For the second consecutive week, a combined ATP Masters/WTA 1000 event is being staged in North America. This week, it’s the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati, Ohio. The singles draws in American’s heartland are loaded: the ATP draw features 14 of the world’s top 16, while the WTA draw features all 16 top-ranked players.
Most notably, Serena Williams will play what is assumedly the next-to-last event of her career, and will face reigning US Open champion Emma Raducanu in the first round. And Rafael Nadal will play his first match since withdrawing from the Wimbledon semifinals due to his ongoing left foot issues.
Monday’s action is headlined by Major champions Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka, who will play each other for the 22nd time.
Each day, this preview will analyze the two most intriguing matchups, while highlighting other notable matches on the schedule. Monday’s play gets underway at 11:00am local time.
Stan Wawrinka (PR) vs. Andy Murray – Third on Center Court
Their rivalry dates all the way back to 2005, when Wawrinka defeated Murray in Davis Cup. Their most prominent encounter took place in the 2017 Roland Garros semifinals, when Stan outlasted Andy in a five-setter that lasted over four-and-a-half hours. And neither man has been the same since that grueling battle. Just weeks later, Murray’s hip problems derailed his career, while Wawrinka would undergo knee surgery. Both men have now battled multiple serious injuries over the last five years. Overall Andy is 12-9 against Stan, and 8-4 on hard courts. Murray has gritted his way to 22 victories this year, while Stan is only 3-7 since returning from foot surgery this spring. Based on current form, as well as Murray’s history at this event, where he is a two-time champion, the Brit is the favorite on Monday.
Matteo Berrettini (12) vs. Frances Tiafoe – Not Before 7:00pm on Center Court
Berrettini returned from surgery on his right hand in June, and promptly went on a 12-match win streak. However, he unfortunately missed Wimbledon due to testing positive for COVID-19. And last week in Montreal, Matteo lost in the opening round, though that one-sided loss to Pablo Carreno Busta doesn’t look quite as bad after Pablo’s fantastic run to his first Masters 1000 title concluded on Sunday. Meanwhile, it’s been a disappointing year for Tiafoe, who is only 20-17 and has suffered some painful losses. At Wimbledon, he lost a four-and-a-half hour fourth round match to David Goffin despite having a two-sets-to-one lead. And just last week in Montreal, Frances was up 4-0 in the third over Taylor Fritz before losing the last six games of the match. Their only previous meeting occurred four years ago on clay in Rome, where Matteo was victorious in his home country in straight sets. Can Tiafoe avenge that loss in his own home country? Frances often excels during night matches in the United States, with his five-set win over Andrey Rublev at last year’s US Open serving as a prime example. But Matteo has been the much stronger performer for a few years now, and his potent serve/forehand combo makes him the favorite.
Other Notable Matches on Monday:
Amanda Anisimova vs. Daria Kasatkina (9) – Anisimova has reached the second week of every Major this season, while Kasatkina has won 18 of her last 24 matches, which includes a title run this month in San Jose. Amanda leads their head-to-head 2-0, and dominated Daria 6-2, 6-0 at the beginning of this year.
Jil Teichmann vs. Petra Kvitova – Teichmann was a surprise finalist here a year ago. Kvitova is only 17-15 this season, though she did win a title on grass in June. They’ve played three times since last year, with Jil claiming two of those three matches.
Denis Shapovalov vs. Grigor Dimitrov (16) – Shapovalov has now lost nine of his last 10 matches dating back to May. Meanwhile it’s been over four months since Dimitrov has won more than two matches in a row. Grigor is 2-1 against Denis, and 2-0 on hard courts.
Sloane Stephens (WC) vs. Alize Cornet – It’s been a streaky season for Stephens, with nine of her 11 victories coming at just two events. Cornet has achieved two noteworthy results this season: reaching her first Major quarterfinal in Melbourne, and ending Iga Swiatek’s 37-match winning streak at Wimbledon. This is their first career meeting.
Monday’s full Order of Play is here.
