![\"Marin](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/cilic-montreal-2025-serve.jpg\")
<\/p>\n ATP Tour
\n Marin\u2019s memories: Former champ Cilic on how US Open \u2018brings the goosebumps\u2019<\/p>\n
2014 winner assesses Alcaraz, Sinner and their rise to the top<\/p>\n
August 26, 2025<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Mike Lawrence\/ATP Tour<\/p>\n
Marin Cilic is a former No. 3 in the PIF ATP Rankings.
\n By Andy West<\/p>\n
It would be hard for Marin Cilic<\/a>\u2019s past at the US Open<\/a> not to somehow inform his latest campaign at the hard-court major. <\/p>\n The 2014 titlist is back to compete in New York for the first time in three years and walking around the grounds of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center has perhaps inevitably brought back memories of his past successes there. Cilic\u2019s intention is to put them to good use as he prepares for his 15th main-draw appearance at Flushing Meadows. <\/p>\n \u201cThere are flashes. Obviously, I am not thinking only about my victory here, more into details,\u201d Cilic, who takes on 23rd seed Alexander Bublik<\/a> in the first round, told ATPTour.com. \u201cWhat things did I do well in those years when I played well, especially the one that I won? What helped me to find my game? What helped me to just find my inner peace and compete at that level? <\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m just trying to pick a couple of things and if I can incorporate those into my game, great. The feeling that you know you played well here is maybe an extra boost to lift your game.\u201d <\/p>\n The US Open<\/a> naturally stands out as a special tournament for Cilic, but not just for his 2014 title run in which he dropped just three sets and included a straight-sets victory against Roger Federer<\/a> in the semi-finals. <\/p>\n \u201cIt means an achievement of a lifetime [to me], absolutely,\u201d said the 36-year-old Croatian. \u201cObviously, everything came to life over here. I had some great success prior to my victory here, playing in the era of not only the Big Four but also other guys from Andy Roddick<\/a> to [James] Blake to [Fernando] Gonzalez to [Tomas] Berdych to [Jo-Wilfried] Tsonga to [Juan Martin<\/a>] del Potro to [David] Nalbandian to many incredible champions we had on the Tour. <\/p>\n \u201cHere, all my dreams came true, so coming here again always brings the goosebumps and always brings a little bit of a sensation of, \u2018Can I do it again?\u2019 You never know what\u2019s coming, so you\u2019ve always got to keep your mind open and work as hard as you can to achieve those things.\u201d <\/p>\n There were no guarantees that Cilic was going to get the chance to compete again at an event where he holds a 41-13 record. He missed almost all of the 2023 season and half of 2024 due to a right knee injury, a tough absence for any player to bounce back from in their mid-30s. <\/p>\n \u201cIt was a huge struggle to come back,\u201d reflected Cilic. \u201cIt\u2019s an extremely difficult position, unknown territory, when you need to do a surgery. Who to trust? What to do? What if it went wrong? Obviously, you are feeling, \u2018I\u2019m 35, 36, do I need these things?\u2019 For me it came down to just a feeling, an idea of wanting to come back and needing to do it for my past self. I was so diligent and professional for so many years, and I want to come back to give myself another chance. <\/p>\n \u201cComing back here is just a plus. To play here, to enjoy myself. My family is here, my boys. They walked here through the corridors, and they were like, \u2018Oh dad, that\u2019s you! That\u2019s you on the photo, I can\u2019t believe it!\u2019 It\u2019s fun to have new memories.\u201d <\/p>\n When Cilic steps on court to face Bublik on Tuesday afternoon in New York, it will be the 36-year-old\u2019s first US Open<\/a> outing since 2022, when he reached the fourth round. A 19-year-old Carlos Alcaraz<\/a> ended Cilic\u2019s run in a five-set thriller before going on to lift his maiden major title and simultaneously become the youngest No. 1 in PIF ATP Rankings history. <\/p>\n \u201cI played him that year also in Miami, where he won his first Masters 1000 and I was like, \u2018This guys is unbelievable\u2019,\u201d recalls Cilic of the 2022 incarnation of Alcaraz. \u201cNot many guys just blew me off the court like that. Playing here, I was ready to go full on, and it was a tough match, five sets, and he went on to win the trophy and be No. 1. To even have that kind of a run in 2022 when he was 19, with so many tough matches and five setters, it was just incredible.\u201d <\/p>\n You May Also Like: No. 1-chasing Alcaraz: Sinner’s \u2018back is a big target\u2019 at the US Open!<\/a><\/p>\n![\"It](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1756215789_11_it-all-adds-up-banner.jpg\"\/)
<\/a><\/p>\nMarin Cilic” style=”width: 100%;” src=”https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/-\/media\/images\/news\/2025\/08\/26\/02\/20\/cilic-us-open-2014-trophy-shot.jpg”>
\nMarin Cilic<\/a> defeated Kei Nishikori<\/a> to triumph at the 2014 US Open<\/a>. Photo Credit: Stan Honda\/AFP via Getty Images <\/p>\n