The second round of the men’s singles starts on Day 3 of the US Open. As always, we here at LWOT will share our thoughts on all 16 matches for you. We split the matches between four articles, including this one. The other articles feature Taylor Fritz vs Juan Pablo Varillas, Sefanos Tsitsipas vs Dominic Stricker, and Ben Shelton vs Dominic Thiem. Predicting these matches are Damian Kust, Jordan Reynolds, and Yesh Ginsburg. Who do you think will advance?
US Open Day 3 Men’s Predictions
Jakub Mensik vs Titouan Droguet
Damian:
What a fantastic performance that was from the 17-year-old Mensik on Monday, not looking like a player who’s debuting in a Slam at all. His New York matches have all been so mature and if he keeps that up, this is a very winnable opportunity. Droguet is playing with a lot of confidence right now, but is ultimately much more limited.
Prediction: Mensik in 4
Jordan:
Both men registered their first ever Grand Slam wins in highly impressive fashion. Menšík is just 17-years-old, while Droguet overcame 18th seed Lorenzo Musetti with a powerful display. This is a hard one to call, but Droguet will be hard to step if he finds the firepower he had in the previous round.
Prediction: Droguet in 4
Yesh:
Mensik looked a lot older and more mature than 17 in his opening match. It’s hard to know how long he can keep it up, but he’s more talented than Droguet here and has developed faster.
Prediction: Mensik in 3
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina vs Juan Manuel Cerundolo
Damian:
Cerundolo has never played this well on hard courts, with the win over Ivashka and the Winston-Salem quarterfinals. He’s getting more out of his serve and using the new, more aggressive mindset to his advantage. His game has its obvious limits, though, and this is where they’re bound to come in. Davidovich Fokina should take him down.
Prediction: Davidovich Fokina in 3
Jordan:
Davidovich Fokina swept aside Marcos Giron to reach this stage. By contrast, Cerundolo dramatically recovered from two sets down against Ilya Ivaskha to get a first Grand slam win. The Spaniard can be inconsistent, but has a tendency to beat his opponents easily when he gets on a roll, like he did during his semifinal run in Toronto. I think he will do it again here.
Prediction: Davidovich Fokina in 3
Yesh:
Cerundolo’s brother got his big break on faster courts a little earlier, but Juan Manuel is fast following in Francisco’s footsteps. Davidovich Fokina did well to advance to this round as well, as he hasn’t been playing so great recently. Don’t be surprised if the Argentine finds a way through this one as well.
Prediction: Cerundolo in 4
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Rinky Hijikata vs Marton Fucsovics
Damian:
Fucsovics is such a talented player and always a gritty competitor you don’t wanna face early on. Korda is just his most recent scalp. The Hungarian has this tendency of playing up to the level of his opposition, but also playing down to it. He really should have no business losing to Hijikata, even if he often makes things complicated for himself.
Prediction: Fucsovics in 4
Jordan:
Fucsovics was outstanding in the big moments in his upset win in five sets against Sebastian Korda. But my instinct is Hijikata will bring him crashing back to earth in this one. The Australian’s consistent style could blunt Fucsovics after he thrived off the pace of Korda’s groundstrokes in the opening round. It should be tight though.
Prediction: Hijikata in 5
Yesh:
Fucsovics is solid, consistent, and very difficult to hit through. His game isn’t amazing, but it’s very strong on faster courts. I don’t see that Hijikata has anything that can hurt him.
Prediction: Fucsovics in 3
Novak Djokovic vs Bernabe Zapata Miralles
Damian:
Djokovic made very light work of Muller and shouldn’t be struggling in the second round either. Zapata Miralles isn’t all that incompetent on hard courts, but he’s also not exactly of main tour quality on this surface. The first two rounds were expected to be walks in the park for the 23-time Grand Slam champion and nothing has changed in this regard.
Prediction: Djokovic in 3
Jordan:
It may only have been the first round, but Djokovic was ominously good against Alexandre Muller. If he stays near that level, it is hard to see how anyone outside Alcaraz stops him. Clay court specialist Zapata Miralles got his second Grand Slam win outside of his favoured surface in the opening round. But he will not trouble Djokovic.
Prediction: Djokovic in 3
Yesh:
Djokovic looks in strong form, and he’s out to prove a point after missing the US Open last year. He’s going to be ruthless, and it will take a lot more talent than Zapata Miralles has to challenge him.
Prediction: Djokovic in 3
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey-USA TODAY Sports
