The US Open got off to a flying start on Monday with Alexander Zverev battling through with a 2:04am finish at Flushing Meadows and home favourite Jack Sock becoming the highest seeded casualty, in 5 sets to Jordan Thompson. Tuesday’s big matches took place on Arthur Ashe with Rafael Nadal coming through comfortably under the roof but the weather affected the predominance of the matches in the draw falling victim to the weather.
Men’s First & Second Round
Meaning Tuesday will see the top half of the draw complete their first round matches whilst the bottom half of the draw will be playing their second round ties. A busy day – so here’s our pick of the matches on Wednesday:
Alexander Zverev (4) vs Borna Coric
Two of the hottest properties in men’s tennis meet on Wednesday in what should be a memorable match up. Zverev’s stock seemingly rises with every event and he’s the highest seed in the bottom half of the draw in the Big Apple. He fought through in round 1 against Darian King and will need to up his level here against Coric. The young Croatian hasn’t quite kicked on as much as many thought he would in 2017 but aged 20, he has plenty of time on his side and looks to have the game to be a top 10 player sooner rather than later.
Head to Head
Coric actually won the one and only previous meeting between these 2 men – in Cincinnati back in 2015 but things look slightly different now. Zverev is 1/6 with Betfair whilst Coric is 5/1 with Marathon Bet.
Top Bet
Zverev rightfully starts as the heavy favourite for this one but could have a tough afternoon against Coric – backing Zverev to win by 3 sets to 1 looks shrewd at 11/4 with Sky Bet.
Denis Shapovalov vs Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (8)
This match is sure to be one of the highlights of round 2 with unpredictability sure to be the order of the day. Tsonga (seeded 8 here in NYC) has been in reasonable form of late without picking up any trophies to back that up. Shapovalov’s emergence on the world scene has been remarkable – he had to qualify here in NYC but dispatched of Daniil Medvedev with ease in round 1 and has already beaten Nadal on the hard courts this year.
Head to Head
This is the first ATP tour level meeting between these 2 men and it promises to be a fascinating encounter. Tsonga’s extra experience at this level perhaps justifies his favouritism at 4/11 with Paddy Power whilst Shapovalov will be keen to show his worth at 2/1 with Bet 365.
Top Bet
This is one of the highlights of round 2 and is sure to be a memorable one and could well go all the way – backing it to go to 5 sets with Winner looks a good punt at 14/5.
Steve Johnson vs Kyle Edmund
Serving will be the order of the day here as two of the biggest servers around meet in another epic round 2 clash. Both men currently just sit outside the top 32 players in the world and as such are unseeded here but nobody will be wishing to play them in a hurry. Johnson dispatched of the nomadic Nicolas Almagro in straight sets whilst Edmund dished up the same punishment to the previously in-form Robin Haase.
Head to Head
This is the 3rd meeting between these 2 big hitters with the record currently level at 1:1. Edmund will be looking to take confidence from his 3 set triumph over Johnson last week in Winston Salem. There’s too little to choose between these 2 which is reflected in the odds – both men are 10/11 for the win with Bet 365.
Top Bet
With such an emphasis on serve tie-breaks look inevitable. Backing Johnson to win and a tie-break in the match looks profitable at 2.85 with Ladbrokes.
Accumulator Bet
With Tuesdays left over matches rolling into Wednesday’s existing fixtures it’s another action packed day. So we’ve come up with a low risk and a high risk accumulator– to allow you the punter to make the big call.
Low Risk:
Cameron Norrie vs Pablo Carreno Busta – Carreno Busta to win
Florian Mayer vs Marin Cilic – Cilic to win
Hyeon Chung vs John Isner – Isner to win
Sam Querrey vs Dudi Sela – Querrey to win
Backing these 4 players to win pays 2.12/1 with Marathon Bet.
High Risk:
Marcos Baghdatis vs Taylor Fritz – Fritz to win
Taro Daniel vs Tommy Paul – Daniel to win
Albert Ramos-Vinolas vs Nicholas Mahut – Ramos-Vinolas to win
Jordan Thompson vs Thomas Fabbiano – Thompson to win
Backing these 4 players to win pays 6.26/1 with Ladbrokes.