The big story

Taking on Serena Williams in the final of a major had been a dream come true for Naomi Osaka, but the Japanese player’s maiden grand slam title was overshadowed by the champion’s stunning meltdown. A code violation for coaching in the second set was the trigger for the extraordinary series of outbursts and by the end of the explosive US Open decider she had gone completely off the rails, breaking her racket, branding umpire Carlos Ramos a “thief”, declaring he owed her an apology and claiming she had been penalised “because I’m a woman”. It was impossible not to feel for an emotional Osaka during the presentation ceremony as boos – which she thought were directed at her, having just defeated the American amid a backdrop of controversy – rang around Arthur Ashe Stadium.

The winners

Novak Djokovic firmly put to bed any suggestion that he was finished as a contender on the biggest stages with an incredible comeback from a serious elbow injury, capturing the his 13th and 14th grand slam titles at Wimbledon and Flushing Meadows and remarkably finishing the season as atop the ATP rankings. There were long-awaited grand slam titles for world No.1s past and present Caroline Wozniacki and Simona Halep, and Angelique Kerber vaulted back up the rankings, winning Wimbledon . From an Australian perspective, Alex de Minaur enjoyed a breakout year to replace Nick Kygrios as the country’s leading male player, having started the year ranked 208, while Ashleigh Barty reached the highest mark of her career, No.15, won two singles titles and for the first time made the fourth round of a grand slam, at the US Open. Fellow Queenslander John Millman’s upset of Roger Federer in New York, winning him a spot in the quarter-finals, won’t be quickly forgotten either.