The 2014 US Open female final pitches two friends against one another. Serena Williams defeated her good friend number 10 seed Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark in straight sets of 6-3, 6-3 for her third straight title at Flushing Meadows and sixth overall.
In front of a packed house in Arthur Ashe Stadium, the American showed why she is one of the greatest players of all time with a dominant performance sending Wozniacki scampering all over the court. “It was an unbelievable moment for me,” said Williams. “Playing all those matches this summer really helped me to get my confidence up. I just needed that confidence and calmness. I’ve been practicing so hard and all that hard work was showing through today.” Despite the loss, Wozniacki was gracious as always in defeat. “You played better than me and you’re an inspiration on and off the court,” said Wozniacki. “You’re an unbelievable friend and you definitely owe me drinks later!”
With this win, Williams captures her sixth US Open women’s singles title, which ties Chris Evert for the most Open singles titles in the Open era. The victory also gave the world No. 1 her 18th Grand Slam singles title, trying Evert and Martina Navratilova. Steffi Graf is the only player in the Open era with more Grand Slam titles, at 22.
Williams also becomes the first player to win three consecutive US Open titles since Chris Evert, who swept four in a row from 1975 to 1978. This was also the third year that she won the US Open without losing a set, having previously done so in 2002 and 2008.
The No. 1 seed collected $3 million for winning the US Open this year, plus an additional $1 million bonus for winning the Emirates Airline US Open Series this summer, making her $4 million check the largest winner’s purse in tennis history. Wozniacki received $1,450,000 for reaching the final. Wozniacki can consider this tournament a bona fide success after reaching her second Grand Slam final and first since the 2009 US Open. She will move back into the Top 10 when the latest rankings are released.
Cilic Come Top In Men’s Final Of Neophytes
Of all the grand slam competitions, the US Open has always been more open and this year tournament upped the ante with the final of neophytes- Croatia’s Marin Cilic taking on Japanese Kei Nishikori.
Since 2005, men’s tennis has been dominated by the Big Four of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray. And while they have certainly been the Open’s most successful players in recent years, New York’s own Grand Slam has not allowed them to rule with the same collective iron fist as in Melbourne (where Djokovic has won four of seven), Paris (Nadal winning six of seven) or London (two each for Djokovic, Federer and Nadal). This year’s men’s final ushered in a new entrant in Cilic, a surprise champion but a most deserving one. He did not steal a title here, did not luck into the trophy. He seized it by dismantling the world’s best, crushing No. 6 Tomas Berdych and No. 2 Roger Federer, both in straight sets, to reach the final, where he dispatched No. 10 Kei Nishikori with a frightful – for the rest of the men’s tour, at least – brand of power tennis. Cilic was ruthless in straight demolition of Nishikori 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 joining the elite group of grand slam winners.
Other winners at this year’s US Open includes the pair of sure-fire Hall of Famers, Bob and Mike Bryan, who won their Open era-best fifth US Open men’s doubles title and their landmark 100th championship as a team, a feat unmatched in the history of men’s tennis. And joining Cilic on the list of first-timers were the women’s doubles champions Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina as well as Sania Mirza, who won the mixed doubles title with Bruno Soares, who had previously won the mixed here in 2012.
