6:18 P.M.—The remainder of the day's play has been canceled, with rain forecasted throughout the evening. The men's singles final will be held at 4 P.M. tomorrow.
5:03 P.M.—The USTA says 60 more minutes of "light rain." They could have also said, "a women's final's worth of light rain."
4:04 P.M.—Latest announcement from the USTA Media Center: Another 45-60 minutes of light rain, after which officials expect to start the men's final on Ashe. Still raining steadily outside (moreso than earlier).
3:36 P.M.—The women's doubles final has been moved to Louis Armstrong Stadium, it was announced in the press room. Officials are hopeful that play will resume at 4 P.M. Play was suspended at 5-4 in the third set.
3:23 P.M.—Conditions outside: Very light rain, clouds not overly threatening. Still no officials or players on Ashe, however. Fans crowding the Heineken Red Star Cafe for shelter and views of the Giants game.
3:04 P.M.—Players are leaving the court. Depending on how long this delay lasts, you have to wonder if the USTA would consider moving the match to another court, in order to get the men's singles final started on time.
2:58 P.M.—The women's doubles final has been suspended because of rain at 5-4 in the third set. The players are staying on court, underneath umbrellas.
2:28 P.M.—Just returned from Court 11, where Americans Jack Sock and Denis Kudla are in the third set of their boys' singles final. The lightest of sprinkles are falling at Flushing Meadows, but not enough to stop play. The women's doubles final, being contested on Ashe, is also being played without interruption.
The revised forecast indicates similar conditions through 9 P.M. That's good news for the USTA, the fans in attendance, and of course, Rafael Nadal, the fresher of the two men's final combatants.
1:03 P.M.—Are we headed for another Monday men’s final at the U.S. Open? Right now, the rain is holding off and the women’s doubles final is underway inside Arthur Ashe Stadium. But it’s cloudy, a bit windy, and it feels like something is brewing in the sky.
The hourly forecast calls for showers between 1 and 2 P.M., then a break in precipitation until 7. After 7, rain appears to be steady through the remainder of the day. If that outlook holds, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic will get roughly two-and-a-half hours of dry hitting time.
When told about the rainy outlook on Saturday after his long five-set semifinal win over Roger Federer, Djokovic smiled and said, “I don't know the rituals how to invite the rain, but... Yeah, I don't know. An extra day would be great, actually.”
It rained earlier this morning in Queens, and based on the ponchos the U.S. Open workers are wearing outdoors, they expect it to rain again. Somewhere, Djokovic is keeping up his rain dance.
—Ed McGrogan
