NEW YORK — Maria Sharapova knows the story all too well: An unknown American kid shows up at the U.S. Open, upsets a seeded player, gains some buzz and belief, then gets a shot at Sharapova in the third round.
In 2009, that kid was Melanie Oudin, who beat Sharapova en route to the quarterfinals.
In 2010, that kid was Beatrice Capra and, well, let’s just say that Sharapova fared a little better this time around.
Overwhelmed by the stage, the circumstances, the 25 mph wind that knocked the neon lime visor off her head during a point, and — most of all — a solid Sharapova, the 18-year-old Capra didn’t win a game, let alone the match. Instead, 2006 U.S. Open champion Sharapova set up a fourth-round showdown with No. 1-seeded Caroline Wozniacki by blanking the 371st-ranked Capra 6-0, 6-0 on Saturday in Arthur Ashe Stadium.
“This was a new day,” said Sharapova, the first woman to win love-and-love at the U.S. Open in the third round or later since Martina Navratilova did it in the 1989 quarterfinals. “And what happened last year — I didn’t really want to go into the match thinking about it.”
In major men’s action, Novak Djokovic reached the U.S. Open’s fourth round for the fourth consecutive year, eliminating American wild card James Blake in straight sets.
The No. 3 seed Djokovic beat Blake 6-1, 7-6 (4), 6-3 in a wind-whipped Arthur Ashe Stadium on Saturday night. Serbia’s Djokovic made only 13 unforced errors — 18 fewer than Blake.
“It’s a big mental struggle, when you have such a strong wind, to find a way how to try to play good tennis,” Djokovic said, “especially if you have somebody across the net who is so aggressive, taking everything early and playing a risky game.”
In the fourth round, Djokovic will face another American, 19th-seeded Mardy Fish, who edged Arnaud Clement of France 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 Saturday.
Djokovic was the U.S. Open runner-up in 2007, and made it to the semifinals in 2008 and 2009 — losing to Roger Federer every time.
After Federer’s windblown-but-routine 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 victory over Paul-Henri Mathieu on Saturday, attention turned to Federer, No. 1 seed Rafael Nadal and their places in history.
Federer remembers how it felt when he was trying to complete the career Grand Slam, when every trip to Roland Garros was more than merely big, but a chance to make history.
In other words, he remembers what it felt like to go through what his rival, Rafael Nadal, is going through for a second straight year in New York.
Nadal, who has never been to the final at the U.S. Open, won his first Australian Open title in 2009. Now, he needs to win it all at the U.S. Open to cap his career Grand Slam.
Federer needs three more wins to reach his seventh straight U.S. Open final. Nadal has lost in the semifinals in his last two trips to Flushing Meadows. His third-round match this year is set for Sunday against former top-10 player Gilles Simon.
“Clearly, he has a chance because he’s young enough,” Federer said. “Obviously, I guess he would need to win the U.S. Open to put himself there. He’s won the Olympics, done some amazing things. So, he’ll have a shot at it, I’m sure.”
