Day one at the New York Open should see no shortage of entertaining action with a number of intriguing matches on the slate. That includes an all-American clash between Steve Johnson and recent Australian Open quarterfinalist Tennys Sandgren. As ever, we here at LWOT are offering predictions across the board. But who will advance at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum?
New York Open Day One Predictions
Qualifying
Paolo Lorenzi vs Noah Rubin
Head-to-head: Lorenzi 1-0 Rubin
Paolo Lorenzi is 38-years-old, but the Italian’s competitive fire remains undimmed. Noah Rubin looks to be a man in need of some of that spirit, with the American’s ranking having nosedived in recent months. Rubin now finds himself outside the top 200 at 268th in the world and in desperate need of some rankings points to get his career moving in the right direction. But Lorenzi is not just an excellent competitor, he is also rock-solid from the back of the court, as he demonstrated in beating Guillermo Garcia Lopez in straight-sets. Expect him to prove too strong for the struggling Rubin.
Prediction: Lorenzi in 2
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Go Soeda vs Bernard Tomic
Head-to-head: Tomic 1-0 Soeda
Bernard Tomic did win this pair’s only previous meeting, but that match was played in 2010 and the Australian’s career has rather fallen apart in the intervening period. He did, however, score a rare win in the first round of qualifying by beating eighth seed Denis Istomin in a third-set tiebreak. But he may need to be at something approaching his best once again when he takes on Japan’s Go Soeda, the top seed in qualifying, who impressed in beating Frederik Nielsen 6-1 6-2 in his qualifying opener.
Neither player boasts a particularly impressive record indoors, but it is Soeda who has the edge in that department. Tomic has struggled throughout his career to break serve consistently on indoor hard courts, whilst his own serve is not big enough to dig him out of trouble reliably. Soeda too does not possess massive power from the line, but he is a fine returner. If he can take his chances, this match should be over fairly quickly.
Prediction: Soeda in 2
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Bradley Klahn vs Danilo Petrovic
Head-to-head: first meeting
Bradley Klahn had to work exceedingly hard to reach the final round of qualifying at the New York Open, edging out El Salvador’s Marcela Arevalo 4-6 6-3 7-6. Danilo Petrovic found things rather more straightforward, advancing when the injury-stricken Peter Polansky retired trailing 0-6 0-3. And one rather suspects that the length and late finish of Klahn’s previous match could count against him decisively here. If Petrovic is able to extend the rallies and keep the ball away from Klahn’s dangerous forehand, he should have enough to claim a place in the main draw at the New York Open.
Prediction: Petrovic in 2
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First Round
Miomir Kecmanovic vs Tommy Paul
Head-to-head: first meeting
Both Tommy Paul and Miomir Kecmanovic look to be building promising careers. Currently, it is the Serbian who is the higher-ranked of the two at 59th in the world, but Paul is in fine form and currently at a career-high world #70. His showing at the Australian Open, where he reached the third round, was just the latest in a string of impressive performances, with Paul also having won three Challenger titles in 2019, all in the United States.
Kecmanovic, in contrast, looks to have rather lost his way of late. The Serbian has lost five of his last six matches and though he does possess a versatile all-court game, he has struggled indoors so far in his career. Indeed, he has just one win at tour-level on an indoor hard court, with his defensive approach having been exposed by big-hitters. Paul, who possesses a standout forehand and a useful serve, should have the power to cause Kecmanovic more problems indoors.
Prediction: Paul in 2
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