Sept 7 2018; New York, NY, USA; Novak Djokovic of Serbia celebrates match point against Kei Nishikori of Japan in a men’s semi-final match on day twelve of the 2018 U.S. Open tennis tournament at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports
September 8, 2018
NEW YORK (Reuters) – A ruthless Novak Djokovic beat Kei Nishikori 6-3 6-4 6-2 at the U.S. Open on Friday to reach his seventh final at Flushing Meadows, where he will face Juan Martin del Potro.
Djokovic, this year’s Wimbledon champion, kept Nishikori under relentless pressure, carving out 17 break point opportunities and winning 80 percent of his own first serve points to win in two hours and 23 minutes.
The 31-year-old Serb, who was beaten by Nishikori at Flushing Meadows in 2014, improved his head-to-head record against the Japanese to 15 wins from 17 meetings.
Del Potro won the first semi-final earlier in the day after defending champion Rafa Nadal retired with a knee injury.
(Reporting by Simon Jennings; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
