Nadal, the 2010 and 2013 champion, took his ideal first round record in NY to 12-0 with a 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 win over Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan. Fellow Spaniard Garbine Muguruza, the French Open champ, faces 48th-ranked Anastasija Sevastova to open the session.
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Djokovic had admitted that he was “not 100 percent” after suffering a wrist injury on the eve of the Olympics where he was a first-round loser.
The 12-time grand slam champion, who headed to NY on the back of a first-round defeat to Juan Martin del Potro at Rio 2016 and suffered a shock third-round exit at Wimbledon last month, will face either Guido Pella or Mikhail Youzhny in round three.
Earlier on Day One, another two-time Open champion, Rafael Nadal, won his first Grand Slam match in three months, 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 against Denis Istomin; 20th-seeded John Isner’s rallied from two sets down to edge 18-year-old us countryman Frances Tiafoe; 26th-seeded Jack Sock pulled out a five-set victory over 18-year-old Taylor Fritz in another all-American matchup; and Rio women’s gold medalist Monica Puig of Puerto Rico fell to Zheng Saisai of China.
“Tomorrow is a new day”.
When Jiri Vesely upset the world’s No. 1 player in Monte Carlo in April, Djokovic hadn’t lost a completed match since November. Playing Novak, you really have to be 100 per cent ready.
Nadal ran his record in NY first-round contests to 12-0; Istomin has now lost 21 straight matches against top-10 opponents.
Rafa Nadal was worn out from his Rio Olympics exertions after emerging from an injury absence to win doubles gold, but the Spaniard perked back up with his trip to NY for the U.S. Open. Vesely wrote on Instagram afterward that the arm had been bothering him for a couple of days and he would see what the doctors in NY said about it. Injuries are part of the career.
When asked more about the nature of his injury, he commented, ‘I don’t think it’s necessary to talk about this now.
Canadian fifth seed Milos Raonic overcame German dangerman Dustin Brown 7-5, 6-4, 6-4.
Uncle Toni’s take? “I hope every day we can play a little bit better”.
Despite struggling with a right arm injury, 12-time grand slam champion Djokovic claimed a 6-3 5-7 6-2 6-1 win over Janowicz. Kerber next faces Mirjana Lucic-Baroni of Croatia.
Muguruza carved out a gritty 2-6, 6-0, 6-3 win over Belgian qualifier Elise Mertens, ranked at 137. The French Open champion needed medical attention after dropping the first set.
Djokovic will face 34-year-old Russian Mikhail Youzhny, twice a semi-finalist, on Friday for a place in the last 16.
Isner, who fired 35 aces, triumphed 3-6, 4-6, 7-6 (7/5), 6-3, 7-6 (7/3) after three and a half hours against the youngest player in the draw.
The 2014 victor and Cincinnati champion Marin Cilic showed his seventh seed status by beating Rogerio Dutra Silva 6-4, 7-5, 6-1.
Monfils nearly suffered a freak accident when a giant courtside clock fell towards him as he collided with the back wall, chasing down a Muller shot.
Kerber, who lost to Serena Williams in the Wimbledon final, has a chance to overtake her for the No. 1 ranking depending on their results at Flushing Meadows.
The second-seeded Kerber led, 6-0, 1-0, after 33 minutes when Polona Hercog stopped.
The US superstar is seeking to add a second major title of 2016 to the Wimbledon crown she won in July.
Murray has played down expectations the match could be a repeat of his last stormy meeting with Rosol in the quarterfinals at Munich in 2015. “I’m glad that I’m experiencing that”.
Nike is dressing their players in bright yellow at the US Open which could cause problems trying to spot the ball which is also – yellow.
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Earlier, Cilic was barely troubled in his straight-sets win over Brazil’s Rogerio Dutra Silva, neither were French pair Jo-Wilfried Tsonga or Gael Monfils who registered similar victories over Guido Andreozzi and Gilles Muller respectively. As he leapt to try and get a racquet to it, he also collided with the courtside clock which fell off its support and onto his foot as he hopped out of the way.
