Novak Djokovic will take on rival Stan Wawrinka for a spot in the U.S. Open fourth round on Sunday. Meanwhile, newly-crowned villain Daniil Medvedev continues his campaign against qualifier Dominik Koepfer for a spot in the quarterfinals.
(1) Novak Djokovic vs. (23) Stan Wawrinka
Djokovic has already had an injury scare in New York. The shoulder pain that bothered the Serb in Cincinnati had him wincing all through his second round match against Juan Ignacio Londero. He received treatment on court several times before closing out the the match in straight sets. There were no obvious signs of pain in his third-round match against Denis Kudla, but in his post-match interview the defending champion and world No. 1 refused to discuss his condition beyond saying that he played “virtually pain-free.”
If there is lingering soreness there, Wawrinka is going to expose it. Djokovic has an impressive head-to-head record over Wawrinka, but the matches the Swiss has won are the important ones. Sunday will mark the 25th meeting between the two men, and Wawrinka has only won five…but his three most recent wins came at the U.S. Open, Roland Garros, and the Australian Open.
Wawrinka has been slowly making his way back from left knee surgery and now appears to be back to top form physically. Despite the fact that he is the No. 23 seed, Wawrinka is a formidable opponent and this match has the potential to be the match of the tournament so far. It’s hard to pick against Djokovic, as he’s such a rock at the majors, but if Wawrinka finds a way to win it won’t be a huge surprise.
Cheryl pick: Djokovic in 4
Ricky pick: Djokovic in 4
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(5) Daniil Medvedev vs. Dominik Koepfer
Controversy is nothing new for Medvedev. In 2017 at Wimbledon, the temperamental Russian threw a handful of coins at umpire Mariana Alves’s chair. After the match, he was unable to explain why he chose that particular protest. He upped the villain ante on Friday in New York. A tired Medvedev was the surliest we’ve seen him in a while. He yanked a towel from the hands of an unsuspecting ballkid and threw it on the ground, which nabbed him a code violation. He gave the booing crowd the middle finger, threw his racket in the direction of chair umpire Damien Dumussois, and when he finally defeated Feliciano Lopez he trolled the still-booing crowd by telling them they’re the reason he won the match.
Koepfer has been much quieter as he’s made his way through the draw. The qualifier pocketed excellent wins over Reilly Opelka and No. 17 seed Nikoloz Basilashvili to set up this fourth-round encounter with Medvedev. The Russian will still be considered the favorite to make the quarterfinals, but given his trouble with cramping earlier in the tournament and his physical exertion against Lopez, it could be an excellent opportunity for the world No. 118 to get an upset win over a top 10 player.
Cheryl pick: Medvedev in 4
Ricky pick: Medvedev in 3
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imagine if Roger wins the US open, what a turnaround
that would be after his Wimbledon disappointment.
It would be soo nice. I think he deserves a slam after the way he played Wimbledon and USO right now. He can do it.
How ridiculous is the US open crown..to boo an all time great when he retires due to injury instead of applauding him for fighting through the pain…
crowd*
Ridiculous, too is to speak about Federer’s chances at USO as if his name is Lopez or Versasco (I respect both massively), not a 20 time slam winner. Like ‘playing terrible’ (terribly well,you just don’t want to admit it), or he ‘will not get there’. Based on what? I mean, anything could happen. I saw the draw and made the not so funny statement that a Fedal final is unavailable. Sure, that was just a guess, but I also felt something. So, if you were to choose the final opponent for Rafa, would you pick Fed or someone else? Are you really looking forward to a Fedal final at USO?
No I am not Eugene..I rather have Rafa face someone else ..Rafa has not beaten fed on HC last 4 times and I doubt he will here.
So are you feeling fed takes uso ? I think he will take it though I don’t want him to as Rafa will then be further behind
But btw Rafa has to get there first..right now feds draw turned out way easier..cilic won’t be easy..neither will Diego as he always troubles Rafa..zverev can turn it around anytime..rublev is danger now .
On feds side dimitrov will surrender ,Medvedev is on fumes n Stan has never beaten fed outside clay
I just want it…I feel he deserves it after being so close to win Wimbledon. And it would help relieve that pain…
A potential final vs Rafa would be difficult. I don’t necessarily see Fed aa a favourite. Chances are quite equal at USO I think. But at least he would give himself another chance to win another slam.
It will be a filled with pressure final for both..whoever holds nerves better will take it..fed will come in more relaxed as he knows he has rafas number outside clay..but let Rafa get there first
Exactly. Let them qualify there first. Anyway, I hope both guys will do well.
Why would Fed be more relaxed? He should be more nervous because he knows he won’t have that many chances any more.
Wasnt he too eager to win at Wimbledon, that he tensed up during crucial moments there and lost the final?
But lucky he has rafas number outside clay..he surely did not tighten up against Rafa at wimby..it’s Rafa who tightens up more now
Sanju, that’s because Wimbledon is Fed’s home just like RG is Rafa’s. Why Rafa didn’t tighten up against Fed at RG?
Federer to me has been very scratchy during this tournament so far and he has not played anyone of note except Coffin who was really half dead at best! Roger has not been challenged yet and I don;t see anything in his game to suggest he’ll win USO. So for me, at this point i really can’t say who will win now that Novak is out.
And besides moat of the predictions on here have been dead wrong so far! A lot of wishful thinking!! I stand by my option Fed is not looking great so I really can’t say he’ll win USO, And besides when was the last time he even won the damn thing?!
Well Mona he won AO after 7 years of not winning it ..2010 last n 2017..USO he last won 2008…if he wins will be after larger gap..I think he is the firm fav now .only Rafa can beat him but again due to history, has lesser chance ..if they play..70:30 in feds favour..my reason is due to wimby .I thought after Rafa beat roger at rg,he may right the ship but come wimby n he was the same. Tentative, not aggressive etc
Come on Sanju, Wimbledon is on grass, this is HC. The USO Court plays slower than the AO these days.
Fed won the AO in 2017 when they quickened the court there, if not Rafa wouldve won that final given that Rafa was 3-0 vs Fed there prior to 2017. Even so, Rafa almost won that 2017 final when he was leading in the fifth set.
And RG on clay is different from Wimbledon on grass obviously. Why Fed could beat Rafa at Wimbledon but could not at RG? It’s the surfaces.
Why was the roof closed today on Ashe..
It seems rain and thunderstorms Monday Wednesday Friday but good sunny on Sunday 25 degrees with 50 percent humidity
Monalisa, Fed can win the whole thing without playing his best tennis. Same Rafa. Sometimes playing at 70-80% is enough for them. Depends on the play schedule and other factors. The way you speak just shows you don’t want him to win, which is fine, but you’re not objective. Rather find an excuse why Fed shouldn’t win. The reality is that Dimi, Waw, Rafa don’t sound like an impossible mission.
There’s a good chance Fed will only lose 2 sets to those 3 players.
The great players win slams even when they are ‘scratchy’, which is not Fed’s situation right now anyway. He was affected visibly by that final loss…which is normal. Some other players would only recover mentally after years; but he sees an opportunity now, which is arising bigger and brighter. I just hope he can get into the final and fight for the trophy like it’s his last career final.
All i’m saying is that I really cant say who is going to win bcos i’m going according to current form, not past! Fed does not look impressive to me, Rafa’s serve needs to improve, and the rest of the field is playing great and can give both Rafa and Fed a run for their money!
I learnt from Wimby this year. I really thought Rafa was playing well enough to win and he was a major disappointment!! Fed looked great and he was two points from raising the trophy and was even a bigger disappointment!! Im not calling shit!! Im about just fed up with building my hopes and then having them dashed! Im calling it as I see it! At this point any one remaining can win it!!! And im not listening to any of those analysts either…McEnroe thought Kygrios was a shoe in for the semis, sigh!!!
And as for the NY crowd booing Novak, I’m not sure if I blame them! They are a very sophisticated crowd and they won’t allow anyone to play them for a fool, no matter WHO you are!!
Everyone is aware of Novak’s shoulder issue. He knew before he stepped on the court that he was playing Stan, someone who has whopped his butt in a slam more than once, including at this here USO!!! But he still showed up, so it meant Novak thought he was in for a chance! Novak got broken in the first set, broke back like he always does, but still lost the set. He played quite well considering, but he continued on bcos he still thought he could win. But after he lost the second set he should have just retired bcos he should have known by then that he had no chance, but I guess he thought he could still win. Not only after he got broken in the third THEN he retires!! Of course the crowd would boo him!! He should have just simply continued and lose!!! But no, let’s not give Stan the honour of beating me yet again at another major!! I’ll just call it a day……like at the French Open. Sigh!!
Novak’s reputation precedes him, and that’s nobody’s fault but his own!! However, with that being said, I really do wish him a speedy recovery bcos the sport really does need him!!! He has really elevated tennis to a whole new level and that must NOT be overlooked! I wish him all the best! I miss him already!
Mona,
I love your passion! I can agree Ruth much of what you said. But I do think the crowd was harsh in Novak. It was obvious he has been struggling with a shoulder injury, but wanted to play. Maybe his timing of retiring was not that great, but he did not feel he could continue to the end.
I try to be careful with these things, because Rafa has been in that position. Nothing can take away from how well Stan played. He was okay with Novak retiring. Only Novak knows what was going on. I think Londero should have taken him out, but wasn’t able to best even an injured Novak. I do think there was a price for winning that Wimbledon.
I think Cheryl Murray said something about the NY crowd never forgiving Novak for insulting Roddick in that 2008 match at the USO. They don’t love him. I realize that they thought Novak was cheating Wawrinka of the win. Sometimes you think you can play through something, but it doesn’t work out.
I take it one match at a time because I don’t want to be disappointed. Now everyone and his brother is jumping on the Fed train. You can never role put Rafa when he is healthy. So we will see what happens. Fed has a clear path to the final now. Rafa also has a good path. But I am not about to decide that Fed is going to win this.
One match at a time with Rafa!
Auto correct again!
I can agree with MUCH of what you said! *
You can never rule out Rafa! *
Rafa is not going to just hand this to Fed if they should meet in the final. We know Rafa has the advantage on clay, but he is no slouch at the USO.
Sorry but I know Novak had been dealing with a shoulder injury. However I don’t believe he would have retired if he had won the second set. I feel he knew he was done and just called it quits, which is why the New York crowd booed him. It’s like if Rafa had retired against Stan in the Australian Open final in 2014. I feel that in both cases (especially yesterday), Stan was just playing too well and wasn’t gonna lose no matter the health of his opponent. The thing is Rafa finished the match. He didn’t give up and throw away a service game then call it quits. Novak retired so suddenly, I think he had only started getting treatment (in this match) a few games before.
Everyone can have their opinion. Maybe Novak should have finished the match. NY crowds can be tough. They did not appreciate the timing of it.
The bottom line is that Novak was dealing with an ongoing injury. It was obvious in his match with Londero. But he might have tried some treatment to try to continue to play.
Watching Rafa in the 2014 AO final was something that was incredibly hard. It took me s long time to forgive Stan for making a fuss over Rafa going off court to get treatment. That got the crowd booing. It was terrible. So people should remember that even though Rafa stayed in the match when he knew he could not win, the crowd booed him anyway. It can be a cruel sport. That is why I am not condemning Novak.
Benny G, exactly!!I feel the same, had he won the second set he would have pressed on. I look at him in the presser and he does not even sound convincing!!! No one knows the nature of the injury!! I am not saying he does not have a shoulder discomfort but if he was playing a lower ranked player i doubt he would have retired like that!! The timing of the retirement is what pissed me off, and the NY crowd as well!!!