A lot of air goes out of the tennis bubble after the U.S. Open, but that doesn't mean there isn't still a lot of fine play to be appreciated by those who follow the sport.
The stakes at the events in Asia and Europe are hardly comparable to the Grand Slams, but still some people's (over) reactions to the players' ups and downs during the fall are off the charts.
You want to shout, "just enjoy what they give us, don't make judgments based on one or two results.
Here's what has been going on with the big four.
RAFAEL NADAL: Far and away the world's best player after winning the French Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, Nadal looked remarkably good at his post-U.S. Open tournaments in Bangkok, Tokyo and Shanghai.
But he was probably lucky to win the one event he did, in Tokyo. In his semi-final with Viktor Troicki, he had to save two match points - one when a second serve let gave him the reprieve of another serve - in winning 7-6(4), 4-6, 7-6(7).
Troicki played out of his mind just as Guillermo Garcia-Lopez did in beating Nadal 2-6, 7-6(3), 6-3 in the Bangkok semi-finals and Jurgen Melzer did in ousting him 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 in the round-of-16 in Shanghai.
But no one is going to knock Nadal. He only had a week at home after the U.S. Open before travelling to Asia. There was obviously a fatigue element involved in his performances.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: His inspired victory over Roger Federer in the U.S. Open semi-finals put the Serb back in the good books with many after months, by his standards, of mediocrity.
He was impressive in winning Beijing two weeks ago but last week in Shanghai, especially after he had to finish the rain-delayed Beijing final on the Monday, he looked a little jaded in a 7-5, 6-4 semi-final loss to Federer.
Just when many were proclaiming him as the clear No. 1 challenger to Nadal, losing to Federer brought him back to the lead pack.
ROGER FEDERER: All the talk about the Swiss these days seems to be extreme - either he's finished or he's back as good as ever. He looked fairly sharp in avenging the U.S. Open loss when he beat Djokovic in the Shanghai semi-finals, and then not so good in losing the final 6-3, 6-2 to Andy Murray. But he had a tougher draw than Murray, and a shorter turn-around for the final because he played the night semi-final against Djokovic. The significance of either result should not be exaggerated.
ANDY MURRAY: Murray was likely bothered by a virus - he seldom makes excuses for losses - when he played poorly at the U.S. Open against Stanislas Wawrinka. It was probably still a factor when he was dusted 6-3, 6-2 by Ivan Ljubicic in Tokyo the week before he sailed through to the Shanghai title, beating Federer in the final. That was strong showing, and Murray naysayers should not feign surprise. He is the real deal - otherwise how has he been ranked in the top five in the world every week since July, 2008?
BOTTOM LINE: Enjoy each match on its own at this time of year. There's no need to draw grandiose conclusions every time a top player steps on the court.