History in the Making; Why the US Open Quarter-Finals May be More Important Than Just Nadal-Thiem

Last night's Nadal-Thiem match in the quarterfinals of the US Open will undoubtedly be considered the best match of the tournament, but it also may have a much deeper meaning for both players. While there is no guarantee, it seems likely that this match will be symbolic of the next few years of the ATP World Tour.

Why it's important for Nadal:

Rafael Nadal is one of the greatest players ever. In fact, that may be an understatement considering he has the second most ATP Major wins in the history of tennis. However, he is also 32 years old. He's had a great year, but it still seems easy to doubt that it can continue. Tennis careers simply do not often have careers after 30, which means that it would be easy to doubt that he can continue at the level he is playing. A match like this, however, makes it much easier to believe in him. A five set marathon in which he outlasted a young player like Thiem is about as much proof as you need that he still has a decent bounce in his step. It reaffirms that he has a good shot at being around for a long time.

What it means for Thiem:

It's no secret that Dominic Thiem has talent. He is a tenacious player who smokes the ball as well as anyone. He's been in the top ten all year, and he even managed to beat Nadal in the Madrid Open this year. However, he has yet to have his skills translate off of the clay court season. While he made three finals during the clay season this year, including one where he beat Nadal and another close match in the French Open, again against Rafe, he has yet to make an especially deep run in any other huge tournaments. In fact, this quarterfinals run is the deepest he'd ever made in a grand-slam event that wasn't Roland Garos. This tournament may prove to be a turning point. He dominated up to the Nadal match, and even beat the number 5 player in the world, Kevin Anderson. A deep run like that where he beat tough opponents and then barely lost to the number 1 player in the world. If he can keep playing like that, he may end up at that number one spot before too long, and it all started at this match.

What it means for tennis:

This could set up the next five years in a way people don't fully realize. A match like this could may work as almost a passing of the baton. While it serves as showing that Nadal is not the most dominant player in the world anymore, but he's still one of the absolute top. it also shows that Thiem could finally start being the player that people knew he could be. While tennis is a tough sport that few play as well as Nadal, Thiem seems like he has as good a shot as anyone to reach that level, though, and this match only goes to prove it.