The 2020 Tokyo Olympics are over one year after they had to hit the pause button due to COVID-19. In tennis, Belinda Bencic and Alexander Zverev took home the gold medal in singles. It was a breakthrough for both players as neither has won a grand slam before. Both players are hoping their gold medals will propel them to future success and grand slam titles. Below is my list of 10 things to take away from the tournament in Tokyo.
#1. Alexander Zverev is on the rise: Currently ranked #4 in the world, Alexander Zverev is inching closer and closer to his first grand slam title. Winning an Olympic gold medal has to give him a lot of confidence with the U.S. Open coming up. What makes this gold medal even more sweet is the fact that he defeated Novak Djokovic 1-6, 6-3, 6-1 in the semifinals. Honestly, it feels more like a question of when rather than if Zverev gets a grand slam title. This Olympic gold medal is just another data point that indicates he's not that far off.
#2. Belinda Bencic could be on the verge of a grand slam breakthrough as well: Belinda Bencic is currently ranked #11 in the world, but she's been ranked as high as #4 (February, 2020). She's never reached a grand slam final before and has only advanced past the 4th round at the US Open in which she reached the semifinals in 2019. It'll be interesting to see how this gold affects Bencic's confidence as she heads into the US Open. Perhaps she too will get a grand slam title in the near future.
#3. Novak Djokovic is human: Novak Djokovic's quest for a golden slam came to a halt in the semifinals against Zverev and he didn't leave gracefully either, throwing his racket and pulling out of his mixed doubles match after that. As great as he is, Djokovic showed us that he is human and that he can't always be on. One thing that should be noted is that the Olympics are three set matches and Djokovic really thrives in five set settings. So this shouldn't be interpreted as any sort of indication that he's not going to win the US Open. Still, given how great he is, it was surprising to see him fall short and not get the elusive golden slam. The calendar slam is still possible for him, though. So, he should still have plenty of motivation heading into the US Open. Perhaps even more.
#4. Naomi Osaka is back on the court: While she didn't get a medal as the hometown favorite, Naomi Osaka did compete in the Olympics, losing in the 3rd round to Marketa Vondrousova. Given that she withdrew from the French Open and skipped Wimbledon due to emotional health reasons, it's big for her to just get back on the court and compete on a big stage. Hopefully this will boost her confidence heading into the US Open.
#5. Karen Khachanov could be on the verge of something special, too: Karen Khachanov came in as the #12 seed and walked out with the silver medal, losing 3-6, 1-6 in the gold medal match to Zverev. Khachanov has never reached a grand slam semifinal before, but maybe this run to the Olympic final will give him more confidence. The US Open historically has been the most wide open event in men's tennis in recent years. Maybe Khachanov will make a deep run of his own.
#6. Ashleigh Barty couldn't keep the good vibes rolling: After winning Wimbledon, there was hope that world #1 Ashleigh Barty would roll into Tokyo and take gold. Instead, she fell in the first round. Fortunately, this had zero effect on her ranking, but even so, she was hoping for a better outcome in these Olympic games. Fortunately, she has the US Open to look forward to.
#7. Daniil Medvedev's consistency needs to improve: Daniil Medvedev came in as the #2 seed and he exited in the quarterfinals to Pablo Carreño Busta by a final score of 2-6, 6-7. Medvedev is still in search of his first career grand slam title, showing flashes of what could be in store for him. The big thing he needs to work on is consistency and getting to finals with even more regularity. This tournament was another reminder of that.
#8. Iga Świątek needs to figure out the hard courts: Iga Świątek is only 20 years old, she's got one French Open title under her belt and no doubt has the potential to win more grand slams. That all said, she does need to figure out how to win on hard courts. Her 2nd round exit was disappointing for someone of her potential.
#9. Stefanos Tsitsipas blew an opportunity: Stefanos Tsitsipas came in as the #3 overall seed and he fell in the 3rd round. He had a great chance to get a medal and he failed to do so. Given the draw, this is a tournament he'd wish to have back. One does have to wonder if that trip to the French Open final this year wore on him more than we thought. The US Open is going to be big for him.
#10. Can Marketa Vondrousova build on her silver medal run? After taking out Naomi Osaka, Marketa Vondrousova made it all the way to the final before losing to Belinda Bencic in the gold medal match. Vondrousova hasn't had much grand slam success with the 2019 French Open final being her lone trip to a grand slam final. In the other grand slams, she hasn't gotten past the 4th round. It'll be interesting to see if this is the beginning of something new for her and whether or not we'll see her compete in the second week of grand slams with more regularity than she has in the past.
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