Wawrinka saved four break points in the seventh game of the second set to stay on serve at 4-3 and saved two more in the ninth game before leveling the match.
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The world number one will now face either Stan Wawrinka of Kei Nishikori in Sunday’s final.
Djokovic broke Monfils twice to take a 5-0 lead in the first set.
“He was playing really good from the beginning, he was dictating”, Wawrinka said. Djokovic raced to a 5-0 lead.
Miscue after miscue started coming from Djokovic, and Monfils won three games in a row, before eventually dropping a set for the first time all tournament.
There were plenty of lengthy exchanges in that first set, and Kerber tended to get the better of them, winning 9 of 14 points that lasted at least 10 strokes. “And I try my best, ‘” Monfils said in his postmatch news conference.
The format includes three singles and one doubles match each day.
Early in the third set, fans began to boo Monfils during his service game and he looked at the crowd in the lower bowl and waved his palms upward to indicate that he wanted more.
When Djokovic promptly broke Monfils’ serve to start the third, the lack of a Monfils challenge had the demanding Ashe crowd loudly booing.
“Sorry if it wasn’t academic, but in the end, you change with what you’ve got”.
It was just the latest unpredictable moment in what has been an unpredictable career for the Frenchman, who has always been one of the most interesting and charismatic players on the men’s tour. “I got a little bit of my instinct and flair”. It’s not only one way to play tennis. I think I’m failing, but I try to stand up.
Monfils was furious that he had been branded as unprofessional by McEnroe who was commentating for American television.
“If he said that you have to believe him. And the only reason I say bordering is because it’s working”.
“It was unusual, because maybe they (the crowd) will listen to commentary and hear I’m unprofessional, I’m poor, whatever”, the Frenchman said. “It doesn’t bring much respect among fellow players in the locker room, none”.
“I’m very sad to learn that such a legend criticised me”, said Monfils.
“I have a great partner”.
“The 6’4” Frenchman’s astounding athleticism can make him a magical player, but his tendency to push and run rather than assert his gifts offensively can make him a maddening player as well. When he calls me unprofessional, he calls my coach unprofessional, calls my physio unprofessional, all my team, actually, unprofessional’.
A disgusted Djokovic, who channeled Andrew Ilie tearing at the neck of his white shirt, played the final point with the shredded shirt before completely tearing it off and taking more treatment.
“The first question is like you’re not competing”.
“Humid. That’s all we were thinking about and feeling in the last couple of sets”, Djokovic said afterwards.
The 29-year-old arrived in NY with niggling injuries to his left wrist and right elbow but claimed he is not concerned ahead of the final.
Safe to say, nothing the rest of the way is likely to be as eventful as Djokovic vs. Monfils.
The World No 1 has never had an easier route in a Grand Slam, having played only two full matches before the last four clash with the Frenchman – and it seeed like another stroll for Djokjovic in the first two sets, against the Frenchman whose mind and game was all over the place. Monfils looked absolutely out of sorts, got broken early, and had no answer to Djokovic playing tennis. “Start to double fault a little bit”.
Trailing 0-40 in the seventh game, Wawrinka was able to save five break points to hold and knotted the match at two sets apiece with a break in the 12th game.
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“I thought at times that he was maybe behaving a little bit, for some terms and judgements, unacceptable but I guess that was part of his tactics”, said the 2011 and 2015 champion.
