[ot-caption title=”This year’s U.S. Open finals held at Arthur Ashe Stadium was full of excitement, drama, and excellent tennis. (via Alexisirael/Wikimedia Commons cc by sa 3.0)”]

The world No.1 Serena Williams was at the brink of making history. The thirty-three year old American entered the semi-finals of this year’s U.S. Open two victories away from becoming the first tennis player since Steffi Graf in 1988 to win a “Calendar Slam.” A Calendar Slam is accomplished by winning tennis’s four grand slams, the most prestigious tournaments within a calendar year. Williams, who won the U.S. Open last year, won all 24 Grand Slam matches that she has played in 2015 leading up to semifinals.

Unfortunately for Williams and the record books, it was not meant to be. Italy’s Roberta Vinci, ranked forty-third in the world, beat her 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 on Friday, September 11, stunning the athletic world and thwarting Serena’s push at history.

However, history of another kind was made as for the first time, the U.S. Open saw an All-Italian women’s finals. In the women’s final on Saturday afternoon, Roberta Vinci lost to compatriot Flavia Pennetta, the twenty-six seed in the ladies’ draw, 7-6, 6-2. This feat makes Flavia Pennetta the first Italian to ever win the U.S. Open and the oldest first-time major champion in the open era.

Prior to the semi-finals match, Williams acknowledged the pressure on the line, “I mean, of course it’s there. I’m not a robot or anything. But at the end of the day I’m just here to do the best I can. If that means that I win, then great. But if it doesn’t, then you know what? I can’t let that affect me.”

Even before the semi-finals, Williams’ road to history was not without bumps. On Tuesday, September 8, amidst a sellout crowd of 23,771 inside Arthur Ashe Stadium, including many celebrities, Williams had to overcome a challenge against none other than her older sister Venus Williams, who was coming into the match in great form, serving well and fresh off an upset over Swiss teenage sensation Belinda Bencic. While it was an absorbing and well-fought match, Serena Williams prevailed in a 6-2, 1-6, 6-3 victory. Following her sister’s win, Venus gave Serena an extended hug and said, “ I’m so happy for you.”

In the men’s draw, Novak Djokovic, the dominant number one player in the world, faced Marin Cilic, the world’s ninth ranked player and defending U.S. Open Champion, in the semi-finals in what was termed the “Battle of the Balkans.” However, Djokovic showed great form and defeated Cilic 6-0, 6-1, 6-2, giving away only three games, quite unusual for a Grand Slam semi-final. In the other semi-finals, Roger Federer, world’s number two, easily defeated his opponent, fellow countrymen Stan Wawrinka, 6-4, 6-3, 6-1.

As for the Americans in the men’s draw, twenty-six year old Donald Young captivated thousands in his cinderella run to the Round of 16. Young showed determination by winning three straight come-from-behind matches where he was down in the initial sets.  Donald’s quest came to a close though against Stan Wawrinka.  The American hopeful entertained the crowd for a while with his impressive tennis but ultimately lost  6-4, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4.

On Sunday, September 13, after a lengthy rain delay, Novak Djokovic defeated fan favorite Roger Federer in a thrilling 6-4 5-7 6-4 6-4 victory.  With the win, Djokovic has joined the ten major club, an incredible feat for the twenty-eight year old sensation from Serbia.

Sources: US Open, AP World Tour, WTA Tennis, Bleacher Report, IF Tennis, ESPN, Alexisrael