Djokovic tops Nishikori for 8th US Open final

Novak Djokovic reached his eighth U.S. Open final by beating Kei Nishikori 6-3, 6-4, 6-2.

Djokovic is bidding for his third title at Flushing Meadows and 14th Grand Slam trophy overall.

The No. 6-seeded Djokovic missed last year’s tournament with an injured right elbow.


He will face Juan Martin del Potro in Sunday’s final. Del Potro advanced when Rafael Nadal retired after the second set with a knee injury.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Sharapova faces nemesis Williams as stakes rise at Australian Open

The business end of the Australian Open begins in earnest on Tuesday when top seed Serena Williams faces old rival Maria Sharapova for a place in the semi-finals in a repeat of last year's title match.

In the men's draw defending champion Novak Djokovic, taken to five sets in the fourth round, will have to improve as he faces Japanese seventh seed Kei Nishikori while Roger Federer aims to continue his smooth progress against Tomas Berdych.

Sharapova will be desperate to avenge last year's final loss to Williams, although the omens are not good for the Russian.

She has lost her last 17 matches against the 34-year-old Williams and the American 21-times grand slam champion has been in dominant form so far in Melbourne after some pre-tournament injury concerns.

Williams remains wary though, saying such a one-sided statistic can work both ways.

"I think the person who's winning could definitely feel the pressure because there is a lot of expectations," she said.

"The person who is losing X amount in a row could think 'I don't have anything to lose.'"

Djokovic's bid for a sixth Australian Open title was nearly sabotaged by Gilles Simon in round four and the in-form Nishikori will pose a serious threat as he attempts to prevent Djokovic reaching a 29th grand slam semi-final.

Nishikori beat Djokovic the last time they met in a grand slam, at the 2014 U.S. Open semi-final, and will need to reproduce that form on Tuesday.

"I think the biggest thing is he doesn't miss," he said. "He doesn't give you easy points, any free points." Federer takes on a familiar foe in Berdych, with the pair facing each other for the 22nd time.

The Swiss is on a four-match winning streak against the powerful Czech, but has lost their last two grand slam meetings.

Berdych will look to pull off another major upset, as he did at the same stage last year when he ended a 17-match losing streak against Rafael Nadal.

Fourth seed Agnieszka Radwanska opens the action on Rod Laver Arena when she battles it out with 10th seeded Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro.

The 26-year-old scrapped through to the quarter-finals after being pushed to her limits by Germany's Anna-Lena Friedsam in the previous round. — Reuters

Nishikori beats Isner in D.C. for 10th career ATP title

Kei Nishikori broke the serve of American John Isner once in the second set and again in the third set and that was enough for the rising Japanese player to claim the Citi Open title in Washington, D.C. on Sunday (Monday, PHL time).

The second-seeded Nishikori beat the big-serving Isner 4-6 6-4 6-4 to celebrate his third title of the season and 10th of his career.

"It's been an amazing year so far," said the 25-year-old Nishikori, who will move up to fourth from fifth in the world rankings. "I've had some good Grand Slams, too."

Nishikori now looks forward to taking the next step at the U.S. Open, where he lost to Marin Cilic in the final last year.

"I defend the final in the U.S. Open, so I will try to keep it going," he said about his ranking points. "I'm playing well and I'm looking forward to keeping it going at the U.S. Open."

After Isner broke his serve in the final game of the first set to claim the opening set, Nishikori wasted no time getting back on track.

The Japanese broke Isner in the first game of the second set, and again early in the final set and outsteadied him on the hardcourt to sweep to victory.

"It's never easy against big servers," said Nishikori, who lost to Isner in the quarter-finals in Miami earlier this year.

"John, he's not just a big server, but he can come in and he has great forehands. It was a close game, but I'm happy to avenge."

Isner, coming off a tournament win last week in Atlanta and playing his 10th match in 12 days, fired 18 aces to Nishikori's five, but the cool, calm Japanese was sharp with 23 winners and only 13 unforced errors in nearly two hours of tennis.

It was another D.C. disappointment for 30-year-old Isner, who lost in the Citi Open final for the third time in six years. - Reuters