Friday’s schedule features the beginning of third round play, as well as the continuation of second round play, after rain interrupted matters on Thursday.
Both of the top seeds from the singles draws will play their third round matches on Friday, with Iga Swiatek taking on the fast-rising Marta Kostyuk, and Jannik Sinner squaring off against Jordan Thompson. Plus, the third seeds, Aryna Sabalenka and Alexander Zverev, each face the bronze medalists from the Tokyo Olympics. And several second round matches from Thursday are to be completed, meaning some players will take to the court twice on Friday. We will see the continuation of Carlos Alcaraz against Gael Monfils, with the winner returning later in the day to play Holger Rune.
Throughout the tournament, this preview will analyze the day’s two most prominent matches, while highlighting the other notable matches on the schedule. Friday’s play gets underway at 11:00am local time.
Iga Swiatek (1) vs. Marta Kostyuk (15) – 11:00am on Center Court
These players came up through the junior ranks within the same generation, separated by just over a year in age. Kostyuk won the girls’ title at the 2017 Australian Open, and Swiatek won the girls’ title at Wimbledon in 2018. Of course Iga’ senior career skyrocketed at a young age, as she’s already a five-time Major champion at the age of 23.
Kostyuk’s rise has been much more gradual, but 2024 has been a breakout year for the 22-year-old. She achieved her first Major quarterfinal in Melbourne, and reached two WTA finals on two different surfaces. And as per Tennis Abstract, Marta is 5-3 this season against top 10 opposition.
Swiatek leads their head-to-head 2-0, which includes a comfortable 6-2, 6-1 victory this past March in Indian Wells. But Iga is not fully comfortable on the fast-playing hard courts in Cincinnati, and Marta has enough aggression in her game to make the World No.1 plenty uncomfortable. However, I still consider Swiatek a slight favorite, given how she’s taken both of their prior contests in straight sets.
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Frances Tiafoe vs. Jiri Lehecka – Last on Center Court
Tiafoe has struggled mightily since being upset a year ago in the US Open quarterfinals by fellow American Ben Shelton, with a tour-level record of 23-24 since leaving New York. But Frances has secured a few strong wins within the past few weeks, defeating Andrey Rublev in Washington, and Lorenzo Musetti here in Cincinnati. Now Frances looks to advance beyond the third round of a Masters 1000 event for the first time in nearly two years.
Despite a back injury that forced Lehecka to not play any tennis for two whole months between early-May and early-July, Jiri has played excellently in his first tournament back. After eliminating Mariano Navone in the first round, he upset Daniil Medvedev on Wednesday night. In three prior Masters 1000 appearances this season, Lehecka has twice advanced to the quarterfinals or better.
Their only previous encounter occurred last year on grass in Stuttgart, with Tiafoe winning in straight sets. But over a year later, both men are in different places, and both are coming into this match with varying degrees of confidence and match toughness. Yet based on the huge, authoritative ball striking Lehecka showcased against Medvedev, I give him the slight edge to advance.
Other Notable Matches on Friday:
Alexander Zverev (3) vs. Pablo Carreno Busta (PR) – After defeating Tokyo silver medalist Karen Khachanov in the last round, gold medalist Zverev now faces bronze medalist Carreno Busta, who has only played 10 tour-level matches across the past two seasons due to injury. Sascha is 3-0 against PCB.
Jannik Sinner (1) vs. Jordan Thompson – Sinner overcame American qualifier Alex Michelsen on Thursday, while Thompson ousted Sebastian Baez. This is their first career meeting.
Aryna Sabalenka (3) vs. Elina Svitolina – Sabalenka is 3-1 against Svitolina, but when they recently played in Rome, Aryna required a third-set tiebreak to put Elina away.
Hubert Hurkacz (5) vs. Flavio Cobolli – Hurkacz just slightly leads Cobolli this year with 37 wins at all levels, compared to 36 for the Italian. Earlier this summer on grass in Halle, Hubi beat Flavio in a tight two-setter.
Friday’s full Order of Play is here.
