Kerber, who has a chance to overtake Williams at No. 1 in the WTA rankings after the tournament, moved into her third Grand Slam semifinal of the year.
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Indeed Djokovic – bidding to claim three majors in a year for the second straight season – wasn’t concerned about rust being a factor if he had to play a fourth or fifth set in the semis or potentially, the final. But the new mature Murray responded by matching Del Potro in his relentlessness, eventually prevailing in a marathon five-set ordeal which took four hours to complete.
And in the final match played on the famous court, men’s doubles third seeds and 16-time Grand slam champions Bob and Mike Bryan were knocked out by Spanish duo Marc Lopez and Feliciano Lopez 7-6 (7-2) 4-6 6-3 in the fourth round. Tsonga double-faulted on the opening point of the third set, then retired from the match.
“It’s getting better and better each day”.
If at all Djokovic wanted some rest after the match, he wasn’t disappointed and would have been delighted with what happened in his next two matches. He’s playing terrific tennis and has the ability to beat Djokovic in his current form. “Playing the world number one is always going to be tough”, Edmund said. On the second deuce point, Djokovic sent a forehand screaming crosscourt with Tsonga stuck on the other side. He recently clinched his second gold medal at the Olympics – something which would have given him much-needed confidence.
The extra rest has proven timely for Djokovic, who arrived in NY nursing injuries to both his left wrist and right elbow. But with each match, it is clear that Djokovic’s fitness is nowhere close to what it was in the last few years.
Tsonga came into the match on a serving tear, but went out of the tournament meekly, seeing his serve broken four times in two sets. During the changeover after the third game, a trainer examined and taped up the ankle during a medical timeout.
Angelique Kerber of Germany returns a shot to Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic during her fourth round Women’s Singles match on Day Seven of the 2016 US Open.
Wawrinka’s backhand, has been the most stunning shot in men’s tennis lately. In becoming the first British player to win the British Open for 77 years, Murray knew that his place in the sporting history books was already assured. It might have lost its sheen as a result of several injuries the towering Argentine has undergone, it still is good enough to topple the best in the business. However, this will be their first match in the US Open history. He also had a quarter-final finish previous year, losing to Marin Cilic in five hard-fought sets at the 2015 Open. “I’m glad, you know, I have another two days now to work on things”. The Swiss has been a semi-finalist in 2013 and 2015 and the fans would relish the contest between these two players for sure.
The flamboyant 30-year-old is yet to drop a set in this tournament but he has struggled against Djokovic in the past, losing all of their last 12 meetings.
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Nadal said that although the grand slam season is over, he still has goals. He reached the final of the claycourt Monte Carlo Masters, and has been a model of consistency in the hardcourt buildup to the US Open with a title in Washington and a semi-final appearance in Toronto in July.
