With the current suspension of the ATP and WTA Tours, we are opening up our US Open vault to bring you full match videos of classic encounters through the years in New York.
Watch on YouTube: Rafael Nadal vs. Marin Cilic, 2019 US Open men's singles Round of 16
This matchup of US Open men's singles champions was played on Labor Day Monday in Arthur Ashe Stadium, but it provided the sort of fireworks normally reserved for the Fourth of July.
Former US Open champion Marin Cilic briefly stopped Rafael Nadal's cruise through the draw when he took the second set off the Spaniard—the first set Nadal dropped in the tournament—with some of his trademark big hitting.
Nadal missed the 2014 US Open—which Cilic won by defeating Roger Federer and then Kei Nishikori in the semis and final—but did not miss his chance to take out the Croat in 2019, on his way to a fourth US Open crown. The eventual champion raised his game in the face of adversity, neutralizing Cilic's pummeling serves and groundstrokes with firepower of his own to run away with the third and fourth sets.
The standout moment from this match came as Nadal set up match point. With Nadal serving for the match at 5-2, 30-all in the fourth, he whipped up an all-timer of a passing shot when he scooted the ball around the net post for a show-stopping winner. One point later, the Ashe crowd roared its approval again, as Nadal advanced to his ninth US Open quarterfinal.
The complete match is now available to watch on the US Open YouTube channel. For a coming attraction, view the match highlights below.
