Naomi Osaka

Novak Djokovic is declared heavy favorite US Open 2021

Novak Djokovic may have missed out on the Golden Slam when he lost at the Tokyo Olympics 2021 but he has not given up on his dream to win the final Grand Slam tournament 2021. And if he wins then he will have a the rare and thus very prestigious calendar Slam. Despite the withdraws from Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal and more top players, there are still a lot of adversaries to go round. Despite that, you can still declare Djokovic a clear favorite.

In a press conference at the US Open 2021 Djokovic said he was inspired and incredibly motivated.

“I’m very inspired to play my best tennis here. I don’t want to say it’s now or never for me because I think I’m going to have more opportunities in my life to win Slams. I don’t know if I’m going to be having more opportunities to win Calendar Slams.”

“That’s why it’s a very unique opportunity. At the same time, I don’t need to put any additional pressure to what I already have, which is pretty big from my own self and from of course people around me.”

What do you think? Will Djokovic win the prestigious Calendar Slam? Let us know in the comments!

Vaccinated Sofia Kenin skips US Open 2021 due to corona infection

Sofia Kenin is forced to watch the US Open 2021 from the sidelines after being infected by the coronavirus. Luckily Kenin has been vaccinated so the symptoms won’t be so severe she tells.

“Fortunately I am vaccinated and thus my symptoms have been fairly mild,” Kenin wrote. “However I have continued to test positive and thus will not be able to compete at the U.S. Open next week.”

“I plan to spend the next several weeks getting healthy and preparing to play well this fall,” Kenin posted Wednesday. “Thank you all for supporting me.”

This year’s US Open will have 100% attendency again after 2020’s edition of the US Open was played behind closed doors due to the coronapandemic.

Naomi Osaka releases powerful statement ahead of US Open

It has been a tough year for Naomi Osaka. She has been dealing with mental health issues and issued a media blackout during that period. She took to Twitter to release a powerful statement ahead of the US Open of 2021. She indicated that she is her own architect of her own failing. Naomi Osaka ended her media boycott at the Cincinatti Open.

“I’ve been reflecting over the past year. So grateful for the people around me because the support I feel is completely unparalleled,” Osaka posted.

“Recently I‘ve been asking myself why do I feel the way I do, and I realise one of the reasons is because internally I think I’m never good enough.

“I‘ve never told myself that I’ve done a good job but I do know I constantly tell myself that I suck or I could do better.

“I know in the past some people have called me humble but if I really consider it I think I’m really self deprecating. Every time a new opportunity arises my first thought is, ‘Wow, why me?’

“I guess what I‘m trying to say is that I’m gonna try to celebrate myself and my accomplishments more, I think we all should.

“Your life is your own and you shouldn‘t value yourself on other people’s standards.

“I know I give my heart to everything I can and if that‘s not good enough for some then my apologies, but I can’t burden myself with those expectations anymore.

“Seeing everything that’s going on in the world I feel like if I wake up in the morning that’s a win. That’s how I’m coming.”

The 23-year-old Japanese star lit the flame in the Olympic cauldron at the Tokyo Games, but has played only two matches since Japan ahead of the Open.

“I know I haven’t played that many matches. I know that I haven’t even gotten to a quarter-final,” Osaka said.

“Actually I feel pretty happy with how I’m playing… I feel pretty confident with where I am right now. Of course I’m not declaring that I’ll do amazing here. I’m the one-match-at-a-time like person.

“Hopefully it will work out in the end.”

What do you make of Naomi’s powerful statement? Is it something that resonates with you? Let us know in the comments.

Patrick Mouratoglou gives explanation on why Serena Williams withdrew

Serena Williams’ coach Patrick Mouratoglou has given an explanation on why Serena Williams withdrew from the US Open 2021. In an interview Mouratoglou with CBS Sports stated that while Serena was very motivated mentally, her body just wasn’t ready to compete yet at the highest level.

“[Serena] got injured at Wimbledon and we knew we had a very tight schedule to put her back on track and be able to play this US Open,” Mouratoglou told CBS Sports. “We knew that any setback during this period would be a no-go. So, at the start, it went well. She started from not being able to walk to being able to be finally on a tennis court, without moving but playing tennis.”

“We did exams [MRI] and we realized that there was still a tear on the tendon that was not completely back to normal,” Mouratoglou told CBS Sports. “Even though we tried, with one week until the US Open, we realized finally that there was a big risk with playing. The risk of a much worse injury which was really there because if you play with a tear in the tendon and you go too far, the tendon can completely break and it’s something you don’t want to risk.”

And it is too bad because Serena Williams and her team did everything they could to compete at this year’s US Open:

“It’s sad because it’s only a question of maybe having two more weeks and she would’ve been fine but we didn’t have those two extra weeks. She’ll be completely fine [to play again] in two to three weeks but the risk was too big to take,” he said.

Meanwhile Serena took to Instagram to issue a statement on backing out of the US Open 2021.

“After careful consideration and following the advice of my doctors and medical team, I have decided to withdraw from the US Open to allow my body to heal completely from a torn hamstring,” Serena Williams wrote on Instagram. “New York is one of the most exciting cities in the world and one of my favorite places to play — I’ll miss seeing the fans but will be cheering everyone on from afar. Thank you for your continued support and love. I’ll see you soon.”

US Open 2021 reaches record height in prize money

The US Open had to play without a crowd in the 2020 edition due to the corona pandemic but the US Open organisation has more than made up for that. With a $57,5 million USD there is a lot to play for.

“Last year was a very difficult year for all of us, and the pandemic had a profound impact on the USTA’s financial health,” said Mike Dowse, USTA Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director. “Yet we worked—and continue to work—extremely hard to ensure that tennis would continue to thrive for the long-term at every level, and that work led to more than 4 million new and returning players participating in tennis in 2020. Our support of tennis is very broad, and touches every level of the game. The US Open is an unparalleled showcase for all that is so wonderful about our sport, and the players are an integral part of that. We are proud to return our player compensation to pre-pandemic levels.”

Added to that Stacey Allaster said the following about the US Open series and investing at the very roots that has attracted more people to the sport of tennis during the corona 2020 pandemic and created a lot of momentum with a 22% increase of new players.

Stacey Allaster added to it that the US Open has invested a lot of money at the roots of the game. Tennis has gained a lot of momentum during the 2020 pandemic and saw a 22% increase in sales and participation and it is still growing.

“With the US Open’s greatest return—fans on-site and full draws across all competitions—we know that 2021 will be an historic year for this great tournament,” said Stacey Allaster, Chief Executive, Professional Tennis and US Open Tournament Director. “We determined our round-by-round prize money allocations by engaging in an open dialogue with the players and the management of both tours. We applaud their collective leadership in directing the 2021 US Open prize money to benefit the maximum number of players.”

Round-by-round individual prize money for the US Open is as follows:

Singles:
Winner: $2,500,000
Runner-Up: $1,250,000
Semifinalist: $675,000
Quarterfinalist: $425,000
Round of 16: $265,000
Round of 32: $180,000
Round of 64: $115,000
Round of 128: $75,000

Doubles (each team):
Winner: $660,000
Runner-Up: $330,000
Semifinalist: $164,000
Quarterfinalist: $93,000
Round of 16: $54,000
Round of 32: $34,000
Round of 64: $20,000