U.S. Open: Djokovic d. Ferrer

NEW YORK—Novak Djokovic has entertained the Flushing Meadows faithful with impressions of opponents, but the master mimic looked like the victim of identity theft on a hazy Saturday. Djokovic was flailing framed shots, shuffling with uncertainty in no-man's land, and howling misery into the swirling gusts that blew empty bottles and bags across the court, as David Ferrer breezed to a 5-2 lead before play was suspended for the safety and sanity of all involved.

The cranky and confused impostor who hijacked Djokovic's body was gone, along with the unruly winds and soupy sky when play resumed this morning. Enjoying the most inviting conditions of the tournament, Djokovic reasserted his identity as Arthur Ashe Stadium landlord and showed Ferrer the door, 2-6, 6-1, 6-4, 6-2, to storm into the U.S. Open final for the third straight year.

Covering the court beautifully, the defending champion lifted his level significantly, permitting Ferrer just eight games in total today and advancing to his fifth Grand Slam final in his last six majors. Ferrer, who broke twice yesterday, drew a flying forehand error to wrap up the first set about five minutes after play resumed, but then Djokovic began to dictate the proceedings.

Djokovic had won eight of 10 hard-court meetings with Ferrer, and you can understand why he's so comfortable facing the feisty Spaniard. Djokovic not only does everything a bit better, he does it faster and more forcefully.

The second seed took charge in winning eight of the first nine points to take a 2-0 lead in the second set. The depth of Djokovic's drives bulldozed the 5'9" Ferrer so far behind the baseline, a few times it looked like he was hitting forehands from the food court. The defending champion's heavier shots handcuffed his smaller opponent, as Djokovic scored consecutive service breaks, then dug out of a triple break-point hole to hold for 5-0. Most players might have considering conceding the set to conserve energy for the third, but Ferrer is not like most players. He dug to hold and saved a couple of set points before netting a return before Djokovic locked down the set. Empowered, Djokovic won eight of the first 10 points to build a 2-0 third-set lead.

If there were titles for tenacity, Ferrer would have enough trophies to stock that shed his coach once locked him in. The fourth seed doesn't just bear adversity, he bearhugs it. The tireless grinder who fought past Janko Tipsarevic in a four-hour, 31-minute quarterfinal made one more run. Losing the battle of court positioning, Ferrer began to step up in the court and closed the gap, winning three straight games for a 3-2 lead. That was his final stand, though, as Djokovic won eight of the next nine games. The Serb slammed an ace down the middle, sealing the third set with his fifth love hold in his last six service games and a celebratory scream. His superior variety on serve—he used the kick variety to torment Ferrer—was a key stroke in the third set. Djokovic served 72 percent, won 16 of 18 points played on his first serve, and hit three aces.

Bouncing on his toes behind the baseline like a boxer, Ferrer hit himself into a corner, flat-lining successive forehands into net to donate the break in the opening game of the fourth set. Djokovic is highly skilled driving the ball down the line off both wings, and he often hit the backhand down the line to confound Ferrer, whose instinct is to lean left to run around his backhand and fire his favored forehand.

"Tactically, that [backhand down the line] was the shot to open up the court and get him out of the comfort zone," Djokovic told ESPN's Darren Cahill. "Obviously, I was a different player today. I felt much more comfortable on court. Yesterday, I made so many errors, today I tried to stay on the court and be offensive yet patient. I played a really good match."

It was Djokovic's 13th consecutive U.S. Open victory, and he will try to defend his title against former junior U.S. Open champion and longtime rival Andy Murray in Monday afternoon's final, a rematch of their epic Australian Open semifinal earlier this year.