I now have entered, as I do each year (when the Red Sox have failed me), what I consider to be the dark season of my sports fandom. The U.S. Open, my favorite of any sports event, is over and football, which I personally cancelled years ago, is back so hard that Coco Gauff woke up Sunday to nary a word about herself on ESPN’s home page -- and ESPN covered the event.
My love -- obsession, really -- for the U.S. Open means two weeks of late nights and hard mornings. The late August/early September timing for me, a professor, is terrible: just as I’m prepping to return to the classroom, I’m burning the midnight oil (and later) to see the only Grand Slam that takes place largely at night with raucous crowds and a signature drink, the Honey Deuce, that actually lives up to the hype.
This year, thanks to my dear friend Frank, I put in the effort and made another trip to the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows -- just 15 miles from my house -- for opening day, something I am often too lazy to do because of the comfort and ease of watching in my living room. Frank’s tennis acumen predicted that we would either catch Francis Tiafoe or Coco Gauff in the 7 p.m. slot at Ashe Stadium and likely Novak Djokovic after. Frank was right. We got Coco in a match that made headlines not for her win in the third set, but rather the slow pace of her opponent. It made for the first of many late nights. Really, really late. Alexander Zverev’s win over Jannik Sinner on day eight, almost five hours long, almost ended me. Daniil Medvedev’s slaying of Carlos Alcarez in the men’s semifinal left me emotionally drained and unable to sleep once I finally made my way to bed.
And then there was Coco, who in taking down the woman who is now ranked number one demonstrated that regardless of what military tacticians have argued throughout history (all apologies to George Washington, especially), sometimes the best offense is a good defense, and what some might call winning ugly is still, at the end of the day, winning.
Coco’s championship win is about as joyful a moment in sport as I can remember, with some serious notables in the crowd -- Laura Dern, Shonda Rhimes, Charlize Theron, Spike Lee, Diane Keaton, Rachel Brosnahan, Al Roker, Nicole Kidman -- to bear witness. The way she unpacked Aryna Sabalanka’s game, methodically, patiently, and carefully, covering the court by running enough ground to be a marathoner, keeping her cool, subtly changing the pace of play to her own advantage. And then there was her post-match interview with Mary Jo Fernandez, thanking her family and friends, her haters and the nonbelievers -- all of whom pushed her to be the very best in the most important of moments -- and the way she accepted the prize money with a nod to the legend who stood before her, a quiet “thank you, Billie, for fighting for this” accompanying her take of the $3 million check.
Her post-match presser, too, was perfect, in which she very clearly acknowledged taking the baton from those who came before her, especially the Williams sisters. “They’re the reason I have this trophy today,” she told reporters. “They’ve allowed me to believe in this dream.”
The men’s final, of course, ended with another trophy in Novak Djokovic’s hand, Medvedev unable to conjure the magic that felled Alcaraz in the semifinal, the straight set scores belying some truly awesome rallies. And now a new week has started, and I am left without late nights filled with lobs and overhead smashes and drop shots and Coco’s semifinal forty-stroke rally that I will watch on repeat for months. To me, one who studies sport, who lives and breathes and analyzes and critiques the world’s games, nothing can hold a candle to tennis, a sport that requires so much from its athletes day after day, night after night, and has no ending, no cut off, if everyone on the court does what they are supposed to do. So, with the 2023 Grand Slam season now in the rearview mirror, concluding with a celebration of fifty years of equal pay at the U.S. Open and a young champion who recognizes those who came before her, let’s take a moment to say it one more time:
Thank you, Coco. You made this one extra special.
Amy Bass is professor of sport studies and chair of the division of social science and communication at Manhattanville College. Bass is the author of ONE GOAL: A COACH, A TEAM, AND THE GAME THAT BROUGHT A DIVDED TOWN TOGETHER, among other titles. In 2012, she won an Emmy for her work with NBC Olympic Sports on the London Olympic Games.
The views expressed by commentators are solely those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the views of this station or its management.
