Agreed. Many Fed fans around the web were ecstatic with the removal of Nole, but tennis is a sport, and as such it has to be played on the court. I never take any match for granted because tennis players are people too, and sometimes you wake up and feel like crap and can't shake the feeling. So, until two players get on court, it's best not to assume a win is a given.
Cilic was playing lights out, but I wasn't sure Federer would be able to lift his game that significantly after that showing against Monfils. Monfils gift-wrapped that match, but when he played at a decent level he was killing Fed. Cilic was bursting with confidence, so I thought that would be a tough match regardless.
Also not surprised about the TV ratings in the US either. They only promote Rafa, Fed, and Djokovic. You can't expect the rest of the unheralded tour to fill the seats when you barely mention them, so...And even as a Serena fan it was hard to watch another stroll in the park final. I never thought Woz had a chance and apparently many others didn't think so either.
Monfils did gift-wrap the match, didn't he? And then he went on to worship Federer even more in his presser. That Cilic match must have been quite the eye opening for him especially when he realized that he too had a couple of match points against Federer and could have sent Federer home in straight sets just like Cilic. But then again, that's Monfils for you. Love him or hate him - he is who he is.
As to the women's final, as you said yourself - no match is given and by that definition, I don't see how the final between Serena and Woz was given. If anything, in the last few meetings Woz had taken a set off Serena and Woz has beaten Serena in the past though just one time. So judging by all that and the way Wozi was playing it was never that given. I do think Wozi is too cozy and chummy with Serena. I mean she systematically destroyed Sharapova in the same tournament and we all know Sharapova too is a very powerful player. What Serena did in that match was to mainly overpower Woz and I personally thought Wozi could have dealt with Serena better but she was mighty nervous from the getgo. Perhaps the thought of the crowd and Serena both overpowered her and she wasn't able to put out her best on that day.
In any case, that wasn't the reason the rating was low. Agassi never had any hold on Sampras as far as the USO was concerned and yet, that never held off the TV rating or the audience in the stadium.
I don't think Nole gets any special treatments that Fed and Nad gets at the US Open. In fact, even Nadal didn't get any special treatments there either until the USO Organization realized that Nadal too has become very popular since 2008 all around the globe that they felt the need to oblige as well. It used to be all Federer since 2003.
Back to the women's final again - I just get the feeling Serena is not as popular in the US as, say, Venus is.
monfils had that match in the bag. it would have been the biggest win of his career but evidently it was just not meant to be.
monfils simply has to work harder and harder if he wants to be able to compete with the best of the best day in and day out.