The 2017 Australian Open was a thrilling start to the tennis season, as newcomers and veterans thrilled crowds with excellent play and four of the greatest players of all time made their way back to the finals once again.
By Owen Panettieri (playwright, lyricist)
It's been a rough 2 weeks, y'all. Things in the United States? They ain't good. It seems almost every day came a new horrifying executive order from the President. It's been a lot to deal with. People are upset. People are scared. People are protesting. The anxiety is practically inescapable. But during these past two weeks, a shining beacon of welcome relief was being transmitted into our TVs each night. When the sun went down, the Australian Open was waiting for us shining brightly with tomorrow's sun. With progressive round of play, it became clear that this was one of the best tennis tournaments I have ever seen.
Going into this Major tournament, no one really knew what to expect. Federer and Nadal had take most of the last year off to heal lingering injuries. Their absence meant that their ranking would drop them both out of the top 8 for the first time in over a decade. This meant that they wouldn't get an automatic slot in the 8 corners of the 4 quarters of the draw and could wind up pretty much anywhere. Also, who knew how they were going to play when they showed up? Beyond Rafa and Roger, could Andy Murray maintain his dominance as the new #1? Would Novak Djokovic bounce back after a disappointing second half of 2016? So much drama to unfold!
On the women's side, several big names were not present and several question marks surround the health of Serena and Venus Williams. Serena missed the WTA Finals in 2016 with a shoulder injury. She relinquished her spot at the top of the WTA rankings. Would the Aussie Open be a chance for her to reclaim #1 and give her a 23rd career championship trophy? So much at stake!
Every day of the tournament featured incredible matches with unbelievable outcomes. And the level of play was SO HIGH. In the second round, No. 117 Denis Istomin became just the 2nd player outside the top 100 to defeat Djokovic in the last seven years. The shock wasn't that Novak played badly, but how Istomin played the match of his life beating Novak in 5 sets that lasted just under 5 hours. Istomin went two more rounds deeper in the draw after that as well. In the 4th Round, Murray met another shocking fate when he was handily beaten by #50 Misha Zverev. 7-5, 5-7, 6-2, 6-4. Again all credit to Zverev who played such an intense and unusual attacking style that left Murray completely confused. It was incredible! Through it all, the two veteran champions Federer and Nadal kept winning. No matter the challenge, no matter how many times a match went the distance to 5 sets, they kept finding solutions. Pretty soon tournament directors, commentators and spectators dared to dream - could we see another Rafa and Roger Grand Slam final?
On the women's side, Serena and Venus tore through their draws in remarkable fashion. But there were other amazing stories as well. The US Women went deep into the draw. Unseeded Coco Vandeweghe almost got bounced in the third round, but hung tough. Then she dialed in to her power game, knocking off No. 1 and reigning Aussie Champ Angelique Kerber in the Round of 16 and reigning French Open champion Garbine Muguruza to face Venus in the semis. Again we all dared to dream - Could we see an another All-Williams Grand Slam final? On Serena's side of the draw we had the improbable run of Mirjana Lučić-Baroni. I'm not sure if there was a more emotional story in the tournament than hers. A teenage phenom, Lucic-Baroni had very difficult years to get through getting away from her controlling abusive father. She did not make an appearance at a Major tournament for more than seven years from 2003 to 2010. Here she was at 34 ranked #79, kicking ass and making her way through the draw like she'd never been gone. She delighted in every moment. After reaching the quarterfinals in her on court post-match interview she said, “I’m a tough little cookie, and really, really stubborn. When I want something, I will work really hard and I will do whatever it takes to get it. It’s not a guarantee, by any means, that you’re gonna get there, but, man, what a satisfaction I feel right now. Incredible. And I will tell it to anybody struggling out there. 'F-' everything and everybody who ever tells you you can’t do it. Just show up and do it with your heart.” How can you not love this woman? She couldn't beat Serena in the semis, but her performance for the whole tournament was nothing short of inspiring.
Despite them all being tennis legends and the dominant figures of their sports since their teenage years, Serena and Venus and Rafa and Fed were now in their 30's and the last time it was just the four of them standing at the final weekend of a Major tournament was Wimbledon 2008. They never all made it to the end of the same tournament for the entirety of the Obama Administration! Isn't that crazy given all their success? For those of us who were longtime tennis fans, we knew how rare and how special these two final matches would be, No matter who won and who lost it, was a victory for all of them and for the sport. There was a lot at stake. If Serena beat her sister, she'd be #1 again and break her career tie with Steffi Graf. If Venus won, it would give her an 8th title after years since her last title. All you have to do is defeat the person in your life you love the most! Good luck with that ladies!
On the men's side Fed had one 17 Major titles, but like Venus, he hadn't won a major in years and most of the major titles he lost he had lost to Rafa. Meanwhile Rafa had several chances to get #15 but hadn't been able to get across the finish line and pull closer to Fed's record. Beyond that Federer and Nadal might be the most special individual rivalry in all of sports. The only other one that comes to mind is Magic Johnson and Larry Bird. And much like Magic and Larry, years of competition has turned these rivals into friends who greatly respect each other. It doesn't mean they don't want to win. But there's a love between them that's kind of amazing. They bring out the best in each other in so many ways.
So the finals come and Serena beats Venus and Fed beats Nadal. And I LOVE RAFA, but you know what? I wasn't disappointed. Because they all deserved it. Any ending would've been a happy ending as long as they all played well. And they all did. These four have been through so much on and off the court since the last time they all made it to that Wimby final in 2008. No matter who won and lost how could each one not look at the way they made it through this tournament and not feel energized and motivated to take on the rest of the season? Honestly, I was so proud of them and so appreciative of all the incredible matches they've played, all the times they amazed us and all the times they had our hearts pounding in our chests with excitement.
The Australian Open is known as the Happy Slam in part because Melbourne has a great relaxed feel and everyone is starting the season's 1st Slam Event feeling fresh. This year was really special though, and especially happy. It was probably the most thrilling, best played tournaments I've ever seen. I'm sad it's over! It came along right when I needed it. Here's to a fantastic tennis season in 2017.
OWEN PANETTIERI is the author of the awarding-winning plays Vestments of the Gods and The Timing of a Day. His play A Burial Place had it's world Debut in NYC in 2016. Member of Playwrights Gallery in NYC. www.owenpanettieri.com
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