Djokovic views final

World No 1 credits Wawrinka with playing best tennis when the stakes are highest. Simon Cambers reports

IF there is one anecdote that outlines the threat Stan Wawrinka poses to Novak Djokovic when the two meet for the US Open men’s singles title today, it is the one from last year’s Wimbledon when the pair practised together, a few days after the Swiss had denied the Serb the French Open title.

“No more big backhands,” Djokovic shouted across the net, with a grin of sorts.

The Wawrinka backhand, one of the most recognisable and most devastating shots in tennis, had done so much to delay (until this year) Djokovic becoming the latest man to join the elite list of players to complete the career Grand Slam.

A year on and Djokovic, the defending champion and world No 1, goes into today’s final in New York as a strong favourite, not least because of his light workload, the beneficiary of one withdrawal and two opponents who could not complete their match this fortnight.

But despite a 19-4 head-to-head record in his favour, the Serb knows better than most what Wawrinka can do when he has the wind behind him.

“He’s a big-match player,” Djokovic said. “He loves to play on the big stage against big players because that’s when he, I think, elevates his level of performance in his game. He just gets much better.”

Wawrinka almost went out to Britain’s Dan Evans in the third round, saving match point before scrambling through. That feeling of having dodged a bullet has inspired Wawrinka in his three rounds since and victories over Juan Martin del Potro and Kei Nishikori have taken him to a third Grand Slam final, having won his previous two.

“I think he was very close to losing in the second or third round in this