Novak Djokovic is on top of the world, tennis−wise.
A few weeks ago, Djokovic humbled fist−pumping Spaniard Rafael Nadal in the finals of the season's last grand slam, the U.S Open. Before he did that, the Serb bested former No.1 Roger Federer with a miraculous comeback from two match points down at 3−5 in the fifth and decisive set to win 7−5.
If you're a tennis diehard like me, you might know some other exciting stuff about the young Serb: He recently discovered that he had a gluten allergy, and he has won three of four Grand Slams en route to a 82−3 singles record in 2011 — one of the greatest single−season tennis performances of all time.
What you probably don't know is who Djokovic'sfirst−round opponent was at this year's Open. Clue: He's the best tennis player in all of Ireland.
Stumped? I can't blame you. It's ConorNiland, the 206th−ranked player in the world, who earned the right to step into Arthur Ashe Court only after beating his three opponents in U.S. Open Qualifying, the greatest sporting event on the planet.
Niland, a 30−year−old who played at UC, Berkeley — where he was Pac−10 Player of the Year once and an All−American twice — bears a striking resemblance to Daniel Craig, but he didn't last long. His second−ever appearance at a major ended at 6−05−1 down, after just 44 minutes. He told whatever Irish and U.K. media afterward that bothered to ask afterward that he was suffering from food poisoning.
The stage had been set for something out of a sappy movie: handsome Irish hero somehow makes it into the main draw after besting Dutch pro Matwe (can't make these names up) Middelkoop in the final round of qualifying and then gives the best player in the world a scare.
That did not happen, which is fine, because the reality of U.S. Open Qualifying presents so much pure drama, and all of it is unscripted… Which is why it's the most exciting sporting event in the world.
128 men and women enter. 16 make the main draw and win $19,000 — a lot for players who are often unsponsored and literally playing to keep their careers alive. These are the players who wear Babolat shirts, Nike shoes and use a Head racquet. Once in the main draw, the pay scale jumps to $31,000 for the second round, $55,000 for the third round and $110,000 for the Round of 16.
There's never a question of whether these guys are expending all of their effort on the court. The players here are still some of the best in the world, though you probably haven't heard of RicardasBernankis, the best player in Lithuania, or Blake Strode, who started a website to help fund his tennis career and who, for the second straight year, won another qualifying tournament just to get into this one.
All of the drama takes place on the outer courts of the Open's complex in Flushing Meadows, N.Y., and is free to attend. As a fan you can see the beauty of the modern game up close, feel the speed and spin and stand next to ConorNiland's family as they cheer him on.
And you get to watch as Niland's knees crumple after match point, out here with the late afternoon sun beating down on Court 6, his hands pressed to his face, faint tears leaking through.
An earlier version of this column incorrectly referred to ConorNiland as being "a handsome hero from the United Kingdom." Niland is not from the United Kingdom; he is from the Republic of Ireland, which is not within the United Kingdom. He is still a handsome hero.
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Ben Kochman is a junior majoring in English. He can be reached at bkoch.tufts@gmail.com or on Twitter @benkochman.
