After 2020’s tournament was held in New York City in conjunction with the US Open due to the pandemic, this joint ATP Masters and WTA 1000 event returns to Ohio. Also returning this week are many of 2021’s best players who were not present in Canada last week: Australian Open champion Naomi Osaka, Roland Garros champ Barbora Krejcikova, Wimbledon champ Ash Barty, Olympic gold medalists Sascha Zverev and Belinda Bencic, Rome champion Iga Swiatek, and Wimbledon finalist Matteo Berrettini. The WTA singles draw is especially impressive, which includes 19 of the top 20 players in the world.
While Serena, Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic are all absent, two-time Cincy champ Andy Murray is here and plays on Monday, against 2019 semifinalist Richard Gasquet. Monday’s schedule is loaded with fascinating matchups, featuring six Major singles champions, as well as some of the ATP’s and WTA’S hottest players of the summer.
Each day, this preview will analyze the most intriguing men’s and women’s matchup, while highlighting other notable matches on the schedule. Monday’s play gets underway at 11:00am local time.
Richard Gasquet (Q) vs. Andy Murray (WC) – Not Before 7:00pm on Center Court
Gasquet just missed the cut for the main draw, but won two qualifying matches over the weekend to earn his spot. Murray was the beneficiary of a wild card, as he’s currently ranked outside the top 100. This will be Andy’s first singles match since his third round loss at Wimbledon to Denis Shapovalov, as he pulled out of men’s singles at the Tokyo Olympics due to injury. Gasquet is coming off a run to the final last month on clay in Umag, though he didn’t defeat any players ranked higher than No.127. Their rivalry dates back exactly 15 years to August of 2006, with Murray leading 8-4. Their most memorable encounter came in the fourth round of Wimbledon in 2008, when Andy stormed back from two sets down to win in five. Their most recent encounter was on these grounds two years ago, which Gasquet won in straight sets. The outcome on Monday may be determined by Murray’s health. If he’s close to 100% physically, he’s the favorite. If not, a Gasquet in winning form may knock him out.
Maria Sakkari vs. Angelique Kerber – Not Before 8:30pm on Center Court
It’s rare to see an opening round matchup between two players ranked 22nd in the world or higher, but that’s exactly what we have here. Kerber has not played a match since her Wimbledon semifinal loss to eventual champion Ash Barty. Sakkari lost a tight three-setter to bronze medalist Elina Svitolina in Tokyo, and fell to Victoria Azarenka in a third set tiebreak last week in Montreal. Kerber is 2-1 against the Greek, though Sakkari claimed their match earlier this year in an Australian Open leadup event. The German is a two-time runner-up at this event, but outside of those runs, has a losing record here. Sakkari has advanced to the quarterfinals of this tournament in both the last two years. Maria has been the superior hard court player of late, and should be favored to advance after some gritty, compelling rallies.
Other Notable Matches on Monday:
Barbora Krejcikova (9) vs. Daria Kasatkina – Krejcikova has taken 22 of her last 24 singles matches, and won a gold medal in women’s doubles alongside Katerina Siniakova. Kasatkina was the runner-up in San Jose, her fourth final of the year. This is their first career meeting.
Petra Kvitova (11) vs. Madison Keys – Kvitova is a two-timesemifinalist here, though she’s only 9-9 lifetime. Keys won this event two years ago when it was last held in Cincinnati, but she’s just 10-11 this season. Madison leads their head-to-head 4-3, which includes their two most recent matches.
Diego Schwartzman (10) vs. Dan Evans – Despite being a two-time quarterfinalist in New York, Schwartzman is only 3-4at this tournament. Evans got off to a great start this season, but is currently on a three-match losing streak. This is another first-time matchup.
Karen Khachanov vs. Kevin Anderson (Q) – Khachanov won the silver medal a few weeks ago in Tokyo. Anderson was the champion last month in Newport, his first title since January of 2019. They’ve split two previous contests.
Monday’s full Order of Play is here.
