Here Come the Russians: New York Set for U.S. Open Invasion

(Bloomberg) -- At first glance, the U.S. Open Tennis Championships could be a bit of a snore.

Organizers have set up Serena Williams to face Maria Sharapova in the first round to drum up some interest in the women’s draw. And it’s hard to look beyond the trio of Novak Djokovic, Rafa Nadal and Roger Federer at the top of the men’s tree. But the smart money to break their grand slam stranglehold could be on a couple of 23-year-old Russian giants.

Four-time winner John McEnroe went through a list of potential challengers and landed on one player in particular: Daniil Medvedev, 6-foot-6 and fresh from beating Djokovic last week at the prestigious Cincinnati ATP Masters 1000 event.

“If I were to stick with someone who could deliver a surprise, I’d say Medvedev,” McEnroe told Spanish sports site Marca. “It depends how you conserve your energy.”

Medvedev is the fourth favorite with bookmaker William Hill at 11-1, after world No. 1 and defending champ Djokovic (at 5-4 odds), Nadal (3-1) and Federer (7-1). The big three have won every U.S. Open singles title except four over the past 15 years and their dominance in the majors this year has been stronger than ever. Flushing Meadows levels the playing field because hard courts are something that clay, grass and indoor specialists are all generally comfortable on.

Medvedev has yet to advance beyond the round of 16 in a major, but a run of three finals in the past few weeks made him the stand-out player in the significant U.S. Open tuneups. After his Cincinnati win, he said he’d just be happy just to reach the quarters.

The fourth and final tennis major of the season runs through Sept. 8.

“I will try to do my best to win everything, but at this moment I need to take it step by step,” Medvedev told reporters.

Who Else?

It’s the sort of nervy attitude that has in the past riled the likes of Boris Becker, the six-time Grand Slam champ who won Wimbledon at age 17. Medvedev is still 0-3 against Federer and 0-1 against Nadal.

“As much as I respect Roger, Rafa, Novak -- who else?” Becker told the BBC in June. “Show up. Don’t give me that the others are too good. We should question the quality and the attitude of everybody under 28.”

The money behind this year’s Wimbledon final between Djokovic and Federer

The other big Russian who looks to be a good bet to make the final stages at Flushing Meadows is Karen Khachanov. Ranked No. 9 in the world and also 6-foot-6, he won his first elite Masters event in Paris in November, defeating Djokovic in straight sets in the final, though he’s also yet to beat Nadal or Federer.

Khachanov has been drawn in Nadal’s quarter. Nadal last year edged him out in the third round in four very tight sets. Medvedev has mouthwateringly been drawn in the same quarter as Djokovic, who also holds the Australian Open and Wimbledon titles.

Up and Coming

And there’s a 21-year-old Russian also worth watching. Andrey Rublev, already a former U.S. Open quarterfinalist, downed Federer in just 62 minutes at the Cincinnati Masters. It was the first time they’d met and Federer was impressed.

“He was super clean. Defense, offense, serving well. Didn’t give me anything,” Federer said. “He was everywhere.”

In the women’s event. Williams is the clear favorite ahead of Simona Halep, Ashleigh Barty and reigning champ Naomi Osaka. There are no Russians in the women’s top 40.

To contact the reporter on this story: James Amott in London at jamott@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Andrew Davis at abdavis@bloomberg.net, James Ludden, Matthew G. Miller

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