Absence of marquee names leaves Open final flat

It is difficult to say what a Marin Cilic-Kei Nishikori U.S. Open final will do for tennis. Fresh blood is a mainstay of spectator sports, and here were two former background singers -- plenty competent at their craft but long working 20 feet from stardom -- bursting onto center stage simultaneously.

In the first Grand Slam final for both, Cilic's persuasive 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 victory lends him a champion's currency. And both he and Nishikori gave the Open an Alfred Hitchcock psychological thrill with their semifinal upsets of Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. It was the first time in Open history that both the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds lost in the penultimate round.

By leaping, without warning, from the shadows to wreak havoc on what had been a formful tournament, the 25-year-old Cilic and 24-year-old Nishikori prompted talk of a new generation of stars.

"For all those other players working hard," Cilic said after accepting the championship trophy, "this is big sign, that if you are working hard, things are going to pay off."

Very possible. But Cilic's breakthrough result reminded of Juan Martin del Potro, who in 2009 won his first Grand Slam event by ending Federer's five-year run as champion.

Del Potro, like Cilic a strapping 6-6 fellow with a muscular game, looked for all the world to have multiple major titles in his future. Instead, del Potro has reached only one Slam semifinal since and was absent from this Open for a second time in five years because of injury.

So, no guarantees. Cilic and Nishikori gave the Open some admirable tennis over the two weeks. That their championship appearance coincided with an unexpected turn in the weather -- from draining heat and humidity to a refreshingly cool afternoon -- appeared symbolic.

"I think it's good news for tennis," Nishikori said. "A lot of young guys are coming up. [Grigor] Dimitrov, [Milos] Raonic . . . I hope to see more changes, and I hope I can make more good results."

Still, there is this: Nishikori's inability to engage Cilic at the most crucial moments left the show a bit flat. One fan in the upper reaches of Ashe Stadium spent most of the match trying to stir fans into starting a wave, something thoroughly unlikely if Federer and Djokovic had been battling down below.

Not since 1997 had the U.S. Open men's championship been contested with neither player among the top 10 seeds: Patrick Rafter was No. 13 that year and defeated unseeded Greg Rusedski for the title.

This time, despite the relatively low name recognition among casual fans, a more competitive, longer duel likely would have lit fire in the crowd, which was in Nishikori's corner with occasional chants of "Kei! Kei! Kei!"

But Nishikori was spent after back-to-back five-setters before needing four sets to defeat Djokovic. He admitted being "almost too excited" after his semifinal upset, and feeling "a little heavy. And it really is different, the finals from the semifinal."

Also, there is no getting around the Open's traditional celebrity snobbery. Monday, there was almost as much spectator reaction when the huge stadium video screen focused on movie and TV personalities and sports stars. (Of course, Japanese pitcher Masahiro Tanaka was in the house.)

So while up-and-coming challengers matter in an individual sport, branding and marquee names carry more weight and reach beyond the hard-core fans. Monday was the first Grand Slam final since the 2005 Australian Open played without Federer, Djokovic, Rafael Nadal or Andy Murray.

In a way, they were missed.