The women’s side of the tournament has been a rollercoaster ride from the start of the tournament when Maria Sharapova made a sensational comeback against one of the top players in circuit. Her win against Simona Halep raised hopes of a dream comeback for the former champion and while that did not quite go the distance, there was enough quality in Sharapova’s campaign to prove that she will be a force to contend with as she gets match-fit.

The talking point of the women’s side of the tournament was the fact that four Americans made the semi-finals, and the game will see an American champion who is not Serena or Venus Williams after a very long time.

Sloane Stephens was always a player I had a lot of time for and she has been improving steadily over the last few years. Her semi-final against Venus was proof of her power and stamina. I was also impressed by the way she held her nerve in what was the biggest match of her career. I thought she would not be able to come back after Venus made that tremendous turnaround in the second set. Stephens, however, came back from the dead when she was almost out with a stunning backhand volley at 4-5, 30-30.

It was the moment that defined the youngster’s grit and determination against one of her childhood heroes. It was an emotional and pulsating game and eventually, the youngster made it past Venus.

The other match was a little more predictable with the young and exciting Madison Keys getting past CoCo Vandeweghe in straight sets. Keys has been in the form of her life and is finally showing signs of why she came with such a big rap from the junior American circuit.

The tournament also saw the return of Petra Kvitova, who recovered from a traumatic knife attack earlier this year. She was quite amazing right through the tournament and her match against Venus was one of the best I have seen in a long time. She was also very impressive against the top seed Garbine Muguruza when she overpowered the latter.

Looking ahead, I see the all-American final to be a closely fought match between two players who know each others’ game very well. They are roughly the same age, though Keys is a bigger and more powerful player.

Stephens might benefit from having had a harder-fought semis and that might prove decisive. However, the ladies are really very similar in their game and that makes it very hard to pick a favourite.

Finally, a word for Serena who timed her baby with the US Open. We would expect that sort of perfection from the champion, wouldn’t we?

— Gameplan