In draws that were already missing many big names, and now with 31 of the 64 singles seeds losing in the first four days, this tournament is completely up for grabs. Who is ready to seize this golden opportunity?
Petra Kvitova vs. Caroline Garcia
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This will be the first match of the day on Arthur Ashe Stadium. Since winning the title in Birmingham earlier this year, Kvitova was just 5-5 leading into the US Open. And the Open has been Petra’s worst major in her career, having never advanced past the quarterfinals. Kvitova though played well in her first two rounds, ousting veterans Jankovic and Cornet. Garcia has quietly put together the most consistent season of her career, highlighted by her quarterfinal appearance at her home major, the French Open. She recently broke into the top 20 for the first time, and has accumulated 33 wins thus far in 2017. These two have split four previous meetings, but Garcia took the most recent two, both of which were on hard courts. This feels like a probable three-setter that could go either way.
Kevin Anderson vs. Borna Coric
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From there I would recommend moving your attention to the Grandstand, where the second match on the schedule will be a clash between two in-form players. Coric may have played the best match of his career on Wednesday, upsetting number four seed Alexander Zverev in a scintillating four-set win. Is he ready to back it up? This would be another big step for Coric, as he’s yet to go farther than the third round at a major. Meanwhile, the US Open is the only major where Kevin Anderson has been past the fourth round. The South African upset Andy Murray in New York two years ago to make his first major quarterfinal. Anderson debuted in the top 10 in 2015, but his level of play dropped off in the following year and a half as he dealt with multiple injuries. Over the past few months Anderson has gotten back on track and been a much improved player. He made the fourth round at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon, and won seven matches during the summer hard court season. Coric is likely to have a letdown following Wednesday’s performance, so I expect Kevin Anderson to advance to his third straight fourth round at a major.
Garbine Muguruza vs. Magdalena Rybarikova
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Regarding the third matches on court of Day 5, this may be your best bet. It is a rematch of the Wimbledon semifinals, but let’s hope this one is a bit closer than that encounter. On that day, Muguruza allowed Rybarikova only two games. That semifinal was Magdalena’s 20th match of the short grass court season, so one would think Rybarikova would be better rested and ready to compete on Friday. The Slovakian has actually defeated Muguruza twice before, though Garbine’s won both of their meetings on hard courts. The Wimbledon and Cincinnati champion is playing with more momentum than ever before, and is many people’s pick to win this tournament. However, Muguruza has not historically performed well under the weight of expectations. Does she have enough confidence now to overcome that? It will be interesting to see how she does as her opponents get tougher, but she’s still the favorite to prevail in this third round contest.
John Isner vs. Mischa Zverev
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The night session on Arthur Ashe Stadium will kick off with the big-serving American against the serve-and-volleying German. They are 2-2 in their head-to-head, with Zverev taking both of their 2017 clashes. This includes an epic five-set battle at this year’s Australian Open, where Zverev outlasted Isner 9-7 in the fifth. The U.S. Open courts are playing slower than the fast courts in Melbourne, which I think will favor Isner. This will grant Isner just a little more time to set up his passing shots as Zverev rushes the net. John will also have the Friday night home crowd behind him, and he’ll have some fond memories to draw from under the lights of Arthur Ashe Stadium. Isner upset Andy Roddick in a 2009 night session match which went to a fifth set tiebreaker. Surprisingly, Isner won his first two matches of this US Open without going to a tiebreak. Meanwhile Zverev has already played two five-setters in his first two rounds. For all of those reasons, Isner should be able to overcome the older Zverev brother.
Order of play (singles matches only)
Arthur Ashe stadium (11am local time)
Petra Kvitova CZE (13) v Caroline Garcia FRA (18)
Denis Shapovalov CAN v Kyle Edmund GBR
Maria Sakkari GRE v Venus Williams USA (9)
Not before 7pm local time
Mischa Zverev GER v John Isner USA (10)
Sofia Kenin USA v Maria Sharapova RUS
Louis Armstrong (11am start)
Nicolas Mahut FRA v Pablo Carreno Busta ESP (12)
Ashleigh Barty AUS v Sloane Stephens USA
Magdalena Rybarikova SVK (31) v Garbine Muguruza ESP (3)
Sam Querrey USA (17) v Radu Albot MDA
Grandstand (11am start)
Diego Schwartzman ARG (29) v Marin Cilic CRO (5)
Kevin Anderson RSA (28) v Borna Coric CRO
Anastasija Sevastova LAT (16) v Donna Vekic CRO
Court 17
Thomas Fabbiano ITA v Paolo Lorenzi ITA
Lucas Pouille fra (16) v Mikhail Kukushkin KAZ
Court 5
Ekaterina Makarova RUS v Carla Suarez Navarro ESP
Aleksandra Krunic SRB v Julia Goerges GER (30)
