This will actually be the third straight Major where Novak Djokovic and Matteo Berrettini collide. In the Roland Garros quarterfinals, as well as the Wimbledon men’s singles championship match, Djokovic prevailed in four sets. This is the round where Novak’s path to the Grand Slam becomes more complicated, with a likely semifinal against Sascha Zverev, and a potential final against Daniil Medvedev, awaiting him. Can Matteo’s blistering serve-and-forehand combination derail Novak’s quest on these fast courts?
Also on Wednesday, Olympic gold medalists Sascha Zverev and Belinda Beneic will take on a pair of first-time Slam quarterfinalists: South Africa’s Lloyd Harris and 18-year-old British sensation Emma Raducanu. And Wimbledon runner-up Karolina Pliskova will do battle with Greece’s Maria Sakkari, who took out 2019 champion Bianca Andreescu in an epic three-and-a-half-hour affair.
Belinda Bencic (11) vs. Emma Raducanu (Q) – 12:00pm on Arthur Ashe Stadium
These are two of the sport’s most in-form players, and that could make for a stellar quarterfinal. Neither player has dropped a set during this event, and in Emma’s case, that includes three qualifying matches. Since Wimbledon, the teenager is now 18-4 at all levels (including qualifying), and has completely dominated her last two opponents by scores of 6-0, 6-1, 6-2, 6-1. Since the Olympics, Bencic is now 13-1, and impressively outlasted Iga Swiatek two days ago in a first set tiebreak by the score of 14-12. And comparing Bencic to Raducanu’s last two opponents, Belinda has a lot more offensive weapons than Sara Sorribes Tormo, and is unlikely to make as many errors as Shelby Rogers did on Monday. Bencic would seem to be the favorite to reach the semifinals in her second consecutive appearance in New York. However, Emma will certainly feel inspired by seeing fellow teenager Leylah Fernandez upset Elina Svitolina in Tuesday’s quarterfinals, and the crowd will likely get behind the young underdog.
Sascha Zverev (4) vs. Lloyd Harris – Second on Arthur Ashe Stadium
Zverev is two wins away from returning to the final of this tournament, where he was two points from winning a year ago. He’s won 15 consecutive matches, and only lost three of 36 completed sets during this streak. And he’ll be a considerable favorite against Harris, who had only once advanced to the third round of a Slam prior to this event. But the 24-year-old South African is in the midst of a career-changing season. He was a finalist in Dubai, upset Rafael Nadal in Washington, and took out three significant seeds this fortnight (Khachanov, Shapovalov, Opelka). They’ve played twice on hard courts within the past year, with both matches going to Sascha. The German won a deciding set 6-0 last fall in Cologne, and defeated Lloyd in straight sets just a few weeks ago in Cincinnati. With the way Zverev has been serving and striking his groundstrokes, it’s hard to imagine him not returning to the semifinals.
Karolina Pliskova (4) vs. Maria Sakkari (17) – 7:00pm on Arthur Ashe Stadium
Sakkari’s arduous victory over Bianca Andreescu ended at 2:13am Tuesday morning. She is one of the fittest athletes in the sport, but that had to take a lot out of her both physically and emotionally. This is easily the Greek’s best result since the heartbreak she suffered at Roland Garros, losing 9-7 in the third of her semifinal against Barbora Krejcikova after holding a match point. Between the French Open and this event, she was only 5-4. Pliskova was having a subpar year until Wimbledon, where she reached her second Major final, nearly five years after her first. Later in the summer, she was a finalist in Montreal and a semifinalist in Cincinnati. Their two previous encounters occurred in Rome in consecutive years. In 2018, Sakkari won 7-5 in the third. In 2019, Pliskova prevailed in straight sets. In the rubber match, the fresher player will be Pliskova, whose power game on these fast courts should enable her to achieve her first US Open semifinal since 2016.
Novak Djokovic (1) vs. Matteo Berrettini (6) – Last on Arthur Ashe Stadium
Overall Djokovic leads their head-to-head 3-0. In addition to their two recent four-setters at Majors, Novak beat Matteo soundly at the ATP Finals by a score of 6-2, 6-1. So could Wednesday be any different than their three past matchups? Well, Berrettini’s serve and forehand always provide him with a puncher’s chance, especially on courts as fast as these. Notably, with a chance of rain on Wednesday evening, this could become an indoor match. That would seem to favor Djokovic, who has a much better indoor record than Berrettini, and cooler and slower conditions would help smother the Italian’s power. But the X factor in this match may be the same as many other matches this fortnight: the crowd. Matteo is an extremely likeable player, and a big underdog in this matchup, so I expect the New York audience to strongly support him against Novak, who has never been a crowd favorite in Flushing Meadows. Berrettini’s best chance to overcome Djokovic is to use the crowd to energize himself, and to distract Novak from the task at hand. However, Djokovic is no stranger to people cheering his opponent, and often uses that as fuel. And let’s be clear: Djokovic remains the favorite to reach his 12th US Open semifinal, as he has never lost in this round of the tournament.
Wednesday’s full Order of Play is here.
