USOpen.org reports that the rain delay will be 60-75 minutes, and play should resume around 7:05 pm to 7:20 pm EST.
Play was halted as Nadal and Djokovic were tied 30-30 in the game, and public announcers asked for spectators to move indoors due to thunder and lightning.
Nadal cruised to win the first set 6-4, taking advantage of 12 unforced errors by Djokovic and benefiting from his effective first serves.
At 2-2 in the first set, Djokovic rallied from down 0-40 to draw even, but was eventually broken by Nadal to lose a hard-fought game which lasted more than eight minutes and featured five deuces. Djokovic saved five break points, but Nadal came through on his sixth to end the game and go up 3-2. Immediately after Nadal’s winning point, Djokovic slammed his racquet into the hardcourt twice in frustration, promptly drawing a warning by the chair umpire.
In the second set, both players held serve until Djokovic rattled off three straight games against Nadal to lead 4-1. Nadal double faulted on 0-30 down 1-2 in the second set, and the rare mistake for the No. 1 ranked player paved the way for Djokovic’s rally. Nadal showed some frustration of his own, punching his racquet with his fist when he could not convert two straight break points while trailing.
Not to be outdone, Nadal recovered, winning three straight games of his own to tie it at 4-4. The see-saw second set was halted when rain began to fall during Djokovic’s service game.
Monday afternoon’s contest was originally scheduled for Sunday but was delayed after a wave of inclement weather that plagued the New York City area.
Nadal is going for his third Grand Slam of 2010, while Djokovic hasn’t won one since 2008’s Australian Open. If Nadal wins the U.S. Open men’s title without dropping a set, he would be the first men’s player to do so since Neale Feaser in 1960.
