Who will be crowned King of New York at the US Open?

The US Open is the fourth and final major championship event of the tennis calendar and will be held at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. The tournament, which is a hard court event, will take place between August 31st and September 13th in New York City.

Marin Cilic is the current holder of the men's singles title after he defeated Japan's Kei Nishikori in the final of the 2014 competition. It is one of the most anticipated events in the sport and tennis fans from all over the world will travel to New York to watch their favourite stars in action.

   by  Edwin Martinez1 

Cilic will be involved in this year's competition but the majority of people will be expecting the usual suspects to reach the latter stages of the tournament. The Croatian, who earned a 6-3 6-3 6-3 victory over Nishikori to claim his first major title, has enjoyed a modest season so far, reaching the quarter-finals of Wimbledon as well as the fourth round of the French Open. Cilic will be the first to admit that, had he faced world number one Novak Djokovic - who lost to Nishikori in the semi-finals - then he may not have lifted the trophy last year.

Most tennis fans have witnessed Djokovic, Roger Federer, Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal dominate the sport throughout the past decade or so, and supporters have been treated to some classic contests between the four incredible stars. In fact, the "Big Four" - as they are labelled in the tennis world - have won a phenomenal 2,959 matches combined, while losing just 687.

This record gives them a win percentage of 81.2% - which is an absolutely incredible statistic. Since 2005, there have been 44 Grand Slam events and the "Big Four" have won 38 of these competitions. Prior to the 2014 US Open, they had won 36 of the last 38 titles. Tennis fans have been spoilt by their brilliance over the years and, although the likes of Stanislas Wawrinka and Cilic have challenged their dominance, the "Big Four" still remain the main threat at major events although some would argue that Nadal has lost his touch this year and is no longer worthy of that status.

On current form, Djokovic is the best tennis player on the planet and is fully deserving of his two Grand Slam victories in 2015. The Serbian, who beat Federer in last month's Wimbledon men's singles final, is gradually climbing up the all-time rankings and has now won nine Grand Slam titles in the most competitive era in the sport's history. Djokovic has been absolutely outstanding ever since his golden year in 2011 - when he won three of the four majors on offer - and could emulate that season if he emerges victorious at the US Open.

In January, the world number one held off challenges from Wawrinka and Murray to lift his fifth Australian Open title. Djokovic was made to work for victory but was simply too good for his opponents and his raw speed on the hard court surface gives him a slight advantage over the other top players in the game. In the semi-final, Wawrinka took the Serbian to a deciding set but crumbled as Djokovic dominated the Polish athlete to reach the final. Murray put up an excellent fight and will argue that he could have been 2-0 up after the opening two sets went to tie breaks but the world number one raised his game to put the Briton to the sword.

Amazingly, Djokovic is yet to win the French Open and the famous trophy continued to elude him as Wawrinka gained his revenge to halt the Serbian's hopes of winning all four Grand Slam events in 2015. Djokovic took the opening set but Wawrinka showed excellent composure to bounce back and take the next three sets at Roland Garros. The Polish star has now won majors in each of the last two years and it could be argued that he has replaced Nadal in the sport's top four players in the world. Djokovic, on the other hand, didn't have to wait too long before his next major title.

Despite Roger Federer's best efforts, the Serbian cruised to the Wimbledon title. Throughout the early part of the tournament, Djokovic struggled against 'lesser' opponents but progressed through without really getting out of second gear. Then, in the fourth round, the world number one faced South African Kevin Anderson - who had recently lost in the Queen's Club Championship final against Murray. Anderson, who is ranked 15th in the world standings, sprinted into a two-set lead and Djokovic's Wimbledon dream was hanging in the balance.

However, the Serbian found another level and clawed his way back into the contest before earning a 7-5 victory in the final set of the clash. From there, Djokovic was simply unstoppable and even Federer - who had played some of his best tennis for years - couldn't prevent the Serbian from winning a second Grand Slam of the 2015.

   by  angela n. 

Federer has enjoyed a low key year by his own high standards yet there is no doubt that he can be proud of his achievements throughout 2015. At 33 years old, many believed that this would be the season that the Swiss star, who has won 17 Grand Slam singles titles throughout his illustrious career, would begin to show signs of weakness and struggle. However, this hasn't been the case. In 2015, Federer has won 40 matches and lost just seven - with three of those defeats coming against the immense Djokovic. Federer has won two hard court tournaments so far this season and will head into the US Open in a positive frame of mind.

The Swiss star was knocked out of the Australian Open in unfortunate circumstances after losing two sets on a tie-break to Andreas Seppi. Federer, who had earlier beaten Yen-hsun Lu and Simone Bolelli, performed admirably throughout the competition and had no complaints after his defeat. Prior to the competition, he took part in the Brisbane Open - also on the hard court surface - and defeated the likes of Grigor Dimitrov and Milos Raonic on his way to the title. Although Federer was disappointed to get knocked out of the major championship in the third round, at least there was the satisfaction of opening the new season with a victory.

   by  Edwin Martinez1 

At the French Open, Federer produced some scintillating tennis on his way to the quarter-finals, where he was knocked out by eventual champion Wawrinka. On what has been the Swiss star's worst court, Federer showed that he was still more than capable of progressing through the competition and competing against some of the sport's top players. The Swiss star has always struggled on clay but consistently reaches the latter stages of the tournament on a yearly basis.

Chasing an eighth Wimbledon singles championship, the Swiss star rolled back the years and played brilliantly throughout the duration of the competition. On his way to the final, Federer lost just one set - in his third round encounter with Australia's Sam Groth - and beat the likes of Gilles Simon and Andy Murray throughout the grass court event. In fact, many people claimed that Federer's performance at this year's Wimbledon was one of the best of his career considering his age and high standard of play. It wouldn't be a huge surprise to see the Swiss star lift the US Open title next month and, at the time of writing, betfair are currently pricing Federer at 7/1 to emerge victorious and claim an 18th Grand Slam title.

Murray has played some sensational tennis throughout 2015 and will be wondering how on earth he hasn't managed to win a Grand Slam title this year. Murray has reached the latter stages of all three competitions but has ultimately fallen short against the best players in the sport. However, one would imagine that Murray's time to win a third major title of his career will come soon if he continues to perform at such a high level.

In the Australian Open, Murray finished runner up to Djokovic - a familiar result in recent seasons. The British number one played some thrilling tennis but came up against a superior player as the Serbian conquered. Defeat meant that Murray has now won just two of his eight Grand Slam finals - a concerning statistic - and the Scot will look for his luck to change in the near future. Murray defeated Grigor Dimitrov, Nick Kyrgios and Tomas Berdych on his way to the final but these difficult fixtures may have cost him as he looked tired throughout parts of the final. Overall, however, Murray will have been happy with the tournament but was left disappointed once again.

   by  anonlinegreenworld 

Roland Garros has never been Murray's favourite event and, once again, the Scot failed to reach the final of the French Open. Leading up to the tournament, many had tipped the British number one to lift the trophy after he claimed victory over 'King of Clay' Nadal 6-3 6-2 in the Madrid Masters to send a huge statement out to the rest of the contenders. However, Murray fell short against Djokovic as the Serbian moved one step closer towards his second consecutive Grand Slam title before losing to Wawrinka in the final of the competition. After falling two sets behind, Murray levelled the scores but fell to pieces in the final set as Djokovic dominated proceedings and sent a huge psychological blow to the British number one ahead of Wimbledon.

Murray was full of confidence ahead of the Wimbledon Championships and with good reason. The British contender, who lifted the trophy back in 2013, had been playing some phenomenal tennis and was widely regarded as the second favourite to earn a second success at the iconic grass court venue. However, it wasn't to be as he came up against a superb Federer in the semi-finals. Federer turned the clocks back and produced the kind of performance that saw him win 17 Grand Slam titles in his prime and, unfortunately for the British supporters, Murray just couldn't respond. He deserved so much more yet was knocked out at the semi-final stages of another major competition once again.

Verdict

The Swiss star will be 34 years old next season and will struggle to cope with Murray and Djokovic's pace. Murray, meanwhile, deserves another Grand Slam victory and, with a bit of luck, could lift the trophy. The Scot has been there or thereabouts in major competitions throughout the past few seasons and will be extremely confident ahead of the tournament. No matter who wins, there's one thing for sure, the quality of tennis on show will be absolutely outstanding and supporters will be treated to an incredible competition.