Battling for the opportunity to face Andy Murray in Monday's men's final at the U.S. Open, second-ranked Novak Djokovic outlasted No. 4 David Ferrer despite dropping the opening set, topping the Spaniard, 2-6, 6-1, 6-4, 6-2, to advance to his third straight U.S. Open final.
The two first hit the court Saturday afternoon, with Ferrer dominating early, racing out to a 5-2 lead in the first set before the match was delayed by inclement weather in the Queens, N.Y. area, which included tornado warnings. When play resumed, Ferrer quickly closed out the first set — looking as if the weather hadn't thrown him off.
But things turned quickly in the second set, as Ferrer, who was not broken in the first set, was broken twice by Djokovic. Ferrer himself was not the efficient player he had been the day before, as he suffered from nine unforced errors against just two winners in the set.
It was more of the same in the third set, as Djokovic converted two break points while surviving a Ferrer break. Ferrer's 15 third-set unforced errors likely doomed the Spaniard.
Djokovic easily closed the match out in the fourth set, racing out to a 4-0 lead and topping Ferrer in short order to complete the two-day victory.
Murray and Djokovic will play Monday after weather played tricks with the U.S. Open's traditional scheduling once again. Djokovic holds an 8-6 all-time record against Murray, though the two have split their 10 meetings on hard courts.
For more on the 2012 U.S. Open and in the world of tennis, visit the SB Nation tennis hub.
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