By early Thursday evening, he knew he’d get that opportunity at the U.S. Open, thanks to a wind-swept 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-1 quarterfinal victory over 16th-seeded Marin Cilic of Croatia.
What the sixth-seeded del Potro still did not know by the end of the night, however, as rain washed over Flushing Meadows: The opponent he will have to beat to reach his first Grand Slam final.
That’s because the quarterfinal between six-time major champion Rafael Nadal and 2007 Australian Open runner-up Fernando Gonzalez was postponed by showers during the second set.
The first rain delay, of about 75 minutes, came at 2-2 in the second set, after Nadal won the opening set in a tiebreaker. The second interruption came at about 10:20 p.m., with Nadal holding a 3-2 lead in the second-set tiebreaker.
At midnight, tournament officials suspended play for the night, sending Nadal and Gonzalez home. And leaving del Potro still waiting.
The Nadal-Gonzalez match was scheduled to resume Friday, not before 2 p.m. — following the first women’s semifinal, between Serena Williams and Kim Clijsters, which was to begin at 12:30 p.m.
All of the breaks might have been helpful to Nadal, who called for a trainer after the first set. It appeared Nadal was being checked for a flare-up of a stomach muscle problem that bothered him earlier in the tournament.
Murray passes NadalGonzalez makes Moscow move
