Novak Djokovic must be the luckiest tennis player in the world: he has benefited from a withdrawal (Jiry Vesely) and two retirements (Mikhail Youzhny and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga) to reach the semifinals of the 2016 US Open. He faces Gaël Monfils today for a place in the final.

A few pictures from Novak at practice last Friday:

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Serena’s reign as number one is over… for now. Karolina Pliskova stunned Serena Williams 6-2 7-6 in the semifinals and Angelique Kerber is the new number one. Kerber and Pliskova will face in the final in a rematch of Cincinnati’s final. Let’s have a look at both players road to the final:

Karolina Pliskova’s road to the final

Karolina Pliskova cruised through the first three rounds without dropping a set, but had to work hard to get past Venus Williams in the fourth round. She dispatched Ana Konjuh 6-2 6-2 in the quarters before outgunning ending outplayed Serena Williams to reach the US Open final. She became only the fourth woman to beat both Williams sisters in the same Grand Slam tournament.

“I don’t believe it, I knew I had the chance to beat anyone if I played my game. I am excited to be in the final and to beat Serena as she is such a great champion. Even when she was down a set and break she was still fighting. I had to fight hard to win.”

Angelique Kerber’s road to the final

Angelique Kerber reached her third Slam final of the year without losing a set. A dominant performance by the new number one.

“It’s just incredible, it’s a great day. To be here in the final for the first time means a lot and to be number one in the world – it sounds amazing.”

Angelique Kerber – Karolina Pliskova head to head: 4-3

Kerber is the favorite to capture her second Grand Slam title, while Pliskova has nothing to lose. Karolina or Angelique? Please share your comments below.

Photo credit: Luis Fonseca

Read more:
– 2016 US Open QF: Angelique Kerber defeats Roberta Vinci
– My pics of Angelique Kerber at practice at Roland Garros
– Stuttgart 2016: Angelique Kerber retains her title

An upset and a new queen.

Karolina Pliskova played brilliantly to defeat 22-times Grand Slam champion Serena Williams in straight sets 6-2 7-6. That means Angelique Kerber (who defeated Caroline Wozniacki in the second semifinal) will replace Serena as the new number 1 in the WTA rankings on Monday. She will be the first German to top the rankings since Steffi Graf back in 1997.

Relive the semifinals through Brian’s tweets:

Photo credit: Porsche AG

Follow our 2016 US Open coverage.

Gaël Monfils has received an easy draw and has not lost a set so far in the tournament. He will defy Novak Djokovic tomorrow for a place in the US Open final.

Monfils signed with Japanese brand asics in 2013. He wears asics men’s fall collection.

Gaël’s shirt is available in three colorways: Blue, Dark Red and White/Grey:

Gaël’s shoe of choice is the Asics GEL-RESOLUTION 6:

Photo credit: Luis Fonseca, asics

Many people (including me) had made Andy Murray their favorite to win this year’s US Open. And it all started well in his quarterfinal against Kei Nishikori as he won the first set 6-1. But Nishikori rallied from one set down, and then 2 sets to one down to win in 5 sets: 1-6 6-4 4-6 6-1 7-5. What a roller coaster of a match!

Relive the match through Brian’s tweets:

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