10SBALLS SHARES • RICKY’S PREVIEW AND PICKS FOR DAY 1 AT THE U.S. OPEN, INCLUDING ISNER VS. HERBERT AND SHAPOVALOV VS. MEDVEDEV

Written by: Staff on 27th August 2017

10SBALLS SHARES • RICKY'S PREVIEW AND PICKS FOR DAY 1 AT THE U.S. OPEN, INCLUDING ISNER VS. HERBERT AND SHAPOVALOV VS. MEDVEDEV |

Photo by @usopen via Instagram.

Ricky’s preview and picks for Day 1 at the U.S. Open, including Isner vs. Herbert and Shapovalov vs. Medvedev

By Ricky Dimon

The U.S. Open gets underway on Monday, when a jam-packed slate of action on the men’s side includes Americans John Isner, Jack Sock, and Sam Querrey. Denis Shapovalov, Gilles Muller, and Borna Coric are also in action. Ricky previews some of the more intriguing matchups and makes his predictions.

Pierre-Hugues Herbert vs. (10) John Isner: Their only previous encounter also came in a Grand Slam opener–at the 2014 French Open, where Isner got the job done 7-6(5), 7-6(4), 7-5. This time around it is the 6’10” American with home-court advantage, and he has always played his best tennis on hard courts in the United States. This summer has been no exception, with a fourth Atlanta title and a Cincinnati semifinal appearance. Isner in 3.

(Q) Denis Shapovalov vs. Daniil Medvedev: This is about as intriguing as it gets in the opening round, especially for fans of up-and-coming “NextGen” stars. These are two hot-heads (although Shapovalov’s transgressions are isolated to one incident, whereas Medvedev misbehaves on a consistent basis) who also have a lot of talent. An edge in form and confidence go to the Canadian, who not only reached the Montreal semis but also came through U.S. Open qualies. Shapovalov in 4.

(13) Jack Sock vs. Jordan Thompson: Sock will be seeking a measure of revenge for an disastrous Davis Cup loss during quarterfinal action earlier this season, when Thompson benefited from home-court advantage in Australia and scored a 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-4 upset. The world No. 73 has since disappeared from the main tour (four wins since early March). Sock has cooled off of late, but he should take confidence from a fourth-round showing last year in New York. Sock in 4.

(17) Sam Querrey vs. Gilles Simon: Simon leads the head-to-head series 4-2, but none of his victories have come since 2013. The 32-year-old Frenchman is a shadow of his former self and his 2017 record stands at a disappointing 12-18. Querrey, on the other hand, is coming off the first Grand Slam semifinal appearance of his career at Wimbledon. Moreover, the conditions and home-court advantage favor the American. Querrey in 4.

Bernard Tomic vs. (19) Gilles Muller: Tomic is wasting away down at No. 146 in the world. The 24-year-old Australian will probably get it back together at some point–but not at this U.S. Open. His form–and interest level–is simply too devastatingly bad right now. Meanwhile, Muller is playing the best tennis of his life at 34 years old. The left-handed Luxembourgian is also 4-1 lifetime against Tomic. Muller in 3.

Jiri Vesely vs. Borna Coric: Coric is only 20 years old and Vesely just 24, but they have already squared off four times—twice in 2016 and twice in 2017. The head-to-head series registers at 3-1 in favor of Coric, but they have split a pair of clay-court meetings this season. A quarterfinal appearance in Winston-Salem bodes well for Coric, whose defense usually gets the best of Vesely’s decent but not spectacular offense. Coric in 4.