The Korda Conundrum

Sebastian Korda was once pegged as the breakout star who would inevitably claim the throne as America’s best player. That coronation never came. His story has become a familiar one in tennis: the tale of what could have been.

Korda first burst onto the scene in 2021 as a 20-year-old who muscled his way into the top 100 with absolute authority. He kept climbing that year, falling just short of ending the year in the top 40. Thirty-six wins accumulated, including some quality scalps against battle-tested ATP veterans. He reached the ATP Next Gen Finals and made it all the way to the championship match before running into Carlos Alcaraz.

Then 2022 happened. It was our first real glimpse of Korda failing to build on his momentum. The year turned out to be a forgettable slog, with injuries and poor form conspiring to keep him outside the top 30. He finally broke through that barrier in 2023, flashing genuine brilliance at times, but injuries continued to plague him.

The injury bug kept biting in 2024, though he at least managed to climb to world number 15. Despite the physical setbacks, Korda seemed to be figuring things out. Fast forward to now, and that optimism looks misplaced.

Korda Has Not Been a Superstar

Korda’s 2026 grand slam campaign began at the tournament his father famously conquered years ago, and it ended with a first-round exit. The result was jarring because the Australian courts have typically treated him well. Remember that Medvedev demolition job a few years back? That performance proved that peak Korda can be a serious problem.

There are simply better players out there, and it’s genuinely disappointing because the raw materials were there. Consider that he finished the match with 22 aces. Consider that he hammered 71 winners overall, nearly double Zheng’s total.

So why did he lose? Because Korda has developed a habit of finding ways to lose rather than ways to win. That’s what it boils down to, and it’s a damning trait if you harbor ambitions of joining the elite. At 25, after years of failing to make the leap, you have to wonder if he ever will.

Enter Michael Zheng

On the flip side, we witnessed a genuine rising star announce himself. Michael Zheng won’t surprise anyone who’s been tracking the Challenger Tour because he’s been absolutely ripping through the American circuit lately. Now we got to see him on the big stage, and he delivered.

It was a masterful performance from the 21-year-old, currently ranked 175th in the world. He showed remarkable patience, refusing to force anything and playing immaculately clean tennis. There were shades of Djokovic in how he refused to beat himself.

And Zheng didn’t beat himself. Despite lacking any obvious weapons (zero aces, no overwhelming winner count or raw power), the younger American essentially guided Korda into self-destruction, and Korda was more than happy to oblige.

He’s not the finished product yet. While his all-around game is solid, Zheng has plenty of room for improvement if he wants to reach the next level. His serve is decent but not elite, and he can definitely serve bigger than he did against Korda.

He’ll need to develop a real weapon eventually because simply not beating himself won’t cut it against the absolute best. He’ll need to actively wrestle matches away from those players, and he’s not quite there yet. But this win was a strong statement that his future looks bright.

The Next American Star

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: as wild as it sounds, Zheng is closer to becoming America’s next big thing than Korda is, and that’s pretty damning for the latter. Korda’s serve is good, but it should be elite given his frame. His movement was never exceptional, and hasn’t improved with the injuries. Even mentally, he hasn’t exactly inspired confidence.

The clean strokes are beautiful to watch, but they’re not enough. Not in this era of tennis, where talent has never been deeper and skilled players are everywhere you look.