Federer has been the icon of Swiss sport for more than 20 years

Roger Federer has been the icon of Swiss sport for more than 20 years, succeeding in his feat of transcending tennis to become a world star. The former world number 1 retired in 2022 due to a serious knee injury, which did not allow him to play as much as he would have wished for in the final years of his legendary career.

The former Swiss champion greeted the crowd at the 2022 Laver Cup, which took place in a magical setting at the O2 Arena in London. The 20-time Grand Slam champion played his last match alongside his former rival and friend Rafael Nadal, who did everything he could to be present at the celebration of King Roger.

The Swiss Maestro recently recounted his last days in a documentary released on Amazon Prime, in which he revealed all of his feelings and thoughts about retirement. Federer accepted the retirement with serenity, knowing that he could not be more competitive at the top level due to injuries. The King’s troubles began after the 2020 Australian Open, in which he reached the semi-finals losing to Novak Djokovic. Roger had several knee surgeries to try and get back on the tour, but after several attempts he had to accept the reality. Despite losing most of his records, Federer is still the idol of many young tennis players and a source of inspiration for others in other sports.

The Swiss tennis is struggling

After the retirement of Roger Federer in 2022 and the physiological decline of Stan Wawrinka, Swiss tennis has struggled to bring new talents. At the moment, there are no Swiss players in the Top 100 of the ATP ranking. There are four Swiss players in the Top 200, while the Swiss number 1 is Leandro Riedi who currently occupies the 129th position of the ATP ranking.

In a recent interview, Heinz Gunthardt opened up on the current state of Swiss tennis: ”Patience is needed for both men and women. I am also confident that Bencic will return to his former form after his planned return. And we must realize that the image we have of Swiss tennis is distorted. Federer and company made us believe that it was easy to reach the Top 100. It’s not even close!”

Federer and Wawrinka have long masked the difficulties of Swiss tennis. The two Swiss champions achieved outstanding results, which have kept their country’s name high up in the world. King Roger won 20 Grand Slam titles and was number 1 in the world, while ‘Stanimal’ won 3 Majors and the gold medal in doubles at the 2008 Beijing Olympics right along with Federer. Roger and Stan also led Switzerland to the 2014 Davis Cup triumph.

The Big 3 made history

Federer made tennis history with Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, with whom he created one of the most beautiful rivalries in modern sport history. In a long interview with ‘The Athletic’, Austrian ace Dominic Thiem commented on the impact of the Big 3: “I was competing with the three greatest of all time. That was intense. But also, all the years before I always had a big load and intensity in my practice. That’s something the doctor and many other people said: that at one point the wrist broke because of all the shots I did, all the hard practice I did all those years before.Alexander Zverev and Roger Federer© YouTube screenshot

I was always striving to get better and get even closer to the best players in the world. I consider myself lucky to be in that timeline with the Big Three and all the other great players. I came up into the top 100 way later than most. They came up when they were, like, 18, whereas I was 20 and a half. I didn’t think it would be possible that I’d be a Grand Slam champion and No 3 in the world. I already felt before the match (the 2020 US Open final against Zverev) that something was not right. I wasn’t getting into the zone or the flow. And that’s how the first two sets went — they were way too tense, too nervous. Sascha Zverev was playing really well.

The pressure was so high. I was thinking back to my previous finals. Maybe it’s less pressure to face the greatest players of all time. Because the US Open, I had to win [in those circumstances], and that was really tough. Every Grand Slam final felt like it could be the last one, because the journey is really tough. You have to beat great players, you have to stay healthy. Many, many little things have to come together. When I played Sascha, it was like now or never.” The Big 3 have prevented many great players from winning as they should.

Botic Van de Zandschulp shocks Carlos Alcaraz at the US Open

Carlos Alcaraz experienced his earliest Major loss since Wimbledon 2021

Carlos Alcaraz will not seek his third consecutive Major title at the US Open. World no. 3 suffered a shocking 6-1, 7-5, 6-4 loss to Botic Van de Zandschulp in the second round at Arthur Ashe Stadium, ending his run of 15 consecutive Major wins.

Carlos experienced his earliest Major loss since Wimbledon three years ago, unable to challenge an inspired rival and despite raising his level after the opener. Botic played better behind the first serve and struggled on the second, still sealing the deal in straight sets.

The Dutchman played well at the net and grabbed 43% of the return points, turning them into six breaks from nine opportunities. The Spaniard generated five break points and seized two, insufficiently to keep him in contention.

Van de Zandschulp took charge in the opening set, outplaying Alcaraz on serve and return and gathering an initial boost. Carlos sprayed a backhand error in the second game of the encounter, experiencing a break and sending Botic in front.

Botic Van de Zandschulp stunned Carlos Alcaraz at the US Open.

The Dutchman served well in games three and five, forging a 4-1 advantage after 23 minutes. Alcaraz played another poor service game, losing serve at 15 following Van de Zandschulp’s smash winner and falling 5-1 behind.

Botic served for the opener in game seven and held at love with a service winner, wrapping up the set in half an hour and gaining a boost. The Dutchman saved a break point in the second game of the second set and clinched a break in the next one after a loose forehand from the Spaniard.

Carlos made a push on the return in the next one, pulling the break back and locking the result at 2-2. They served well in the next six games, locking the result at 5-5 and increasing the drama. Alcaraz lost his focus at the worst moment, spraying forehand errors in game 11 and offering Van de Zandschulp break chances.

World no. 3 hit a costly double fault on the first, losing serve and finding himself in a challenging position. Botic served for the set in game 12 and generated three set points after Carlos’ terrible forehand.Botic Van de Zandschulp, US Open 2024© Stream screenshot

The Dutchman seized the first after, you guessed, the Spaniard’s wayward forehand, opening two sets to love advantage after an hour and 28 minutes and moving closer to a stunner.

They kicked off the third set with four fine holds before Botic grabbed a break at 15 at 2-2, welcoming another forehand error from his opponent and forging the advantage. Carlos stepped in on the return in the next one, converting the second break point after the opponent’s double fault and locking the result at 3-3.

Van de Zandschulp held after a deuce in the eighth game and made a push on the return at 4-4. Botic created three break chances after an extended rally and converted the second after a wild forehand from Carlos, opening a 5-4 gap and serving for the win.

The Dutchman passed the Spaniard at the net for three match points and fired a service winner on the first, sealing the deal in style and sending the 2022 champion packing.

US Open: Naomi Osaka out in 2R after collapse, Elena Rybakina’s bad luck continues

Osaka loses to Karolina Muchova while Rybakina wasn’t even able to play her second-round match.

Naomi Osaka crashed out of the US Open in the second round to Karolina Muchova although she had an outstanding chance to take the match to distance, while Elena Rybakina’s rough season continued as the No. 4 seed had to withdraw from her match versus Jessika Ponchet due to “injuries.”

After demolishing 10th-seeded Jelena Ostapenko in her opening match at Flushing Meadows, Osaka was hoping to make a deep run but it all ended on Thursday evening after Muchova handed her a 6-3 7-6 (5) loss.

For Osaka, it definitely wasn’t the best day at the office as Muchova was better in the key areas and stepped up when it mattered the most – the Czech won 77 percent of her first serve points and fired 24 winners and had 13 unforced errors, while the Japanese made 15 winners but also blasted 21 unforced errors.

On the other side, 2022 Wimbledon champion Rybakina – who has battled injuries and illnesses throughout the year – wasn’t even able to get to the court for her second-round match.

“Unfortunately, I have to withdraw from my match today due to my injuries. I did not want to finish the last Grand Slam of the year this way but I have to listen to my body, and I hope I can close out the remainder of the year strong. Thank you to all the fans who have and continue to support me, and I wish the remaining players good luck,” Rybakina said in a statement.

Osaka missed out on three consecutive set points on her serve in the second set

Early in the match, Muchova saved a break point in the fourth game before claiming back-to-back breaks in the seventh and ninth games to take the opener.

Down by a set, Osaka finally earned her first break of the match in the ninth game of the second set for a 5-4 lead and a chance to serve out for a decider.

In the following game, the four-time Grand Slam champion had 40/0 on her serve but stunningly lost the next five games as Muchova saved three consecutive set points to ultimately force a tie-break.

In the tie-break, Osaka also had a solid lead since she was 4-2 up before Muchova won the next four points to go 6-4 up before realizing her second match point to complete her win.