Frances Tiafoe vs Jan-Lennard Struff
An interesting clash between two strong players. Frances Tiafoe, the No. 17 seed and a semi-finalist here in 2022, is looking to regain his form after a mixed season with a 24-18 record. However, he has shown good signs recently and he always raises his game here in New York. His opponent, Jan-Lennard Struff, has been up and down during the season but has looked solid in this tournament, he’s has been serving well and has an overall powerful game. Their head-to-head record is at 2-1 for the American and he also has the edge on hard courts. It’s hard to bet against Big Foe here in NY and his experience and better overall form on this surface give him the slight advantage.
Prediction: Tiafoe in 4 sets.
Novak Djokovic vs Cameron Norrie
Novak Djokovic, the legendary No. 4 seed, is looking to add to his record-breaking Grand Slam tally. He has a perfect 6-0 head-to-head record against Cameron Norrie, something that is hard to look away from even though his game here in New York has not been perfect so far. Norrie has had a decent year but has consistently struggled against top-tier players. Djokovic’s tactical game and incredible consistency from the baseline should prove too much for the Brit, who is known for his fighting spirit but lacks the weapons to truly trouble the Serb over five sets.
Prediction: Djokovic in 4 sets.
Ugo Blanchet vs Tomas Machac
Ugo Blanchet has had a solid run and impressed with wins over Marozsan and Mensik but it hasn’t always been that convincing and he spent a lot of time on court. Machac’s higher ranking and experience on the main tour should give him the edge and especially with the form we’ve seen from him lately. While Blanchet will be full of confidence, Machac’s baseline game and power should see him advance. The Czech has shown he can deal with the big servers before.
