US Open: High hurdle before final

Coming to the US Open last year,Id never won a Grand Slam. I didnt know if I was ever going to win one, Murray said. A lot of people would say … Hes good enough to win a Grand Slam. But the more finals you lose,the more you start to doubt yourself. Getting that weight off my shoulders was huge.

The US Open begins on Monday.

POSSIBLE MATCH-UPS

Apart from No. 2 Nadal against No. 7 Federer,other possible mens quarterfinals are 2011 champion Djokovic vs. 2009 champion Juan Martin del Potro,No. 3 Murray vs. No. 5 Tomas Berdych,and No. 4 David Ferrer vs. No. 8 Richard Gasquet.

Federer and Nadal were set up for a possible quarterfinal at Wimbledon,but that never materialised: Nadal lost in the first round,and Federer in the second.

The potential womens quarterfinals are No. 1 Serena Williams against No. 8 Angelique Kerber,No. 2 Victoria Azarenka against No. 7 Petra Kvitova,No. 3 Agnieszka Radwanska against No. 5 Li Na,and No. 4 Sara Errani against No. 6 Caroline Wozniacki.

The original third seed,2006 champion Maria Sharapova,withdrew because of a right shoulder injury.

Williams 16 Grand Slam titles include four at the US Open,including last year. Her first-round opponent will be 2010 French Open champion Francesca Schiavone. Williams could play 15th-seeded Sloane Stephens in the fourth round; Stephens won their Australian Open quarterfinal in January.

BETTER THAN EVER?

Williams has won 77 of her past 81 matches,and was asked whether she is playing better than she ever has.

I hope not, Williams said. I always like to hope I can do better,so well see.

Her older sister Venus is unseeded and was drawn to play No. 12 Kirsten Flipkens in the first round.

Djokovic and 2010 champion Nadal can meet only in the final. Theyve already met in five Grand Slam finals,including in New York in 2010 and 2011.

One intriguing earlier matchup for 12-time major winner Nadal could come in the fourth round,when he might face big-serving American John Isner,who pushed the Spaniard to five sets at the French Open two years ago.

Djokovic,who has reached at least the semifinals at the US Open each of the last six years,could face 25th-seeded Grigor Dimitrov in the third round. Dimitrov beat Djokovic at the Madrid Masters in May,although Djokovic won their matchup at the French Open.

In the second round,Djokovic might play Lukas Rosol,who upset Nadal at Wimbledon,or Benjamin Becker,who defeated Andre Agassi at the 2006 US Open in his last professional match.

somdev moves a step closer

Somdev Devvarman is one win away from the US Open main draw after beating American Robby Ginepri in the second round of the qualifiers. Sixth seed Somdev beat Ginepri 7-6 4 2-6 6-2.

Somdev had three break opportunities in the second set but could convert none. He dropped his serve twice as Ginepri made a comeback. Somdev did not repeat that mistake in the third set as he cashed in on three of the four chances to move to the third round.