Seth Udinski, FISM News
In the 2021 U.S Open Tennis Championship, youth shined in both the men’s and women’s pools.
In the women’s tournament, the Open ended with a major upset that even got the Queen of England’s attention. Eighteen-year-old Emma Raducanu seemingly came out of nowhere to win the championship, defeating 19-year-old Leylah Fernandez in straight sets.
The teenager from England entered the match ranked 150 in the world and only having played in one major tournament before, but dominated the field becoming the first person since Serena Williams in 2014 to not drop a set on her way to the title. Queen Elizabeth II sent a message to congratulate Raducanu as she was the first Englander to win the tournament in 44 years.
On the men’s side #2 ranked Daniil Medvedev of Russia defeated Roger Federer, spoiling Federer’s bid to hold the most major tournament wins of all time. Medvedev, 25-years young, knocked off the longtime veteran and wildly popular Federer in three sets, each by a score of 6-4.
Medvedev understood the significance of his win over such a decorated opponent. He said after the match,
For the confidence and for my future career, knowing that I beat somebody who was 27-0 in a year in Grand Slams … he was going for huge history, and knowing that I managed to stop him, it definitely makes it sweeter and brings me confidence for what is to come on hard courts so far…