It may not be such a Super Saturday at the U.S. Open.
The men’s semifinals is missing two of the Big Four. The anticipated Novak Djokovic-Andy Murray rematch — the No. 1 seed vs. the defending champion — was wrecked. There’s not even a women’s prime-time final Saturday night, as it was moved to Sunday afternoon.
Instead, there are two men’s semifinals with the potential of becoming straight-set routs that will create the inevitable Djokovic-Rafael Nadal Monday final.
Saturday’s two gatecrashers are No. 9 Stanislas Wawrinka, the “other” Swiss, and No. 8 Frenchman Richard Gasquet, who has Roger Federer’s lovely one-handed backhand, but not his champion’s heart.
The first semifinal pits Djokovic vs. Wawrinka — a rematch of a classic five-set, fourth-rounder in the Australian Open. Djokovic won 12-10 in the fifth set on his way to his third straight Aussie title. Djokovic owns a 12-2 bulge over Wawrinka — making his first Grand Slam semifinal appearance — and has won the last 10 meetings.
“It’s definitely one of the most exciting matches I have played in my life,’’ Djokovic said of the Aussie bout. “In the past, we all knew he has the quality to play that well, but not on a consistent basis. And now he worked on his movement a lot and some variety of his shots in the game. He’s a very compete player.’’
Nadal takes on Gasquet in the second bout with the surging Spanish lefty holding a 10-0 record against the Frenchman, making his first Open semifinal appearance and second Slam semifinal appearance (2007 Wimbledon).
Nadal is 20-0 on hardcourts this year, blistering through Flushing Meadows without having his serve broken in the tournament after missing the 2012 affair with chronic knee issues. Nadal has captured just one Open, yet suddenly he is treating Flushing Meadows like a bed of red clay.
“I didn’t expect it,’’ said Boris Becker, commentator for England’s Sky Sport. “After the long layoff, I didn’t think hardcourt was the best court for him. He’s proving everybody wrong. He’s got an incredible attitude, puts everything he has into the sport. He’s put one hundred percent of his life to becoming a better tennis player.’’
Anything other than a Nadal-Djokovic Open final will be shocking.
For five straight years, the Open men’s final was delayed to Monday because of rain. This September, after the Open took the bold step of moving the final to Monday permanently, it’s all sunny skies. Go figure.
“Djokovic is the No. 1 player in the world, you can’t underestimate him,’’ said Becker. “Djokovic-Nadal is 50-50. Anything can happen. Djokovic has won it before. Nadal is playing a great tournament. It could be a classic.’’
Federer, a disappointing fourth-round loser, is already back in Switzerland, according to his agent, Tony Godsick. He’s close with Wawrinka and texted congratulations after his big upset of Murray on Thursday.
Always overshadowed by Federer, this is Wawrinka’s Open.
“For sure, it’s my moment and I’m enjoying a lot,’’ Wawrinka said. “It’s not because Roger is [from] the same country that I’m not enjoying my career. As I said, I’m really thankful for him because he helped me a lot when I came.’’
Warwinka admits it has been tough cracking through the wall of the Big Four, which has won 32 of the last 33 Grand Slams.
“In tennis, as you know, if you are not Roger or Rafa and Djokovic or Andy now, you don’t win so many tournaments and you always lose,’’ Wawrinka said. “But you need to take the positive of the loss and you need to go back to work and still play.’’
Wawrinka’s great match vs. Djokovic Down Under is at least hope Saturday’s battle won’t be a complete bore. Djokovic has lost just one set in the tournament — in the quarterfinals.
“I’m not going to watch the whole match that I had with Stan because it’s going to take me half a day to stay next to the computer,’’ Djokovic said.
Gasquet figures to not have a lot left in the tank. He has played two straight five-set matches while Nadal has won every bout and has only dropped one set.
“He will come to that match with good confidence,’’ Nadal said. “He will play with confidence. I am sure on that. I need to keep playing my way, aggressive style.’’