Day two at the US Open should feature plenty of entertaining tennis. As always, we here at LWOT will be offering our predictions for every match, including Ashleigh Barty vs Vera Zvonareva, Viktorija Golubic vs Bianca Andreescu, Emma Raducanu vs Jennifer Brady, Karolina Pliskova vs Catherine McNally, Jamie Loeb vs Iga Swiatek, Petra Kvitova vs Polona Hercog and Anett Kontaveit vs Samantha Stosur. But who will book their spot in the round of 64?
US Open Day 2 Predictions
Alison Riske vs Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
Jim: This is a match that Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova should be winning. The Russian, who reached her first Major final at the French Open earlier this season, has not been in particularly sparkling form of late, but she has looked sharper than Alison Riske. The American is still struggling to rebuild her form and fitness and this looks likely to prove to be a challenge too far for her.
Prediction: Pavlyuchenkova in 2
Yesh: On grass, I would take Riske. Even though Pavlyuchenkova has broken through this year with her final showing in Paris, she’s still not as consistent as she should be. On a hard court, though, and with Riske’s health not great recently, the Russian should advance.
Prediction: Pavlyuchenkova in 2
Andy: It’s a shame that this is a first-round match as both play an entertaining attacking game. Pavlyuchenkova hasn’t continued her form from her Roland Garros final as well as she would have liked, but Riske has been in worse form. Riske leads the head-to-head 3-2 but I think the Russian is the one to be with here. Her winning mentality will shine through in an entertaining three-set win.
Prediction: Pavlyuchenkova in 3
Embed from Getty Images
Marta Kostyuk vs Maria Sakkari
Jim: Maria Sakkari has fallen short of expectations since reaching the semifinals at the French Open, but the Greek will surely come good before too long and she has generally played well in New York throughout her career. Even if she is not at her very best, expect her to have enough to account for Kostyuk.
Prediction: Sakkari in 2
Yesh: Sakkari probably should have won the French Open, and she hasn’t been the same since losing a heartbreaking semifinal there. Now she’s matched up against a powerful hitter who’s been playing well this year. This has all the makings of a classic upset.
Prediction: Kostyuk in 3
Andy: Without wanting to sound like a broken record, this is too good of a match for the first round. Kostyuk looked like she was in great position to win the tournament in Chicago last week, but came unstuck in the quarters. Sakkari’s hard-court season hasn’t been great though and this could go three. The tenacity of the Greek will be the deciding factor here.
Prediction: Sakkari in 3
Embed from Getty Images
Ludmilla Samsonova vs Katie Boulter
Jim: Katie Boulter came very close to pulling off a famous win at Wimbledon, but then arrived at the US Open having played just one tournament in the interim. She impressed in the qualifying, however, and this will not be entirely straightforward for Ludmilla Samsonova. But the Russian has been playing well enough of late to make her the favourite here and probably rightly so.
Prediction: Samsonova in 3
Yesh: Boulter is the great hope of British tennis fans. Well, she was, until Raducanu came along. Samsonova had a good run this year, but Boulter definitely has more talent.
Prediction: Boulter in 3
It’s a concern that Samsonova pulled out from her tournament last week, but hopefully that was because she felt she didn’t need more preparation. Boulter had a good qualification albeit she was favourite in all her matches. At her best the Brit could win this but Samsonova is the rightful favourite given the level she has produced this year.
Prediction: Samsonova in 3
Embed from Getty Images
Ajla Tomljanovic vs Katie Volynets
Jim: Katie Volynets likely has a bright future, but she has looked somewhat out of her depth so far in her career at tour-level. Ajla Tomljanovic is not exactly a model of consistency and the Australian may be a little short of match practice, but she is currently a more accomplished player than the teenager. She should have the edge.
Prediction: Tomljanovic in 3
Yesh: Volynets is in her second Major of the year, but she won’t do much better here than in her first one. And she’s facing a very tough battle against a better opponent.
Prediction: Tomljanovic in 2
Andy: An unsurprising but still deserved wildcard for Volynets has seen the draw give her a winnable match here. But Tomljanovic had a good run at Wimbledon and should have a strong enough serve and groundstrokes to keep Volynets at arm’s length.
Prediction: Tomljanovic in 3
Main photo:
Embed from Getty Images
