Day 2 at the 2019 US Open sees Rafael Nadal, Gael Monfils, John Millman, and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga kick off their campaigns as round 1 action continues. We have predictions for other matches featuring Dominic Thiem, Nick Kyrgios, and John Isner as well today. Yesh Ginsburg and David Gertler offer their predictions here.
Rafael Nadal vs John Millman
Yesh: Nadal has a very tough matchup here. Millman pulled off a huge upset last year, and he has the game that can trouble Nadal. I don’t expect the #2 seed to lose here, but this should be a battle of a match. Don’t be too shocked if the Spaniard falls. Nadal in 5
David: Rafael Nadal takes on John Millman in the first round of the US Open. No. 2 seed Nadal, a three-time US Open champion, won Montreal a couple weeks ago and seems ready to make a run at the US Open. Millman, who made the quarterfinals last year and beat Roger Federer in the process, is clearly comfortable playing in New York City. Millman was able to make that run last year by playing excellent, counterpunching tennis. He won’t be able to do that against Nadal, who has extraordinary fitness and a high ability to turn defense-into-offense. Nadal wins comfortably. Nadal in 3
Gael Monfils vs Albert Ramos
Yesh: Monfils is full of talent, but never quite seems able to put it all together. Still, he gets it together enough to win early rounds at Slams. On the other hand, Ramos-Vinolas has been playing amazing tennis recently, and shouldn’t be a pushover. Monfils in 4
David: Gael Monfils and Albert Ramos battle in the first round of the US Open. Monfils, a former US Open semifinalist in 2016, made the semifinals of Montreal before pulling out with an injury. He lost in the first round of Cincinnati, possibly still slightly hampered by that injury, but if he’s healthy, he’s a nightmare matchup, with his defense and shotmaking ability. Ramos has won 15 of the 19 matches he’s played since Wimbledon, including taking home an ATP Tour final, but only one of those matches was on hard court! And he lost! Ramos is a good clay courter, but he won’t be be able to run around his lefty forehand as often on hard compared to clay and Monfils is by far the better player on hard courts. Monfils advances. Monfils in 3
Ivo Karlovic vs Frances Tiafoe
Yesh: Tiafoe likes these courts and playing at home, but any match against Karlovic is always a toss-up. Still, “Dr. Ivo” is past his prime and has struggled recently. Tiafoe in 4
David: 40 year-old Ivo Karlovic takes on 21 year-old Frances Tiafoe for the right to go to the second round of the US Open. Karlovic has had a middling summer hard court season, going 3-2 in non-walkover matches. Tiafoe has also had an average summer hard court season, havinga 4-4 record. This match will come down to a small number of points, as Karlovic is one of the best servers, and worst returners, in the game. At this stage in his career, I don’t expect Karlovic to be able to hang in rallies often enough to be Tiafoe over the course of a best-of-five match. Tiafoe moves on. Tiafoe in 4
Jo-Wilfred Tsonga vs Tennys Sandgen
Yesh: Sandgren has played well recently, but not as well as his breakthrough last year. Tsonga is trying to find his form again. Expect a tight match, where whoever can pick their level up faster will win. Tsonga in 5
David: Jo-Wilfred Tsonga battles Tennys Sandgen for a spot in the second round of the US Open. Tsonga went 2-2 during the summer hard court season, while Sandgren went 1-3 during the summer hard court season. Tsonga has made the quarterfinals of the US Open three times. Sandgren often settles for poor court positioning and tries to rely on his defense too much, which could be an issue against Tsonga’s big forehand. While Sandgren can frustrate Tsonga by getting a lot of balls back, look for Tsonga to eventually wear the American down. Tsonga wins, but it will be tight. Tsonga in 5
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