Third seed Roger Federer hasn’t lost before the fourth round of the US Open in 2001 and will aim to continue that trend when he opens up play on Day 5 in New York. Top seed and defending champion Novak Djokovic headlines the evening session, while fifth-seeded Russian Daniil Medvedev seeks to match his best result at a Grand Slam.
Federer, through to the third round in New York for the 19th time, looks to continue his track record of success against Brit Daniel Evans. The five-time US Open champion leads their FedEx ATP Head2Head series 2-0, including a win this year at the Australian Open, and has yet to drop a set to the 25-year-old.
But one thing Federer will hope to erase is his pattern of slow starts this week. The Swiss dropped the opening set in his first two rounds against Indian qualifier Sumit Nagal and Bosnian Damir Dzumhur, respectively, marking the first time he’s rallied from a set down in two consecutive matches since 2015 Dubai (Djokovic and Berdych). Ironically, Federer has actually been the most successful player on Tour this season at getting a fast start.
Although Federer made no secret about being displeased with his slow starts, he isn’t worried. He spoke confidently about the work he put in prior to the tournament and believes it will come to fruition this fortnight.
“I have been in that position many times where you go through a little phase where you don't start so well and everybody asks you right away, ‘What are you going to do?’ Just go back to the drawing board. Just do the same things again. You hope for a better outcome,” said Federer. “[I] can only do better, which is a great thing moving forward.”
Djokovic continues his quest for a successful title defense against American Denis Kudla, who is through to the third round in New York for the first time. The Serbian dropped only seven games in their lone FedEx ATP Head2Head meeting this year at Wimbledon. Djokovic notched his 71st victory at the season’s final Grand Slam on Tuesday against Argentine Juan Ignacio Londero, moving into fifth place for most wins in the Open Era and tying Pete Sampras.
The World No. 1 is going for his fourth US Open title and has continued to remain dominant at Grand Slams, winning 35 of his past 36 matches. Another crown in New York would put Djokovic at 17 Grand Slam titles, just one shy of Rafael Nadal (18) and inching closer to all-time leader Federer (20).
Medvedev looks to continue his top form in an intriguing match against Spaniard Feliciano Lopez, who is competing in his 71st consecutive Grand Slam. The Russian is arguably the most in-form player on tour at the moment, arriving in New York off a three-week tear that included his first Masters 1000 title in Cincinnati (d. Goffin) and runner-up finishes in Montreal (l. to Nadal) and Washington, D.C. (l. to Kyrgios). Although Medvedev is aware of the buzz surrounding him, he’s doing his best to remain in the moment.
“As everybody says, before the tournament I was one of the favourites. Probably unconsciously I was looking in the second week, at the draw,” he said. “I’m trying to convince myself to look at match by match. I have a tough one tomorrow against Feliciano.”
Read More: Why Medvedev Embraces His 'Weird' & 'Sloppy' Tennis
Nishikori has a popcorn match on his hands against #NextGenATP Aussie Alex de Minaur. The 20-year-old has been in top form on hard courts this season, winning his first two ATP Tour titles in Sydney (d. Seppi) and Atlanta (d. Fritz). A win over the seventh seed would be a pivotal step in De Minaur’s career, giving him his first Top 10 victory and maiden appearance in the second week of a Grand Slam.
But the Japanese has enjoyed some of his greatest moments in New York, finishing runner-up here in 2014 (l. to Cilic) and advancing to the semi-finals in 2016 and 2018. Although Nishikori’s North American hard-court swing didn’t go as planned with opening-round exits at the Coupe Rogers and Western & Southern Open, he believes that he’s starting to find his best tennis once again.
“Before coming here, I was a little bit worried. I didn’t have much confidence,” he admitted. “But I think now it’s getting better and more confidence is coming into my head.”
Other notable matches on Friday include former US Open champion and No. 23 seed Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland taking on Italian Paolo Lorenzi, No. 15 seed David Goffin of Belgium facing Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta, and Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov squaring off with Pole Kamil Majchrzak.
ORDER OF PLAY – FRIDAY, 30 August 2019
Arthur Ashe Stadium start 12:00
[3] Roger Federer vs Daniel Evans
WTA match
NB 7:00 pm
WTA match
[1] Novak Djokovic vs Denis Kudla
Louis Armstrong Stadium start 11:00
Two WTA matches
[23] Stan Wawrinka vs [LL] Paolo Lorenzi
NB 7:00 pm
WTA match
[5] Daniil Medvedev vs Feliciano Lopez
Grandstand start 11:00
[7] Kei Nishikori vs Alex de Minaur
Two WTA matches
[17] Nikoloz Basilashvili vs [Q] Dominik Koepfer
Court No. 17 start 11:00
WTA match
[15] David Goffin vs Pablo Carreno Busta
Grigor Dimitrov vs Kamil Majchrzak
WTA match
Click here to view the schedule for all other courts.
from Tennis - ATP World Tour https://ift.tt/2L5WZgs
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