tennis

Rafael Nadal Advances to U.S. Open Final

The top-seeded Spaniard beat Mikhail Youzny, the No. 12 seed, in straight sets. He has won every other major tennis tournament but has never even reached the final of the U.S. Open; he will get his shot at a career grand slam tomorrow when he plays the winner of tonight’s semifinal match between Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.

Don’t expect him to get too cocky. His uncle Toni, who is also his coach, will be standing by, his stern advice hanging over his nephew. “When you think you are the king of the world,” he recently told the Times, “you are really stupid in my opinion because in this life every person is important.”

Rafael Nadal in U.S. Open final [ESPN]
Uncle lends steady hand in Nadal’s unsettled life [NYT]

Rafael Nadal Advances to U.S. Open Final