The year is 2018 – Alexander Zverev has won his third ATP Masters 1000 title – the only active player other than the Big Four to have three...
The year is 2018 – Alexander Zverev has won his third ATP Masters 1000 title – the only active player other than the Big Four to have three – and claimed the season-ending ATP Finals.
The year is 2019 – Dominic Thiem has won a tour-leading five ATP titles including his first Masters 1000 title, reached his second Grand Slam final finishing as the runner-up at both French Open and ATP Finals.
Solid seasons, titles, wins over Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. But not enough to make a mark at the biggest tournaments – the Grand Slams.
But 2020 changed that. In a way that is both fittingly chaotic and cathartic, the first Grand Slam of the ‘Next Gen’ – a term used loosely to describe any player younger than the Big Three – is between Thiem and Zverev.
The two will clash in their first US Open final for the chance to become the first 1990s-born Major champion. It will be a rematch of this year’s Australian Open semi-final, another first for both. The Austrian second seed beat last year’s finalist Daniil Medvedev in straight sets while the German fifth seed came back from two sets down to beat Pablo Carreno Busta in the semi-finals.
[2] @ThiemDomi vs [5] @AlexZverev -...
