US Open Final: Nadal vs. Djokovic

The second name in that title would come as a shock to you, were it not for the fact that anyone liable to be reading this already knows about the outcome of yesterday's second US Open semifinal. With his gripping upset of Roger Federer yesterday afternoon, Novak Djokovic has completed a truly inspiring run to his second final in New York: lucky to escape the first round after trailing two sets to one and a break against compatriot Viktor Troicki, Djokovic saw a swift reversal in form carry him through to the semis, where he found himself faced with the one obstacle he had found himself unable to overcome since his rise to prominence at the Open. By virtue of an uncommon display of nerve and poise under pressure- even in the face of two match points against him- along with strangely erratic play from Federer's end, Djokovic was able to spoil the much anticipated Federer-Nadal Sunday showdown and claim a place in his own first Grand Slam final appearance in over two-and-a-half years.

Standing in his way is world's #1 Rafael Nadal, whose dominance at this event thus far has been truly imposing. Nadal has secured his berth into the final without the loss of a single set, and has only lost serve twice through six rounds of action. "Invincible" does not seem a terribly hyperbolic adjective if one is looking to describe the way Nadal has often looked of late.

That said, if I may engage in a bit of devilish advocacy, it seems to me that Nadal has benefited from a favorable draw to this point in the event, in that he has not had to face a top-tier opponent to reach the final, and has gone through a line-up of foes against whom he had fairly dominant head-to-head histories. Moreover, Djokovic does hold a 7-3 historical head-to-head advantage over Nadal on hard-courts, including the last three. Nevertheless, Nadal is in far better form than he was when last they met, should be the fresher of the two for the final and has generally come through better than Djokovic has on the biggest stages throughout their careers thus far.

I forecast a Nadal victory in four close sets.