US Open Tennis 2015: Tuesday Night's Bracket Predictions, Live Stream Coverage
The prime-time matches at the U.S. Open ratchet it up a couple of notches as the tournament reaches the quarterfinals.
Not only does top-seeded Novak Djokovic continue his run in the tournament against Spain's Feliciano Lopez, sisters Serena and Venus Williams will battle each other for the right to play in the women's semifinals.
The Williams sisters have battled many times before, and while older sister Venus Williams had the best of it in the early going, Serena has clearly passed her and become the better palyer.
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"Venus and Serena Williams have been playing each other for a long time. http://t.co/xowonk1rvQ pic.twitter.com/49i9b0MLBG
— NYT Sports (@NYTSports) September 8, 2015"
While the two sisters clearly support each other in all endeavors that don't include meeting on the tennis court, each one wants to win badly. Top-seeded Serena has had a brilliant 2015 season and a win at the U.S. Open will give her the calendar-year Grand Slam. However, 23rd-seeded Venus wants to show the tennis world that she still has fire in the furnace and is capable of winning a major tournament like the U.S. Open.
| Serena Williams (1) | Venus Williams (23) | Arthur Ashe Stadium | 7 p.m. | ESPN3 | Serena Williams |
| Novak Djokovic (1) | Feliciano Lopez (18) | Arthur Ashe Stadium | 9:30 p.m. | ESPN3 | Djokovic |
Serena holds a lifetime 15-11 advantage over her older sister, including a 6-1 record in the most recent meetings. They have met four times in the U.S. Open, with each sister winning twice, but they have not met in New York since 2008.
"Career on-court earnings up until tonight's match: Serena ($73,704,399) vs Venus ($31,418,571)
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) September 8, 2015"
“I feel Venus and I have definitely proven you can be friends and you can be sisters,’’ Serena told the New York Post's Marc Berman. “You can be enemies on the court and you can be friends and sisters off the court. I would rather lose to Venus as opposed to anyone else. [But] I don’t like to lose.’’
The pressure on Serena is mounting as she marches toward her calendar-year Grand Slam. This appears to be the most difficult match she has had in the U.S. Open, but she has the same edge over Venus that she does over every other competitor in the tournament. Serena has the best serve and the best return of any player in the tournament, and that's why she has the best chance to survive and advance.
Djokovic is playing just as the top seed in the tournament and the No. 1 player in the world should be expected play. He lost one set to Roberto Bautista Agut in the fourth round, and he turned up his level of play after dropping the second set.
“I managed to regroup and use the experience of facing this particular situation before in my life, and knowing what to do next,” Djokovic told Zach Braziller of the New York Post.
With four victories so far in the tournament, Djokovic has improved his match record to 45-3.
Lopez has clearly been strong during his run in New York, but it would be difficult to see him pushing the athletic and creative Djokovic in this match. The 19th-ranked player in the world has beaten Nikoloz Basilashvili, Mardy Fish, Milos Raonic and Fabio Fognini to get to the quarterfinals.
Lopez has an 18-12 record this year, but he has not won any individual tournaments. Djokovic has beaten Lopez in five consecutive matches.
"Will @DjokerNole make it a perfect 6 against @feliciano_lopez in @usopen QFs? Preview: http://t.co/XRMsRajLwg #ATP pic.twitter.com/dLzptgj8HC
— ATP World Tour (@ATPWorldTour) September 8, 2015"
Djokovic will advance and will be one step closer to earning his third Grand Slam title of the year.
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