US Open Tennis 2015 Men's Semifinal: TV Schedule, Start Time, Live Stream
The Big Apple has played host to the biggest and brightest stars in tennis for the past week-and-a-half, but only four players remain as the 2015 U.S. Open heads for the homestretch.
After surviving the quarterfinals, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, defending U.S. Open champion Marin Cilic and Stan Wawrinka secured spots in the semifinals with chances to add to their impressive resumes.
So as the women's semifinals get set to take center stage Thursday, here's a preview of when and where you can catch Friday's action on the men's side of the bracket:
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| Friday, Sept. 11 | Novak Djokovic vs. Marin Cilic | Coverage Starts at 3 p.m. ET | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Friday, Sept. 11 | Roger Federer vs. Stan Wawrinka | Coverage Starts at 3 p.m. ET | ESPN | WatchESPN |
Novak Djokovic vs. Marin Cilic
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic cruised through the first three rounds without dropping a set, but he's shown some signs of vulnerability over his past two outings.
Roberto Bautista Agut first stole a set from Djokovic in the round of 16, and Feliciano Lopez followed that up by using serve-and-volley tactics to stretch the Serbian to five sets Tuesday night.
"Semifinals of a Grand Slam is a great achievement," Djokovic said, according to ESPN.com's Greg Garber. "Hopefully, I can keep on going."
In order to sustain his winning ways, Djokovic will need to clip Marin Cilic, who captured a 2014 U.S. Open title by dispatching Kei Nishikori in straight sets.
But despite overwhelming success in Flushing Meadows over the past year, Cilic knows he's entering Friday's semifinal a heavy underdog.
"Toughest matchup for me," Cilic said, according to the New York Times' David Waldstein. "I haven’t beaten him in my career. I had close matches the last few years, but I haven’t found the right formula to be able to win the match."
Djokovic and Cilic have met twice so far this year, and both clashes resulted in straight-set victories for the 2015 Wimbledon and Australian Open champion.
Considering Cilic has already participated in one four-set clash and two five-set marathons, Djokovic should have more gas left in the tank to capture a championship berth.
Roger Federer vs. Stan Wawrinka
Put simply, Roger Federer has dominated ever since arriving in New York.
ESPN Stats & Info explained with one simple statistic:
Straight sets have been the name of the game for Federer, and his reward for downing Richard Gasquet, 6-3, 6-3, 6-1, Wednesday night is a semifinal meeting with Stan Wawrinka, who also hails from Switzerland.
"I think I played a very good match, I felt the ball great from the return [and] it helped playing Isner in the previous round and seeing those massive serves," Federer said after the win, according to ATPWorldTour.com. "This is going to help me also physically and mentally save energy; I hope because of that, I can play better in the semifinals."
And while Federer is rolling, he has to be wary of Wawrinka, who obliterated South African Kevin Anderson, 6-4, 6-4, 6-0, in the quarterfinals.
| Roger Federer | 267 | 13 |
| Stan Wawrinka | 81 | 14 |
The two Swiss natives have split their two meetings this year, with Wawrinka's win coming in straight sets (6-4, 6-3, 7-6) at the French Open. Federer, meanwhile, downed Wawrinka, 6-4, 6-2, in Rome.
It wouldn't be a surprise to see Federer's straight-set streak snapped against the world's fifth-ranked player, but his one-handed backhand, net game and cheeky new SABR shot have been giving opponents fits for the past week-and-a-half.
The most polished player at the tournament so far, Federer should be viewed as the favorite Friday as he sets his sights on an 18th major title.
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