Novak Djokovic: Odds on Potential Remaining Matches

Novak Djokovic is, without doubt, one of the greatest players in men's tennis and certainly one of the biggest contenders for the 2012 U.S. Open crown.

The Serbian has made the final four at Flushing Meadows for five straight years and will be looking to build on his 2011 victory with another title this time around.

There's no Rafael Nadal to speak of, and several big-names in the men's draw have already had shock eliminations—making the path to victory that little bit easier for Nole, not that he needed it or anything.

Let's take a look at his potential remaining matches at the 2012 U.S. Open.

Third Round

Potential Opponents

Julien Benneteau, Dennis Novikov

Djokovic will play the winner of the Benneteau-Novikov match, who I strongly suspect will be Julien Benneteau. The Frenchman is a rising player on the men's circuit and one that should certainly give Novak a tough time in the third round.

Having said that, I can't see this being anything other than a straight sets win for the World No. 2—he simply is too strong and too switched on in these early rounds to drop anything to anybody.

Djokovic wins 3-0

Round of 16

Potential Opponents

Alexandr Dolgopolov, Stanislas Wawrinka

Dolgopolov will probably be easier than Wawrinka here—simply given the fact that he carries far more injuries than the Swiss player, and you can therefore get quite an easy match against Dolgopolov.

Wawrinka will push Novak—holding his serve well—but you'd again have to think that Djokovic will be fine here and most likely won't drop a set in the process. I'd say two tiebreaks and a 6-3 third set will send Novak through to the quarterfinals.

Djokovic wins 3-0

Quarterfinals

Potential Opponents

Juan Martin Del Potro, Andy Roddick, Bernard Tomic

Del Potro is the standout pick here, and I seriously think that he can come very close to toppling Djokovic in this one. He has proven that he can succeed against the best in the world at the 2009 U.S. Open—beating Federer in the final—and could do so again here.

But it's tough to go against the experience and complete game that Djokovic brings. His serve will be of particular importance in this one, as will his ability to reduce unforced errors, as the Serbain prevails in a long, tough-fought encounter. Del Potro will come very close though.

Djokovic wins 3-2

Semifinals

Potential Opponents

Janko Tipsarevic, John Isner, David Ferrer

Compared to the match against Del Potro, this one will seem relatively straight forward for Djokovic, who I think is most likely come up against the big-serving John Isner.

The national hero will be pumped by the home crowd and will have his serve rocking, but when the ball is in play, I simply cannot see Novak being beaten by Isner on the ground.

Again, Novak could drop a set, but he'll walk away with another win and progress through to another U.S. Open final.

Djokovic wins 3-1

Final

Potential Opponents

Roger Federer, Tomas Berdych, Andy Murray

Andy Murray will go back to being the bridesmaid in this one, whilst Berdych simply cannot match against the Fed Express on the ground, meaning that Federer and Djokovic will meet in the U.S. Open final that we all wanted.

Either way, it will be a thriller—they always are—and I'm going with the Swiss maestro to pick up the victory here. Federer looks like he has been in incredible form in 2012 and will be tough to beat en route to another U.S. Open crown.

Maybe it's the tired legs of Novak, or maybe Federer is just too good. Either way, I think it will be second place for the Serbian international.

Federer wins 3-1.

What Do You Think?

That's just my thoughts of what could happen throughout the remainder of the U.S. Open, and I would love to hear what you think about it all.

Juan Martin Del Potro and Roger Federer are the two men most likely to beat Novak Djokovic; now we just get to wait and see how true that turns out to be.

Feel free to comment your thoughts below or hit me up on Twitter:

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