WHAT HAPPENED: Novak Djokovic and Kei Nishikori essentially play the same style of tennis – aggressive ball striking from the back of the court with the ability to play offense and defend. The only problem for Nishikori: Djokovic does it a little bit better.
The Serbian extended his win streak against the Japanese right-hander to 14 on Friday night, 6-3, 6-4, 6-2, to reach his eighth US Open final, tying him for the Open-era record with Ivan Lendl and Pete Sampras. The sixth seed improved to 8-3 in US Open semifinals and avenged his most recent last-four loss in New York – to Nishikori in 2014. (This was their only other meeting in Flushing Meadows.)
Djokovic has ruled their rivalry since that '14 stunner, and after missing last year's US Open because of an elbow injury, the Serb has returned to playing some of his best tennis this fortnight. The 31-year-old has won his past 13 sets and 21 of his past 22 matches, dating back to his fourth Wimbledon title in July.
“I thought in the important moments I came up with some good second serves, some good first serves. I was returning well. I was putting (constant) pressure on him, trying to move him around the court, take away the rhythm from him, not give him the same look always,” Djokovic said. “The match was really, really good from my side.”
He will face 2009 champion Juan Martin del Potro on Sunday afternoon for a chance at his third US Open title (2011, 2015) and 14th Grand Slam crown, which would pull him even with Sampras on the all-time list.
Del Potro and Djokovic have played 18 times, and Djokovic leads their head-to-head 14-4, including 10-3 on hard courts. The Argentine last beat Djokovic on hard courts during the 2016 Rio Olympics. This will be their third meeting in Flushing and first in a Grand Slam final.
“I personally like him very much, not just as a player but as a person. He's a dear friend, someone that I respect a lot. We all felt for his struggles with injuries that kept him away from the tour for two, three years,” Djokovic said. “He's a big-time player. He's a big-match player. He's a Grand Slam winner. He's playing (the) tennis of his life, without a doubt, in the last 15 months.”
Two months before their Brazil matchup, Djokovic was at his peak. He had just won Roland Garros to become only the third man to hold all four major titles at one time.
But from July 2016 to June 2018, Djokovic reached only one Grand Slam final – the 2016 US Open title match, falling to Stan Wawrinka.
Djokovic, however, is back at top form. Reunited with his former team, led by former longtime coach Marian Vajda, the reigning Wimbledon champion won the US Open Series event in Cincinnati last month to win his 70th title and complete a career Golden Masters. On Sunday, Djokovic will try to win two Grand Slam titles in the same season for the first time since 2015.
“I've been fortunate,” Djokovic said.
Nishikori troubled the Serbian during their last meeting in the Wimbledon quarterfinals, taking a set. But Djokovic was in control of their US Open semifinal from first ball to last.
Nishikori was content to stay at the baseline in the first set, and Djokovic dominated, breaking in the second game and often forcing Nishikori to overhit while on the run.
The 2014 US Open finalist changed tactics in the second set and won 14 of his 15 net points. But Djokovic, after failing on his first eight break points in the second, broke in the fifth game when Nishikori slapped a forehand long.
The Serbian did little wrong, even when pressured or lured to net by Nishikori's variety. Djokovic faced only two break points, both in the second, and erased them both. Two more breaks in the third finished off the semifinal.
Djokovic's 29 unforced errors will stand out on the stat sheet, but the number looks good compared to Nishikori's 51. Djokovic, however, will want to shore up his break-point conversion rate: He was four for 17 (24 percent) against Nishikori.
“[He’s] playing very solid everything: serve, return, groundstrokes. He was playing aggressive. Yeah, I didn't have [the] energy to stay with him,” Nishikori said.
WHAT IT MEANS: The US Open will crown a repeat men's champion on Sunday. Either del Potro or Djokovic will add to their Flushing Meadows trophy haul, and it should be an epic as both players will have plenty in the tank after relatively straightforward semifinal victories.
READ MORE: Nadal retirement sends ’09 champ del Potro back to US Open final
Del Potro advanced when top seed Rafael Nadal retired after two sets, and Djokovic spent only two hours, 22 minutes on court against Nishikori. You have to think del Potro will be the crowd favorite as the beloved Argentine has been showered with "Ole, Ole, Ole" throughout the fortnight.
But Djokovic has never struggled with fans rooting for the player across the net. During his 2015 final against Roger Federer, fans cheered Djokovic's unforced errors and missed first serves. They shouted "Roger! Roger!" Djokovic, though, shook it off and imagined that they were yelling "Novak! Novak!" and won his second US Open title.
MATCH POINT: With the win, Djokovic qualified for the ATP Finals, the season finale to be held in London in November.
