Djokovic is 19-4 against Wawrinka, and the last time they met in a Grand Slam final was at the 2015 French Open, where Wawrkina won in four sets. Despite losing the opening set, Wawrinka bounced back with more intent, claiming a 4-6, 7-5, 6-4, 6-2 win over the Japanese rival in a match began amid sweltering humidity at the Arthur Ashe Stadium, Sport24 reported.
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Earlier in the day, defending champion Novak Djokovic beat 10th seed Gael Monfils 6-3 6-2 3-6 6-2, with the Frenchman adopting unusual tactics to try and counter the world number one.
“When the guy is too good, playing clean and you’re playing not that good you need to change”, explained Monfils with clear logic. Monfils’ unpredictable behavior, serial serve-and-volleys, stalling, inconsistent effort and variety of questionable tactics that even included a left-handed forehand, affected Djokovic’s concentration and allowed Monfils back into the match.
Novak Djokovic wins the fourth round of the US Open 2016 tournament against Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga today. But that appeared to rattle Djokovic, and Monfils won that game and held in the next one, slicing everything back to draw errors from his opponent or lure him into the net for a passing shot. The top seed snatched a two-set lead after only one hour of play.
“I have a great partner”. “Just gets much better”.
“I am really excited, I want to enjoy the moment”, he said.
But perhaps the worst point of the match was played out not on the court but on ESPN as commentator and tennis legend John McEnroe called the black player “unprofessional” at various points during the commentary.
Monfils tested the patience of both Djokovic and the fans with a display of tennis that swung wildly from dynamic to indifferent as he tried to “get inside” the Serb’s head.
“I think I’m failing a lot but I try to stand up”.
“I can push him a little bit to defend, also [give] myself more confidence, and put him out of his balance”.
“Specifically, before this Grand Slam, there were things that were happening with my health and my physical state that were, you know, making me a little bit skeptical about how the thing was going to go during the tournament”, he said.
“I know I have some up and down during the year”, Wawrinka said afterward. Djokovic has played only 13 sets, and a total of 118 games.
But the former French and Australian Open champion reeled off another three games in a row to clinch victory.
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“F***, yes, I’m competing”, raged Monfils. There were extenuating circumstances due to lingering shoulder problems on the left and right side that required attention during the match. On Twitter, 18-time grand slam victor Chris Evert criticized Monfils before his mini revival.
