Wawrinka set for Nishikori battle at US Open Semi final

Stan Wawrinka said he will be ready to succeed where Andy Murray failed when he takes on Kei Nishikori in the semi-finals of the US Open on Friday.

Third seed Wawrinka sealed his place in the last four at Flushing Meadows by ousting a resurgent Juan Martin del Potro 7-6 (7-5) 4-6 6-3 6-2 in a match which ended in the early hours of Thursday morning in New York.

Nishikori saw off Wimbledon champion Andy Murray in a classic quarter-final and can take heart from having won two of his last three matches against Wawrinka.

Two-time major champion Wawrinka has lost both US Open semi-finals he has played in and knows he faces a big challenge as he attempts to avoid a repeat.

The Swiss said: “It’s going to be interesting for sure. We played many times against each other. He beat me a few years ago here in the quarter-final in five sets. He beat me in Toronto; I beat him in Australia. I saw him play [against Murray]. He was playing really well.

“It’s going to be tough match, for sure. We will see also how I’m going to feel physically [on Friday] to get ready for that.

“But, yeah, I’m ready for a match against Kei.”

Wawrinka was pleased with the way he tackled the threat of the powerful Del Potro, who won a silver medal at the Rio Olympics and continues to make strides after recovering from a long-term absence due to wrist injuries.

“It was important to stay there, to stay tough. I knew before the match that against Juan Martin it’s a tough challenge. He’s playing well. He’s strong mentally. He doesn’t give you much.” he added.

“You know it’s going to be painful physically and mentally to stay there, so I had to adapt a little bit my game. It’s not a player that I can really play always the way I want because he’s so aggressive.

“It was important to stay tough there. I knew it will be difficult. But I’m happy with the way I was fighting, with myself. I’m happy with the way I found solution in the third set to take advantage. I saw also that he was starting to go a little bit down. I took advantage of that.”