As the sun rose over the new-look US Open, there remained a familiar look to the men’s opening matches on a highly-anticipated first day of action.
The Arthur Ashe stadium may have a closing roof for the first time in its history, but there was little chance it would be needed as two of tennis’s greatest players, top seed and defending champion Novak Djokovic and two-time former champion and No4 seed Rafael Nadal, took to court for the first time.
Highly-anticipated, because both men arrived with a small question mark hanging over their form, or rather over their wrists.
Nadal was forced to pull out of his third-round French Open match with a left wrist injury, and did not return to competition until the Rio Olympics. There, he played as only Nadal can, at full throttle, won gold in doubles and played three exhausting three-setters from the quarters through to the bronze medal play-off. Little wonder he fell just short to Kei Nishikori.
He caught the first available flight out—with Andy Murry—to Cincinnati, and by the second match, against Borna Coric, he looked all done in. Treatment to his arm and shoulder could, in truth, be put down to referred stresses from that wrist. As he explained on his arrival in New York:
“It’s obvious that when you have been out for two months and a half you need a little bit of time. I try to go quick, especially in the Olympics and then competing last week in Cincinnati, but the wrist bothers me a little bit less every day. During the wrist injury always you try to find movements to avoid the pain.”
Djokovic, who has dominated the Majors and rankings for two years, lost only three matches up to his emotional victory at Roland Garros, but it was a weary and distracted defending champion who lost during a rain-disrupted third-round match at Wimbledon.
He bounced back to win the Toronto Masters, but along the way he developed his own left wrist problem, lost in the first round of the Olympics, and pulled out of Cincinnati.
He is not, of course, left-handed, but uses his left wrist to produce one of the most destructive backhands in men’s tennis. By his practice session on Arthur Ashe on Sunday evening, everything seemed to be in good working order.
He was cautious in talking about it after the draw ceremony, but the message was one of confidence.
“Yeah, after undergoing certain treatments I’ve gotten better. I’m just hoping that when the tournament starts I’ll be able to get as close to the maximum of executing my backhand shot as possible. [But] confidence level is high, I guess. The fact that I’ve for the last couple years played on a very high, consistent level—and other than that loss in the Olympic Games and Wimbledon, I’ve had a phenomenal season—definitely ranks this season one of the best that I’ve had in career.”
That these two men, who are part of the most played rivalry in tennis, could set up their 50th battle if they beat all-comers on their way to the semis, only made their stories more compelling this week.
First to test his mettle was Nadal, who beat Djokovic to win both his US Open titles. He was up against Denis Istomin, ranked 107, a man Nadal had beaten in all four previous matches, winning 10 out of their 11 sets.
Nadal, who made a surprise third-round exit here last year, wasted little time in winning the first set, 6-1, in a scant half hour. He then took a 4-1 lead in the second set, but a few careless errors from Nadal, and Istomin pumped up some scorching forehands to break back and then level at 4-4.
Now Nadal had to dig deep to defend deuce. He did just that, and promptly broke for the set, 6-4.
In the third, Istomin again pressed Nadal through a long third game, break points, and numerous deuces, but the Spaniard resisted, pumped his fist in celebration, and broke for a 4-2 lead. One more break, and he had the match, 6-2, in a little over two hours.
His assessment was temperate:
“Not very good, not very bad. That’s it. My serve worked well almost all the time. I am hitting very well the backhand, but it’s true that the forehand I need time. I need confidence and I need to keep practising the forehand, no?”
He will next play Andreas Seppi, who beat Stephane Robert, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3. Nadal beat the Italian in short order in the first round of the Olympics just three weeks ago.
Also in Nadal’s segment, Andrey Kuznetsov beat Thomaz Bellucci, 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 7-6, to set a second-round match against No31 seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas. No10 seed Gael Monfils beat Gilles Muller, 6-4, 6-2, 7-6, and Nicolas Almagro beat Marton Fucsovics, 6-1, 6-4, 7-6.
It would be several more hours before Djokovic took to court against the tricky Jerzy Janowicz to begin his defence, after an all-star show to launch the tournament and inaugurate the new roof.
The 6ft 8in Pole who Djokovic faced has been troubled by repeated injuries since reaching the semis of Wimbledon in 2013, aged just 22—and is a temperamental character. Playing here with a protected ranking, he could be wiped off the court or take the champion to the limit. Only time would tell.