Novak Djokovic, faltering and looking unusually vulnerable in his opening match at the U.S. Open, will attempt to right the ship on Wednesday when he plays Czech Jiri Vesely in the second round. When asked by ESPN’s Tom Rinaldi post-match about how he was doing physically, Djokovic instead responded initially with a song and dance inspired by the evening’s musical act Phil Collins.
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“I was my own worst enemy today”, Raonic said.
Querrey stunned the top-ranked Djokovic in the third round at Wimbledon en route to his first major quarterfinal.
Djokovic sent for the trainer only five games into the defence of his title and received lengthy treatment on his upper right arm and elbow.
Janowicz was too careless to capitalise on any weakness in his opponent’s armour but Djokovic will have to survive tougher tests if he is to win his 13th grand slam title in NY. While that was an encouraging sign, it didn’t mean Djokovic’s night would be an easy one.
The Serbian suffered a wobble in the second set as he lost serve twice, despite breaking back initially, and Janowicz drew level on the scoreboard.
The 10th seed went on to win the match in straight sets 6-4 6-2 7-6. Instead, Djokovic found himself serving to force a tiebreak.
Janowicz couldn’t build on his momentum however. However, Djokovic’s response could not be faulted from the moment he broke to love in the opening game of the third set. He hit second serves in the low 80s.
“Jerzy is an unpredictable player, he has a big serve, he can serve over 140 miles per hour and when the ball comes at that speed, the only thing is react and pray you can get the ball back”.
He took just over two-and-a-half hours to defeat former Wimbledon semi-finalist Jerzy Janowicz, who has struggled with injuries and poor form in the three years since, in four gruelling sets. Djokovic earned another service break and soon found himself holding match point.
Nadal, the 2010 and 2013 champion and drawn to face Djokovic in the semifinals, eased to a 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 win over Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan.
After withdrawing early from the French Open and ruling himself out of Wimbledon due to a wrist problem, the Spaniard had come to Flushing Meadows under an injury cloud. I don’t think it’s necessary to talk about it now. “I’m through and taking it day by day”.
Kayla Day, just 16 and ranked 374 in the world, was 6-2, 4-2 up against Madison Brengle when her fellow American quit with an injury. The Frenchman said of his opponent, “I’ve seen him play many times, so I knew how good he is”.
“I feel like my body is in shock”, Konta told medics as she sat shaking on the baseline of Court 13 just after going down set point in the second set.
Nadal, who missed the French Open and Wimbledon with a wrist injury, said after his win: “The most important thing is that I am here in NY”. He still is working on feeling comfortable hitting down-the-line forehands, in particular, after sitting out – not just zero real matches, but barely any practice, either – from his withdrawal at the French Open in late May to the Olympics.
“Tomorrow is a new day. I hope that I’ll feel good overall, so I’m able to perform at my best for the next match”.
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Djokovic will now face Jiri Vesely in round two after the Czech won a marathon five-set match against India’s Saketh Myneni.
