Osaka moves to 3rd round on walkover
As it turned out, Naomi Osaka didn’t need to read the scouting report issued by Novak Djokovic.
He spent three minutes after his first match Tuesday night pumping up the young Serbian prodigy Olga Danilovic.
Danilovic, ranked 140th, was set to face Osaka in a marquee U.S. Open match at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Wednesday morning. It turns out Djokovic’s spiel was a waste of time. Danilovic pulled out with an illness, allowing Osaka to move to the third round. The defending champion will face Canada’s Leylah Fernandez on Friday.
➤ Stefanos Tsitsipas isn’t planning to curtail his lengthy breaks as long as the rules don’t change.
He was at it again Wednesday night, taking eight minutes after losing the third set to Andres Mannarino in his 6-3, 6-4, 6-7 (4), 6-0 second-round victory at Ashe Stadium. Andy Murray had ripped the third seed, saying he lost respect for Tsitsipas after he took long breaks in their match Monday. The Greek star heard boos on Wednesday after the break, as he did on Monday.
“For me it is important to take that break,” he said. “For someone else probably not. And everyone has his own time. I try and be as quick as I can. Sometimes I just need a bit more time. That’s all.”
Mannarino didn’t fault Tsitsipas.
“He’s not doing anything wrong,” Mannarino said. “He’s allowed to do that. They should think about maybe changing the rules.”
➤ Play at Louis Armstrong Stadium was halted Wednesday night after heavy rains and winds made the court unplayable. The wind pushed the rain through the empty space between the concourse level and the retractable cover that was intended to give the stadium ventilation.
The second-round match between Kevin Anderson and No. 11 seed Diego Schwartzman was suspended and moved to Ashe Stadium after Schwartzman had won the opening set, 7-6 (4). The women’s second-round meeting between No. 16 seed Angelique Kerber and Anhelina Kalinina, scheduled initially for Wednesday night at Armstrong, was moved to Thursday afternoon at the Grandstand stadium.