US Open Tennis 2018: TV Schedule, Live Stream for Men's Semi-Finals

The 2018 U.S. Open is almost drawing to a close, as the four men left standing will battle it out in the semi-finals on Friday.

Rafael Nadal and Juan Martin del Potro will kick things off at the Arthur Ashe Stadium, with the earliest possible starting point being 4 p.m. ET (9 p.m. BST). The men's doubles final will take place before and could run late.

After the first semi-final, Novak Djokovic and Kei Nishikori will take to the court.

ESPN and Tennis Channel will broadcast all of the action for American fans, while Amazon Prime have the rights in Britain. Live streams will be available via the ESPN player, the Tennis Channel's official website and Amazon Prime.

Nadal holds a significant 11-5 edge over Del Potro in head-to-head meetings and has won the last three matches between these two, but sparks often fly when they meet. Even if the rivalry has tilted in the Spaniard's favour, the action between the two has always been excellent, regardless of the result.

Christopher Clarey of the New York Times expects big things:

Nadal hasn't displayed the best form at Flushing Meadows, wasting precious energy in hard-fought wins over Karen Khachanov and Dominic Thiem. Del Potro has dropped just a single set all tournament long, so in terms of momentum, things are looking up for the Argentinian.

The 32-year-old Nadal did have two days to recover from the difficult match against Thiem, and he beat Del Potro at Flushing Meadows last year. On hard court, the head-to-head record between the two is tied at 5-5.

Nadal has had Del Potro's number in the last few meetings and understands his weaknesses all too well, but his opponent is playing some excellent tennis and should have the fresher legs. On paper, this has the makings of an instant classic.

As noted by Live Tennis, the head-to-head between Djokovic and Nishikori suggests the Serb should avoid an upset later in the day:

The Djoker's win over John Millman wasn't nearly as dominant as the final score may have suggested, as he was on the court for nearly three hours in the 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 triumph. Nishikori outlasted Marin Cilic in the last round, needing all five sets to advance.

Djokovic's form has been superior to that of Nishikori, and the Japanese does not match up well from a stylistic point of view. He does much of his damage from the baseline, but so does Djokovic, who is generally better at trading blows.

Nishikori can beat Djokovic if he puts together a perfect game plan and executes with lots of aggression, but even then, he'll have to hope his opponent can't play up to his usual level.