, he has reached the last eight on two occasions, losing to Murray at the 2012 Australian Open and then losing to Nadal at last year’s French Open.
He is the first Asian man to reach a Grand Slam final and his run comes on the back of Li Na (China) breaking through for the women, whereby she has won two Grand Slam titles from four final appearances.
And so, the stage is set for what should be an interesting match between two underdogs that deserve their place in the final. The big question will be which one will break through?
The verdict
Both players, as already mentioned before, carry giant-killing form into the final, with five top-eight seeds among the victims, including the top two seeds, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer.
Both players are coached by former Grand Slam champions – Michael Chang, who won the French Open in 1989 aged 17, is Nishikori’s coach, while in Cilic’s corner is Ivanisevic.
It will, therefore, be interesting to see what effect their coaching can have on the players. Both will be nervous and it can sometimes be easy to crumble under the pressure.
Therefore, the big question will be who will handle the occasion better. Nishikori might lead the head-to-head easily, but it’s Cilic who has won their only meeting at Grand Slam level, a third-rounder here at the US Open two years ago.
Additionally, Cilic knows what it’s like to taste Grand Slam success, having won the boys’ title at the 2005 French Open. But given the form that both players have showed over the past fortnight, it’ll be difficult to predict a winner with real confidence.
Prediction
Kei Nishikori in four sets.
Stats
Head-to-head: Nishikori leads 5-2
Head-to-head at Grand Slams: Cilic 1-0
Last meeting: Nishikori won 6-1, 6-3, quarter-finals, 2014 Barcelona Open
Last meeting at a Grand Slam: Cilic won 6-3, 6-4, 6-7 (3-7), 6-3, third round, 2012 US Open
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