Stephens def. Keys, 6-3, 6-0
Nadal def. Anderson, 6-3, 6-3, 6-4
In two finals over two days, we saw exactly zero truly competitive sets. The matches themselves were a far cry from anything like classics, but the storylines of which they are a part will endure. Sloane Stephens' victory over Madison Keys was the capstone of her amazing return to the tour. Nadal's victory was a fitting addition to an astonishing season, in which he returned from injury to incredible success: two titles and one final over the four Grand Slams; titles in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Madrid; a final at the Miami Open.
Nonetheless, finals are finals. They're worth a little discussion.
The first four games of the women's final were competitive, and there were some long, high-quality rallies, but pretty quickly it was clear that Stephens had the upper hand. Keys does not like to play long rallies, and the longer Stephens was able to keep the ball in play, the more pressure Keys found herself under. Keys needed to adapt, either by becoming more patient and waiting for her spots, or by trying a different method to end the points early (presumably by coming to net). But the weight of the situation got to her, and she began to get more and more into her head, and so the clarity of mind necessary to calmly adapt escaped her. Once the break came, Keys' remaining belief more or less crumbled. Consider: from that point on, Stephens won nine of the final ten games.
Stephens' poise was utterly remarkable. She seemed completely unrattled at any point in the match. Perhaps her time away from the game as she recovered from her surgery gave her the space to get very clear about what tennis meant to her. Just how remarkable was her summer? She made the semis in both the Rogers Cup and the Western and Southern Open, and over those two tournaments and the U.S. Open, she beat Kvitova (twice), Safarova (twice), Kerber, Makarova, Venus, Cibulkova, and Roberta Vinci. That's an impressive list.
Based on the assuredness she displayed over the past two weeks, it seems that she has immediately thrust herself into the conversation as one of the top players in women's tennis. It's true, many players have won a Slam and then found the weight of expectations to be too much to deal with. Perhaps she will be another player of that ilk. But the fortitude she displayed over the past two weeks (and this year as a whole) suggests otherwise.
The men's final was a bit more competitive, perhaps--not only did Anderson never melt down, he also displayed a willingness to get outside his comfort zone and try to adapt to the realities of the situation, namely that Nadal, in returning from so deep, was not going to be easily aced, and that once the ball was in play, Nadal's movement, still astonishing at 31, was going to keep Anderson from hitting easy winners. Anderson tried coming to net regularly, but Nadal was simply too good for him. Anderson was under pressure from Nadal's return game from the very start, and it was only a matter of time until Anderson broke down. Anderson did his best, but ultimately it was a straightforward victory for Nadal.