On Sept. 10, the 137th United States Open Tennis Championships (US Open) concluded with the fourth and last Grand Slam match of the year between Spanish player, Rafael Nadal, and South African player, Kevin Anderson. Thousands of spectators, including Tiger Woods, filled the 22,547 seats of the Arthur Ashe Stadium, the largest Tennis stadium in the world, to witness the final match.

Shocking many, including his opponent, Anderson’s climb to the finals was easier-than-usual due to three out of the top five players, including last year’s US Open Champion, Stan Wawrinka, withdrawing due to substantial injuries. Starting the tournament at No. 32 in Men’s Singles, Anderson was the lowest ranked and tallest player to reach the U.S. Open finals since 1973 when the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) system was created. However, Anderson’s first trip to a Grand Slam final moved him from No. 32 to No. 15. The 6’8” giant has an aggressive serve which, at times, can reach a speed of 138 mph: only 25.7 mph slower than the fastest service speed set by Sam Groth. His serve was his magic weapon throughout the tournament, helping him win his matches one-after-another.

31-years-old and now the No. 1 Men’s Singles player, Nadal is the record holder for 2nd Most All-Time Grand Slam Titles. He has won 16 titles, behind No.2 Men’s Single player, Roger Federer, with 19 titles. Federer defeated Nadal during the Australian Open earlier this year and was prospected to face him once again during the US Open finals. However, Federer was eliminated during quarter-finals by 2009 US Open Champion, Juan Martin del Potro. Del Potro, was then eliminated by Nadal during semi-finals 6-0, 6-3, 6-2.

When it came to his matchup against Nadal, Anderson put up a fight scoring the first point with two aces. He put up a good struggle in the first set keeping consistent with Nadal for a three point tie until Nadal quickly adjusted to Anderson’s powerful serves and began receiving further back behind the line. Then, Nadal “neutralized Anderson’s most effective skill” and broke through to score three consecutive points ending the first set 6-3 (ESPN). Anderson tried to recover by attempting to serve-and-volley but, not being his strong-suit, Anderson was unable to keep up. In the end, Nadal swept Anderson, winning his 3rd US Open Championship 6-3, 6-3, 6-4.

Graphic by Aaron Chan