Big Four Reunite at US Open, Djokovic Eyes Title

From the pits of despair in Paris, record-setting Novak Djokovic now eyes a third US Open title in New York where for the first time since Wimbledon last year, the sport’s ‘Big Four’ will be reunited.

Djokovic became the first man to win all nine Masters titles with victory over Roger Federer at Cincinnati last week, AFP reported.

Having captured, against all the odds, a fourth Wimbledon in July, the 31-year-old Serb suddenly finds himself as joint-favorite with world number one Rafael Nadal to triumph at Flushing Meadows.

Champion in 2011 and 2015, and a five-time runner-up, Djokovic sat out the 2017 US Open to nurse an elbow injury.

His physical limitations were still evident when he slumped away from Roland Garros in June after a shock quarterfinal loss to journeyman Marco Cecchinato, threatening to skip Wimbledon to mend his shattered self-confidence.

But now Djokovic is once again the man to beat. He will head for New York buoyed by his dominance over his three major rivals as well -- he leads Nadal 27-25, Federer 24-22 and Andy Murray 25-11.

World number one Nadal, who won the US Open last year to add to his 2010 and 2013 victories, skipped Cincinnati after triumphing in Toronto the week before.