The world number one came through a 6-3 5-7 6-2 6-1 triumph to reach the second round of the Grand Slam, which he has won twice.
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Nadal, the 2010 and 2013 champion and seeded to face Djokovic in the semifinals, eased to a 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 win over Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan.
Third-seeded Stan Wawrinka advanced to the second round of the U.S. Open with a straight-set win. He lost in the third round at Wimbledon, then after a title in Toronto, fell in the first round at the Olympics, bothered by a left wrist injury. Johanna Konta, the tournament’s 13th-seeded woman, collapsed and received medical treatment right out there on Court 13 late in the second set of her 6-2, 5-7, 6-2 victory over Tsvetana Pironkova. “It’s good, as I said, just to finish the match”, he said.
“It was hard to follow Phil Collins”, joked Djokovic in reference to the lengthy opening ceremony which featured the veteran English rocker under the new $150 million roof on Arthur Ashe Stadium.
“I always believe in myself”, said Wozniacki, unseeded in NY for the first time since her 2007 tournament debut, “and I always think that in my head I belong at the top of the game”.
“Playing Novak you have to be 100-per cent ready”, he said. “That’s what gave me a little bit more confidence”. Injuries are part of the career.
“I am hitting very well the backhand, but it’s true that the forehand I need time”.
Defeated Wimbledon finalist Milos Raonic did well to come through a tough test against the entertaining Dustin Brown.
“But on the other hand, we have got to focus on the players that we have at the moment”.
The world number one said: “It was just prevention”.
The defending champ moved on to the third round of the U.S. Open when his opponent withdrew before their match Wednesday.
The consultation certainly worked as she reeled off the next 7 games to lay the foundation for her win. Djokovic will face either Guido Pella of Argentina or Mikhail Youzhny of Russian Federation on Friday for a place in the last 16.
This honour went to Edmund who despite being ranked 85th in the world managed to knock out Richard Gasquet.
Also exiting was Olympic champion Monica Puig with the Puerto Rican losing 6-4, 6-2 to China’s Zheng Saisai.
Former US Open champion Marin Cilic began his campaign with a 6-4 7-5 6-1 victory over Rogerio Dutra Silva of Brazil on Monday.
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Gael Monfils narrowly avoided injury after crashing into an on-court clock during his first round match against Gilles Muller. No. 9 Svetlana Kuznetsova, the 2004 champion, took the first four games before losing 6-4, 6-4 to Caroline Wozniacki, who is unseeded but can rely on the muscle memory from two trips to the final in NY.
