Stan The Man makes tennis' 'Big Four' a 'Big Five'

Best recognised as Roger Federer’s gold-winning doubles partner at 2008 Beijing Olympics, at the start of 2014, few imagined the possibility of Stan Wawrinka lifting a major trophy, let alone overtaking Federer as best Swiss player in the world.

However, he had scripted his ascent with “millions of hours” of hard work, planting the seeds of self-belief in his own game.

This belief was evident at the recently concluded US Open, where he lifted his third major trophy, beating World No.1 Novak Djokovic.

Wawrinka entered the US Open, by his own admission, in not the best of his forms. His struggles were conspicuous against Dan Evans in the third round, where he had to save a match point. He was down a break in the fourth set against Illya Marchenko in the fourth round, and also needed four sets to get the better of Juan Martin Del Potro and Kei Nishikori.

Thus the Swiss had spent nearly 17 hours on the court, more than double the time of his opponent in the final. Yet passion and belief in his game saw him overcome the fatigue and pain, as he defeated the best baseliner in the sport at his own game.

Wawrinka did so with his powerful and consistent groundstrokes off both sides of the court. The aplomb, imperceptible in his early years, played an indispensable role in dismantling his opponent’s strategy.

His victory at Flushing Meadows extends his record in Grand Slam finals to 3-0. His record against Djokovic may lean heavily in favour of the latter, but when it comes to the biggest stage, two of his three wins have come against Djokovic. That too, at a time when Nole seemed invincible. This sums up the ‘beast’, no doubt why he is called ‘The Stanimal’.

A fourth-round match against Djokovic at the 2013 Australian Open proved to be the turning point, as he pushed the Serb to 12-10 in the final set, gaining tremendous conviction in his ability to beat the best.

And 2014 marked the commencement of a journey that has forced the tennis world to talk about the ‘Big Five’ instead of the ‘Big Four’. At the Australian Open, he not only got the better of Djokovic en route to the final, but then beat then #1 Rafael Nadal to join the club of Grand Slam winners.

He followed it up with a flawless performance against Djokovic at Roland Garros final in 2015, foiling the latter’s bid to earn a career slam, and then again at the Arthur Ashe 15 years to the day after the 9/11 attacks.

A perfect balance between defence and attack, the courage to go for the lines while facing break points (he saved 14 out of 17 break points against the best retriever of the game), and a shift in his positioning and rallying strategy after losing the first set were the deciding factors of the Championship match.

And, no doubt, the hardest earned victories went to the deserving one.

Magnus Norman, Wawrinka’s coach, deserves no less credit for transforming a player into a champion. Stan proved to be ‘The Man’ when it comes to big matches and big stages. For someone who defied all the norms – a lopsided head-to-head record, the value of recent form, age and physical grinding for two long weeks – he stands tall in the knowledge that his fitness and weaponry can demolish even the best tennis player on the stages where it matters most.