US Open: A look at the last 5 men's singles champions

#3 Stan Wawrinka (2016)

2016 US Open champion Stan Wawrinka poses with his trophy

Two-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka, enjoying one of his best seasons on tour, arrived at the 2016 US Open having won titles in Chennai, Dubai and Geneva.

Wawrinka cruised into the third round with consecutive straight-set wins over Fernando Verdasco and qualifier Alessandro Giannessi. In his first stern test in the tournament, Wawrinka fell behind two sets to one against Daniel Evans and was a point away in the fourth set tie-break from crashing out of the tournament.

To his credit, the Swiss regrouped to save the match point and took the fourth set to force a decider where he cruised to the finish line as Evans's game just fell apart.

Wawrinka beat Ilya Marchenko, 2009 champion Juan Martin del Potro and Kei Nishikori in successive four-set wins to reach his first US Open final where defending champion Novak Djokovic awaited.

Exhibiting little big stage fright against the top-seeded Serb, Wawrinka recovered from the loss of the first set to take the next three sets and romp to his first US Open title and third at a Grand Slam.

About the author

Bhargav is a veteran sports journalist and editor at Sportskeeda, with a rich professional experience of 17 years, working for the likes of Siemens and Bombay Dyeing. An avid football and tennis follower for over three decades, Bhargav uses his vast knowledge and experience, attention to detail, an unbiased yet interesting writing style, and thorough research to craft insightful articles, which have raked in over 18 million reads so far.

Bhargav supports Italy at national level, a team steeped in tradition and history according to him. He still harbors the heartbreak from the Azzurri’s 1994 FIFA World Cup final defeat against Brazil, and protagonist-turned-antagonist from the game, ‘Divine Ponytail’ Roberto Baggio is his all-time favorite player. His favorite manager is Marcelo Lippi, who ended Italy’s 24-year wait for the World Cup trophy, winning it in 2006.

Outside Europe’s top five leagues, he follows the MLS following Lionel Messi’s move in 2023 but favors Cristiano Ronaldo in the G.O.A.T. debate. During his free time, Bhargav enjoys driving off to new places and singing.

Know More

What is the foot injury that has troubled Rafael Nadal over the years? Check here

Edited by Sudeshna Banerjee