As it turned out, Naomi Osaka didn’t need to read the scouting report issued by Novak Djokovic.
Djokvoic spent three minutes after his first match Tuesday night pumping up the young Serbian prodigy Olga Danilovic, whose father, Sasha, played 75 games in the NBA in the 1990’s for the Heat and Mavericks.
Danilovic, ranked 140th, was set to face Osaka in an 11 a.m. marquee match on Arthur Ashe Stadium on Wednesday. Turns out Djokovic’s spiel was a waste of time as Danilovic pulled out with an illness, allowing Osaka to move to the third round.
The defending U.S. Open champion will face Canada’s Leylah Fernandez Friday. Fernandez is ranked 73rd.
Danilovic-Osaka figured to be an entertaining test for the defending champion. Djokovic has known Danilovic since she was a toddler and has been advising her a lot.
“She’s really young,’’ Djokovic said. “She’s 20 years old. She’s got the goods. She’s really, really strong, fit, tall, lefty. Don’t have many good lefty servers in both men’s and women’s game. I think it’s quite an advantage, if she’s serving well, she can do damage to a lot of players.
Olga Danilovic Getty Images“The more matches she’s winning on this stage, the more comfortable she’s going to feel. We’ve been speaking a lot. I’ve been trying to help her out as much as I possibly can, her team, her family. [Wednesday] is a match where she has nothing to lose, really. She’s playing against probably the first favorite to win the title, on the center court. She’s excited.”
The Osaka cancellation sent thousands of fans who arrived early scurrying for the outdoor courts amid heavy gusts of wind. But the remnants of Hurricane Ida held off until 5 p.m., allowing a series of matches to unexpectedly finish before the downpours came, canceling only a handful.
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). Schwartzman went on to a 7-6, 6-3, 6-4 straight-set victory that ended early Thursday morning.
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.
American Brandon Nakashima, who upset John Isner on Monday, fell in five sets to qualifier Alex Molcan of Slovakia. … In one of the biggest upsets in terms of rankings, the No. 8 seed from Norway, Casper Ruud was upset by qualifier Botic Van de Zandschulp in a four-setter on unlucky Court 13.
— Additional reporting by Zach Braziller
