NEW YORK -- Stan Wawrinka was about 2 1/2 hours removed from winning the U.S. Open for his third major championship when he was presented with a question he probably was figuring would be coming.The gist: After adding this trophy to those from the Australian Open in 2014, and the French Open in 2015, is it time to focus on completing a career Grand Slam by winning Wimbledon in 2017?Wawrinka ran his left hand through his hair, rubbed his eyes and smiled.So what? Are you saying next year I focus only on Wimbledon? There is no plan. The only plan is trying to push myself the maximum to be the best player I can, Wawrinka said Sunday night. Im not good enough to start and say, `OK, Im going to win a Grand Slam this year. No.Well, actually, Stan, you sure seem to be at this point. And that 6-7 (1), 6-4, 7-5, 6-3 victory over No. 1-ranked and defending champion Novak Djokovic in the U.S. Open final on Sunday night was only the latest evidence.Wawrinka might have won a French Open junior title as a teenager, but it sure took him a while to show that sort of talent at the elite level. So long in the shadow of his Swiss countryman and close friend Roger Federer, Wawrinka did not reach a Grand Slam semifinal until age 28, in his 35th appearance at one of his sports four most prestigious events.Now, though, Wawrinka has won three majors over the past three seasons, pulling even with Andy Murray. Since the 2005 French Open, Federer, Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have won 39 of 47 Grand Slam trophies. Only Wawrinka and Murray also have multiple titles in that span.So its clear that the third-ranked Wawrinka now must be seen among the cream of the crop in mens tennis and a threat at all big tournaments moving forward. He is, after all, 3-0 in major finals, and has won 11 consecutive finals overall.He hits a very heavy ball, especially from the backhand corner. Forehand is very flat. You know, he goes for his shots from the forehand side. Backhand, you know, great chip, great slice. He uses that when hes defending and then he comes up and can get you off the court with a backhand crosscourt. Thats probably one of the best shots in the game, Djokovic said. Physically, hes very strong, so he can endure a lot.Wawrinka has never made it past the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, and lost in the second round there this year to the resurgent Juan Martin del Potro.So what about Wimbledon? What might he be able to do there? He added 1996 champion Richard Krajicek as a coaching consultant on grass this season to help with volleying, so he is definitely interested in improving at the All England Club.Im trying. Im trying every year to improve. Im trying every year to find solutions, Wawrinka said. I didnt play my best tennis yet there. Hopefully it will come.Here is what else we learned during the 2016 U.S. Open:KERBER IS NO. 1: It becomes official on Monday when the new WTA rankings are released, but Angelique Kerber clinched her debut at No. 1 after the U.S. Open semifinals, then showed its definitely justified by winning her second Grand Slam title of the season. The 28-year-old German had never been so much as a finalist at a major until this season, but made three such runs, winning the Australian Open and finishing as the runner-up at Wimbledon, before dropping only one set at Flushing Meadows. Once known mainly as a counter-puncher, Kerber has become more aggressive during points, became more dedicated to raising her fitness, and worked with a mental coach to rise to the top. At 28, she is the oldest woman to reach No. 1, but her skills and stamina could keep her in the mix for a while.SERENA WILLIAMS: There was a lot of speculation about whether there is a changing of the guard in womens tennis, now that Serena Williams record-tying 186-week streak at No. 1 is over after a semifinal loss to Karolina Pliskova. Williams turns 35 this month, so some are ready to write her off. Not so fast. Dont forget that she has fared no worse than the semifinals at each of the past nine majors, including a Wimbledon title and two runner-up finishes this year.FEDERER AND NADAL: After ruling tennis for so long, Federer and Nadal didnt win a major title in 2015 or 2016, and neither was a factor at Flushing Meadows (Nadal lost in the fourth round; Federer missed the tournament while he rehabs his surgically repaired left knee). Federer is 35; Nadal is 30 and injured more often than not lately.---Follow Howard Fendrich on Twitter at http://twitter.com/HowardFendrich Wholesale Air Max Shoes UK . Numbers Game looks into the Canadiens securing the services of Thomas Vanek in a trade with the New York Islanders. The Canadiens Get: LW Thomas Vanek and a conditional fifth-round pick. Air Max UK Outlet . Ryan Garbutt had a goal and two assists as Dallas snapped a six-game losing streak with a 5-2 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday night. http://www.discountairmaxuk.com/ . With the first unit struggling of late and Amir Johnson - one of the teams iron men - hobbling on an injured right ankle, Patterson knew he could get the nod in a challenging matchup against one of the leagues up and coming players at his position. Cheap Nike Shoes UK . Each of Houstons starters scored in double figures as the Rockets improved to 2-0 against the Spurs this season, with both victories coming on the road. They also moved within 3 1/2 games of San Antonio (22-7) for the lead the Southwest Division. Cheap Air Max UK Free Shippng . They were putting most of their energy into a record-setting offensive display. Indias PV Sindhu produced a performance befitting the occasion, beating reigning All England singles champion Nozomi Okohura of Japan 21-19, 21-10, to book her place in the womens singles final in Rio.Sindhu has now become both the second Indian medalist of the Rio Games, as well as the second Indian badminton player to bag an Olympic medal after Sania Nehwal, who had won bronze in London four years ago. Sindhu will face Spains Carolina Marin in the final on Friday, slated to be played at 6.55pm IST.Sindhu began with serve, but it was Okohura who opened the scoring with a booming crosscourt smash to settle the opening rally. Sindhu then picked up four consecutive points -- the last of those with a delectable backhand diagonal drop shot -- to put some distance between the two.Sindhu would open up a four point lead at 8-4, before Okuhara tried to fight back with a smash down the line. Sindhu, however, showed her full range of skills with the score at 8-6, starting with a diagonal drop, and then a powerful smash to settle a rally that lasted 23 shots. Sindhu led 11-6 in the mid-game break.Okuhara settled after the break, bringing the score back to 9-12 with a challenge upheld for a shot initially called long at Sindus baseline, and then bridging the gap to 14-11. Sindhu sent a couple of smashes wide of the sidelines by a fair distance, but Okuhara crucially misjudged a drop to open a three-point lead again at 16-13.The two players then missed the sidelines off alternate points, but Sindhu showed exceptional retrieval skills in keeping the three-point lead going till 18-15. Okuhara picked up two points, and kept snapping at Sindhus heels, before an error on her serve handed Sindhu two game points.Okuhara would save the first of those by making Sindhu move all around the court, bringing her forward every now and then with soft hands. However, Sindhu took the opening game 21-19 off the next service, winning thee game in 27 minutes.dddddddddddd.The second game began with Sindhu looking to be aggressive, and she raced to a 3-0 lead with some strong smashes on either side of her opponent. Okuhara, however, registered five points on the trot with some great retrievals and patient play. In fact, when she led 4-3, it was the first time since the start of the match that she had held the lead.Sindhu would win the next two points to level things up, and the pattern of leading and catching up would continue till 8-8, when a well-disguised forehand allowed the Indian to reclaim the lead at 9-8. At 10-9. Sindhu hastened onto the shuttle and failed to complete an easy smash. But off the very next point, Okuhara misjudged a shot to her baseline to hand the Indian an 11-10 advantage going into the mid-game break.Straight after the break, Okuhara was taken aback by the increased intensity in Sindhus game, as the Indian showed remarkable reserves of energy, making Okuhara run around her side of the court by sending in several forehand smashes mixed with judicious changes of pace. Sindhu completed the second game 21-10 in just 22 minutes. Remarkably, she picked the last 11 points in succession to become the first Indian to reach an Olympic final in badminton.?The 10th-ranked Sindhu, who had defeated world No. 2 Wang Yihan of China in straight games in the quarterfinal, had lost three out of four previous meetings to Okuhara before today, including their most recent meeting in February 2016.Earlier Marin completed a 21-14, 21-16 win over defending champion Li Xuerui of China, made easier when the latter appeared to do some severe damage to her knee as she went for an overhead smash. Marin was leading 18-16 in the second game at that stage, and won her last three points with Xuerui hardly able to move. ' ' '