CILIC CROWNED US OPEN CHAMPION, ENDS NISHIKORIS HISTORIC RUN Marin Cilic rose to the occasion Monday evening at the US Open. In a meeting between two first-time Grand Slam finalists, the 25-year-old Croatian ended Japanese Kei Nishikori’s historic run 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 to lift the US Open trophy. The World No. 16, who had upset five-time champion Roger Federer in straight sets Saturday, became the first Croatian to claim a Grand Slam title since his coach, Goran Ivanisevic, triumphed in 2001 on “People’s Monday” at Wimbledon. He also became the first US Open champion ranked outside the Top 10 since a 17th-ranked Pete Sampras won in 2002. “This is all hard work in these last several years, and especially this last year,” he said during the trophy ceremony. “My team has brought something special to me, especially Goran. We’re working really hard, but most important from all the things he brought to me was enjoying tennis and always having fun, and I think enjoyed my best tennis over here and played the best ever in my life.” How The Final Was Won Cilic celebrated his 300th match win and cemented his return to the Top 10 of the Emirates ATP Rankings, at No. 9, for the first time since 2010. With his victory, Cilic also moved into a qualification position for one of the eight singles berths at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals this November. He leapt eight spots, overtaking Nishikori at No. 5 in the Emirates ATP Race To London.
Posted on: Tue, 09 Sep 2014 03:31:14 +0000
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