Exciting Matchups to Watch in the First Rounds of the US Open: Tsitsipas vs. Raonic, Murray vs. Moutet, and More

Stefanos Tsitsipas – Milos Raonic

1st round, men’s singles

It’s not every day that two Grand Slam finalists face off in the 1st round of a Grand Slam tournament. The Canadian, beaten by Andy Murray for the title at Wimbledon in 2016, returns from nowhere after a long absence. He resumed in June and only played three tournaments. Sufficient, however, to prove that, on a fast surface, it can still be threatening. He jostled Tommy Paul at Wimbledon and has just reached the round of 16 in Cincinnati, notably by eliminating Frances Tiafoe.

Stefanos Tsitsipas will therefore have to be on his guard. Even if the Greek will obviously have a good head of favorite in this match, the US Open hardly succeeds for him. It’s the only Grand Slam tournament where he still hasn’t reached the second week. Last year, his participation had even turned into a fiasco with an elimination in the first round against Daniel Galan. Distrust, therefore…

Stefanos Tsitsipas and Milos Raonic in Melbourne in 2020.

Credit: Getty Images

Andy Murray – Corentin Moutet

1st round, men’s singles

This is the kind of poster likely to set Flushing on fire at the start of the tournament. Andy Murray, winner in 2012 (it was then his first major title), continues to believe in his star. The Briton has never been so well ranked since his return (37th) but the Grand Slams continue to pose an almost insoluble problem for him. In his last eleven appearances in a major tournament, he has never reached the third round, which he has only reached twice (US Open 2022, Australian Open 2023).

Facing him, Corentin Moutet is used to epic Grand Slam encounters. We know both the talent of the Frenchman’s left hand and his ability to trip up from time to time. If the fight begins, if the match lasts, this duel could become not only interesting but also electric. New York might love this. Note that Moutet had reached the round of 16 in Flushing last year. His best Grand Slam result.

Alexander Bublik – Dominic Thiem

1st round, men’s singles

The poster could be pschitt, but it is one of the most intriguing of this 1st round. The Austrian is (a little) better, he returned to the Top 100 and even reached his first final in ages in Kitzbühel at the beginning of August. But we haven’t seen him on the courts since and he’s going to come to the US Open without a single hard match on his legs. Difficult, therefore, to place the Austrian before this last Major of the year.

That said, we don’t know much more about Alexander Bublik, except that he’s in trouble since he hasn’t won a single victory. We saw it on the two Masters 1000 in Toronto and Cincinnati, for two defeats at the start, against Gaël Monfils and Hubert Hurkacz. Is it the return of the old Bublik, elusive for us and takeable for the opponent? There is a scent of uncertainty about this encounter, and that doesn’t make it any less interesting.

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Venus Williams – Paula Badosa

Is this Venus Williams’ der in New York? A year after her younger sister Serena, the seven-time Grand Slam winner is getting closer to the exit, but at 43, she continues to scour the courts, have fun and sign a few victories. She will play her 23rd Grand Slam tournament and will face Paula Badosa in the first round. Again, a lot of questions around this game.

The Spaniard went through difficult months between injuries and depression. She has been talked about more for her relationship with Stefanos Tsitsipas to form the most glamorous couple in world tennis than for her performances. She who has never passed the 2nd round at the US Open will have to be present from the start if she wants to avoid further disillusionment. In addition to Venus, she will also have to face an audience that we imagine burning behind the one who started here… 26 years ago.

Venus Williams

Credit: AFP

Caroline Garcia – Diane Parry

Two players who are not of the same generation, with different pedigrees but with an unenviable common point: doubt. Caroline Garcia like Diane Parry are in search of their best tennis and victories. If the two French women were to face each other in the 2nd round, it would be, in the event of victory, the guarantee for the first to limit the breakage and for the second to sign her first notable performance in Grand Slam for more than a year.

However, they are too fragile these days for a reunion, even from the 2nd round, to fall under the guarantee. Caroline Garcia will face a player from the qualifications in the first round, while Diane Parry will have to get rid of the Briton Katie Boulter. Nothing insurmountable, but distrust all the same. It would be a shame if these two missed each other.

Jannik Sinner – Stan Wawrinka

3rd round, Men’s singles

For the first time in three years, Stan Wawrinka has climbed to Wimbledon in the third round. If he repeats this performance at Flushing Meadows, he could find Jannik Sinner there, fresh off his first Masters 1000 title. that of Andy Murray. He returned to the Top 50 for the first time in nearly two years.

It would be a good test for Jannik Sinner. Wawrinka, at 38, probably no longer has the means to play the leading roles over the duration of a fortnight of Grand Slam but on one day, one match, the magic can still operate. Even if the format in three winning sets clearly does not favor it. Still, it would be a game to watch.

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Frances Tiafoe – Adrian Mannarino

3rd round, Men’s singles

With his top-seeded status, Adrian Mannarino can legitimately aim for a third round at the US Open this year. It would be the 5th time that the Frenchman has reached this stage of the competition in New York. He could find Frances Tiafoe there, the great host of the 2022 edition, whose American had reached the semi-finals and had chained epic matches.

The men’s table is not full of alluring posters on the road to the second week and this Mannarino – Tiafoe does not lack salt on paper. The tricolor veteran is living one of the best periods of his career at over 35 years old. Since the beginning of the summer, he has won a title, played another final and a quarter in the Masters 1000, with victories against Medvedev or Fritz. A great thrill in Grand Slam, that’s what he lacks.

Lorenzo Musetti – Taylor Fritz

3rd round, men’s singles

We end with the sexiest “clash” between seeded heads on paper before the round of 16. 20 years after Andy Roddick’s last Grand Slam victory at the US Open, American tennis hopes to relive its glory days, notably with Taylor Fritz. Well established in the Top 10 for a year and a half, the Californian remains on a very disappointing Grand Slam season with defeats in the 2nd round (Australia, Wimbledon) and Roland-Garros (3rd round). Flushing is his last chance.

Lorenzo Musetti, he is progressing without breaking the house yet. He “climbs” between 15th and 20th place in the ATP rankings. He still lacks the trigger, the real one, the one that would make him cross a course for good. This is particularly true in the Grand Slam where, apart from Roland-Garros, he has never reached the round of 16. A leap forward will have to pass sooner or later through this kind of victories.

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2023-08-25 07:41:00
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