Murray leads Nadal before rain cancels play

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By Pritha Sarkar

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The arrival of the remnants of Tropical Storm Hanna at Flushing Meadows forced U.S. Open organisers to postpone the conclusion of the semi-final between Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray and the women’s final to Sunday.

Sixth seed Murray was leading world number one Nadal 6-2 7-6 2-3 when rain stopped play at 2:48 p.m. local time (7:48 p.m. British time) on Saturday.

With heavy downpours expected to last for the rest of the day, play was cancelled on the 13th day of the hardcourt major at 8:20 p.m. British time.

The women’s final between twice former champion Serena Williams and Serbian second seed Jelena Jankovic, which should have taken place in Saturday’s evening session, was rescheduled for 9 p.m. local time on Sunday (2 a.m. British time Monday), weather permitting.

The match between Nadal and Murray was moved from the main showcourt to Louis Armstrong Court and began one hour 40 minutes after the start of the first semi-final between Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.

Four-times champion Federer managed to get back into the locker room before the storm swept through the National Tennis Center by reaching his fifth successive final with a 6-3 5-7 7-5 6-2 on Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Federer is now guaranteed an extra 24 hours’ rest since Murray and Nadal will resume their .....continued below

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It will be the first time since 1987 that the men’s showpiece at the U.S. Open will be contested on a third Monday of the tournament.

(Editing by Mark Lamport-Stokes)