A time-honored tradition: Die-hard tennis fans are always pining for ways to get closer to today’s tennis stars. We queue for autographs, cough up big bucks for courtside tickets and pay to attend sponsored clinics, just for a chance to mingle with the big names. This year at the 2020 US Open, the roles have been reversed.
Welcome to the suite life, where tennis players “stan” tennis players.
Once the territory of well-heeled tennis aficionados imbibing copious quantities of the Open’s signature Grey Goose “Honey Deuce” cocktail, the suites inside Arthur Ashe Stadium now serve as a veritable fan experience for today’s top players. Occupying those precious suites, which can range from $15,000 to $120,000 in normal years (depending on the session), are the tournament’s seeded players, and they’re enjoying the tennis as they never have before.
Sometimes they do it while their physiotherapist preps them for a massage.
Think of it as a home away from home, with a world-class view and a soundtrack colored by the sweet sound of a perfectly struck tennis ball—and squeaking shoes.
“I pretty much live in my suite,” says 2017 finalist Madison Keys.
She’s not the only one.
If players aren’t playing a match, doing press, or playing miniature golf or basketball in the South Plaza, it’s easy to track them down. Just check the suites. And if there’s a cracking match happening on Ashe, like Andy Murray’s epic five-set win over Yoshihito Nishioka on Day 2, then they’ll gather around the court like it’s a campfire, fixated on the tennis, just like the rest of us.
But the suite life is not only about the tennis. It’s about having a place to chillax at a Grand Slam. Necessity is the mother of all invention and in 2020, and with all the strict health and safety protocols that players must abide by, this is the one change that puts a smile on everybody’s face.
Czech Karolina Muchova, the No. 20 seed, says her agent brought her a guitar so she can take her mind off the tennis by strumming a few chords and belting out a few bars.
Alexander Zverev, the No. 5 seed on the men’s side, likes to camp out on his balcony shirtless like he’s spending a day on the French Riviera. This caught the attention of Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime, the No.15 seed, who was giving fans a tour of his new digs on Instagram when he spotted the bare-chested German across the way.
“What does he think he’s doing?” the Canadian says as the camera pulls Zverev into focus. “Put a shirt on, man!”
In a year that has taken so much from the sport, and from the world at large, the absence of fans presented the US Open with an opportunity to give something back to the players that made their way to New York. Organizers have converted 67 of the 80 suites inside of Arthur Ashe stadium, hauling in furniture that could be cleaned easily and sanitized nightly, stocking fridges with ice-cold beverages, installing Lavazza espresso machines and, just to make sure everybody feels at home, adding a physio table to each suite.
With 64 seeds at the 2020 US Open, that left three unclaimed suites. One of them was given to a deserving three-time champion, Kim Clijsters. She was pleased as punch to have it.
“The suite has been great,” the 37-year-old mother of three said. “Just the convenience for me, I wasn't seeded, but to receive a suite was obviously a big bonus. We felt very thankful to be up there and to watch the tennis the last couple of days.”
Like so many of her neighbors, Clijsters has enjoyed having a unique view of the matches being played in Arthur Ashe Stadium.
“We've been able to watch everybody practice out there,” she said. “That's always a lot of fun, too. It's been a nice bonus to have for sure.”
As seeded players drop out of the tournament, the next-highest ranked players can jump into a suite. A nice upgrade, to say the least.
For No. 4-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas the suite gives him a chance to spend time with 2018 women’s singles champion Naomi Osaka.
“I get to know my good friend Naomi Osaka a little bit better, we’re neighbors - that’s a lot of fun,” he said with a smile.
World No.1 and three-time US Open champion Novak Djokovic says that having all his peers functioning as fans adds pressure to the equation.
“Both floors are filled with players, top players, both male and female,” the Serb told reporters. “They're watching you, right? They're there. You can sense that there is also that kind of additional pressure to perform well in front of them.”
So far Djokovic has done just fine, reaching the Round of 16 while filling the cavernous stadium with his primal screams.
Sloane Stephens made millions of fans worldwide when she claimed the 2017 US Open title. But this year she’s happy to be a fan herself. “It's actually a very cool vibe to be a tennis player and also be, like, a fan and watch,” she said.
Petra Martic, the No.8 seed, talked down the difficulties of playing tennis in the age of coronavirus. The suite life isn’t a vaccine but it does cure a few ills.
“Well, really, I can’t complain, we’ve got suites and seats, so I really enjoy my time here,” the Croatian said. “To have your own private room up there to watch some tennis, I mean it’s just great.”
Martic reached the Round of 16 on Day 5. After her match she said in an interview that when she’s not playing tennis, she’s watching tennis. “I watched a bit of Andy Murray, I watched a bit of Thiem, whoever is out there it’s always a good match if it’s on center court, right?”
Tsitsipas, who first visited Arthur Ashe Stadium when he was a junior in 2015, says he cherishes this rare opportunity to experience the game in a different way. “We have a great view of Arthur Ashe, I very much appreciate that I’m able to enjoy the biggest tennis stadium in the world from that angle,” he said.
Had he ever watched a match in a suite before?
“No, never, not in a suite—I could not afford it,” he said.
