And it comes down to two. The top two players in the world advanced to the 2013 US Open finals and will battle it out for the coveted title at Flushing Meadows. Seeded No.2 Rafael Nadal will be facing seeded No.1 Novak Djokovic as they will try to add another US Open trophy to their collections which they once won in 2010 and 2011, respectively.
Their semifinal battles were not as easy as counting 1-2-3 or reciting A-B-C. Djokovic needs to work really hard as he faced the biggest threat in earning a spot into a championship. His encounter with No.9 seed Stanislas Wawrinka, a first time semifinalist, was a repeat of their fourth round battle at this year's Australian Open where Wawrinka almost pulled off one of the biggest upset in the Grand Slam history but ended in a heartbreaking loss 1-6|7-5|6-4|6-7(5-7)|12-10.
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| World No.1 Novak Djokovic | World No.2 Rafael Nadal |
This time Wawrinka almost turned the table around, but unfortunately, it ended with the same result with Djokovic emerged victorious in a five-set intense match, 2-6|7-6(7-4)|3-6|6-3|6-4. Djokovic's experiences on the grandest stage helped him escape the one set deficit to pulled off the another huge win as he denied Wawrinka his first trip to a Grand Slam final. Instead, Djokovic will compete for another Grand Slam title and will retain his No.1 ranking.
Meanwhile, No.2 seed Nadal needed to get through one of the trickiest opponent, No.8 seed Richard Gasquet, who reached another Grand Slam semifinal since 2007. Gasquest's best tennis was on display and it is fun to watch that he was giving Nadal a little bit of trouble in a straight set encounter, 6-4|7-6(7-1)|6-2. But in the end, it was Nadal's consistency and excellent display of his best tennis made his work a little bit short to earn his spot into a championship.
One-handed backhand is one of the most beautiful shot and it has been displayed in the semifinal contests. Both Wawrinka and Gasquet owned such shot and it fared well with the two-handed backhands owned by Djokovic and Nadal. However, it's a matter of experience, consistency, and mental aspect that made the No.1 and No.2 seed through to the final round.
The championship will be Nadal and Djokovic's 37th meeting where Nadal leads 21-15 in their head-to-head. Also, this will be their sixth meeting in a Grand Slam final where Djokovic leads 3-2 in their head-to-head. Djokovic may have a slight advantage when it comes to this surface. But Nadal is unbeaten in hardcourts this year, riding a 21-match winning streak coming into the US Open finals.
Now, the US Open title will surely be a close battle between the top two seeds. Of course, this will be another physical battle so long rallies are expected to be displayed but expect that there will no repeat of their almost six hours battle in 2012 Australian Open final. It all comes down to a single point in every opportunity that comes their way. A player that never falters on every critical point will surely have a huge advantage to win the US Open crown.
Champion: Novak Djokovic
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