The US Open kicks off on Monday with a whopping 32 men’s matches on Day 1. It should be an incredible day of tennis action and–as always–we here at LWOT want to share our thoughts on every match with you. We split the 32 matches between eight articles. In addition to this article, our other articles feature Novak Djokovic vs Radu Albot, Frances Tiafoe vs Aleksandar Kovacevic, Ben Shelton vs Dominic Thiem, Andrey Rublev vs Thiago Seyboth Wild, Alexander Zverev vs Maximilian Marterer, Taylor Fritz vs Camilo Ugo Carabelli, and Holger Rune vs Brandon Nakashima. Predicting these matches are Ateet Shrivastava, Damian Kust, and Yesh Ginsburg. Who do you think will reach Round 2?
US Open Day 1 Men’s Predictions
Sebastian Baez vs Luciano Darderi
Ateet:
It’s well-known to everyone that Sebastian Baez is a clay court specialist but he can play some good tennis on hard courts as well. He reached the third round of last year’s US Open and is much more experienced than Darderi on this surface. These two have always met on clay so this would be an exciting contest and both will fancy their chances to win. I will lean towards Baez as he is less prone to making errors.
Prediction: Baez in 5
Damian:
These two just can’t stop running into each other this year, this will be the fourth meeting and they also battled in the Bundesliga recently. Darderi is adapting to other surfaces better than expected, but was down physically in the last two weeks. That’s probably enough for Baez to have a slight edge, especially with him already having a few nice performances at the US Open in the past.
Prediction: Baez in 4
Yesh:
Both of these players are better on clay than hard courts, though both are pretty underrated on hard courts as well. Baez has more top-level experience on these courts, and he seems to be playing better at the moment, too.
Prediction: Baez in 4
Alexei Popyrin vs Soon-Woo Kwon
Ateet:
Popyrin is in the form of his life and he would look to make the most of it at the biggest stage. Soon-Woo Kwon hasn’t played in over a month and has just two Rour-level wins this year. In this form, I don’t see him causing any problems to the Australian player.
Prediction: Popyrin in 3
Damian:
Kwon is just running out of his protected ranking spots before he will have to get drafted into the army at the end of the season. He posted a surprising win at Roland Garros, but the rest of the year has been brutal. Seems like there’s almost no way he will defeat Popyrin right now and the Australian should be very high on confidence after Montreal too.
Prediction: Popyrin in 3
Yesh:
Popyrin has never kept near the top his extreme potential, but he has flashes once in a while. He’s been playing well pretty recently, and his booming serve should love these courts.
Prediction: Popyrin in 3
Matteo Berrettini vs Albert Ramos Vinolas
Ateet:
Berrettini has climbed the rankings at a fast pace in the last couple of months and will look to get off to a good start at the US Open. Berrettini’s record at the US Open is much better than his overall hard-court record, which makes him a dangerous unseeded player. Ramos Vinolas is nowhere near the player he once was. The Italian should win this in straight sets.
Prediction: Berrettini in 3
Damian:
Berrettini isn’t quite as much of a dark horse contender as he was at Wimbledon, but he’s still a player no one wanted to see in their draw. Ramos-Vinolas is barely hanging on around the Top 100 thanks to one Challenger title run in 2024 and it’s not going to be enough for the Italian at this stage of his career.
Prediction: Berrettini in 3
Yesh:
Berrettini had a Grand Slam caliber career that was derailed by injuries, but he never seems too far from finding his way back. His serve-and-forehand combo is unmatched, so finding a top rhythm is never hard for him. If he’s healthy, he’ll go far here.
Prediction: Berrettini in 3
Gael Monfils vs Diego Schwartzman
Ateet:
Winning against Carlos Alcaraz at this stage of his career should have meant a lot to Monfils. He had a wonderful run in Cincinnati where he showed that he can still play at a very high level. Diego Schwartzman did extremely well to qualify for his last-ever US Open. The Argentinian leads the head-to-head but Monfils is the better player currently.
Prediction: Monfils in 4
Damian:
Schwartzman qualifying here came a bit out of nowhere as he is retiring in February and hadn’t played in two months. Monfils seems like a winnable matchup for him with the season that the Frenchman is having, but the last few weeks have actually been much better for him. Seems like there could be a quality gap here right now.
Prediction: Monfils in 4
Yesh:
Schwartzman looked great in qualifying, and the crowd in New York always loves him. Then again, every crowd loves Monfils, too, so that might even out. Still, the Argentine has the advantages in this matchup, and I think he has one last magical run left before ending his career.
Prediction: Schwartzman in 4
Main Photo Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
