Alright, let’s talk about that 2014 US Open. I remember that one pretty clearly because I was trying something new back then, trying to be more methodical about following the tournament.
My Little Project That Year
So, I decided I wasn’t just gonna watch casually. Nah, I got myself a little notebook. The plan was simple: track the big names, maybe jot down some thoughts on their matches, see if I could kinda predict how things would shake out. You know, Federer, Djokovic – the usual suspects everyone was betting on. Felt like a solid plan, get a feel for the patterns.
I started off okay, watching the early rounds, making my notes. Felt pretty organized, like I was really doing something, not just passively watching. Kept track of the scores, who looked sharp, who maybe struggled a bit.
Then Things Went Sideways
Everything seemed normal-ish until we hit the semi-finals. That’s when my whole little tracking project went out the window. First, Nishikori pulls off that massive upset against Djokovic. I remember staring at the score, thinking, “Wait, what?” My notes on Djokovic’s dominance? Suddenly less relevant.
Okay, weird, but maybe Federer would cruise through. Nope. Next thing I know, Cilic takes down Federer. Federer! My notebook basically became useless at that point. All the tracking, the careful watching of the top seeds… poof. Gone.
So there we were. The final. Marin Cilic versus Kei Nishikori. If you told me that would be the final lineup before the tournament started, I’d have laughed. Nobody saw that coming. Nobody.
I still watched the final, of course. Cilic just played lights out, took it in straight sets. 6-3, 6-3, 6-3. Wasn’t even that close, really. He was just on fire that day.
Looking back, that whole experience with my little notebook project taught me something. You can track all you want, analyze, prepare… and then tennis, or life, just throws a curveball. A big Cilic-Nishikori curveball. Sometimes things just don’t go according to plan, and you just gotta watch it unfold. It was definitely a memorable Open, that’s for sure. Made me rethink trying to predict things so rigidly.
