Liguori: Previewing Men's Semifinals And Women's Final
By Ann Liguori
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3rd seed Andy Murray seems poised to advance to his second U.S. Open final, however; the Scotsman has a ton of respect for his opponent, Tomas Berdych, who has beaten him four of six times.
The last time these two have played on hard courts, in Dubai, Murray beat him, 6-3, 7-5. Murray showed what he is made of, coming from behind, down a set and the second set tie-breaker to beat Marin Cilic in their quarter-final match-up and he looks ready and more than eager to finally win his first Major.
Murray has become a huge celebrity in Great Britain, after winning the Gold Medal and Sean Connery and Pippa should be here today to cheer him on.
And in an ironic twist, Murray has been to four Grand Slam finals and has lost all four of them. That's one of the reasons Murray hired Ivan Lendl to coach him because like Murray, Lendl lost his first four Grand Slam finals.
Obviously, Lendl learned how to turn those results around, winning 8 Grand Slam championships. Lendl has definitely made a difference with Murray and has taught him how to focus and start matches from the very first point.
Novak Djokovic will play 4th seed David Ferrer of Spain in the second men's semifinals. Djokovic has yet to drop a set here this year while Ferrer is recovering from the four hour, 31 minute marathon match against 8th seed Janko Tipsarevic, 6-3, 6-7, 2-6, 6-3, 7-6. Ferrer hopes to advance to his first ever Grand Slam final at the age of 30.
Djokovic has beaten Ferrer 8 of the 13 times they've played. It will be a rematch of the Australian Open final in which Djokovic won in straight sets.
Look for Djokovic to advance to play Andy Murray in what could be a classic men's final. Serena Williams is a tsunami of power and has only lost 19 games on her way to the women's singles championship.
The three-time U.S. Open champion has beaten Victoria Azarenka nine of ten times, most recently at the Olympics, 6-1, 6-2 and before that at Wimbledon, 6-3, 7-6.
As badly as Azarenka would love to win her first U.S. Open title, Serena will not let her. Serena is healthy and determined to win as many Majors as she can. The 30-year-old should win her 15th Grand Slam singles title.
Due to the forecast this evening that calls for heavy rain and high winds, the women's final has been postponed until Sunday. The time has yet to be determined.
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Who are your favorites to win the men's and women's finals at Flushing Meadows?
