Like Juan Martin Del Potro in the men’s draw, the ladies have Ekaterina Makarova as the most dangerous unseeded player. Unfortunately for Serena Williams, she is drawn to meet her in the first round. That’ll be an interesting matchup and a place where we start our tennis picks.
Looking back to Monday’s action, we saw a number of interesting results to get the tournament started at Flushing Meadows. The biggest upset of the day had to be Monica Puig, who fell to Saisai Zheng in the first round. It’s a hugely disappointing result for the Puerto Rican, who stunned the tennis world when she won the gold medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. In terms of the other surprises on the day, the rest were quite mild. Sabine Lisick lost to Yulia Putintseva 6-1, 6-2. She didn’t put up much of a fight, winning just three games. We also saw Sara Errani lose to Shelby Rogers. Aliza Cornet was also upset, falling to Mirjana Lucic-Baroni. Cornet managed to win just five games. And we also saw CoCo Vandeweght put up a fight but eventually lose to Naomi Osaka. Vandeweghe won the first set before losing the next two.
Let’s examine the three best matches of the day along with our tennis picks.
Serena Williams vs. Ekaterina Makarova
Serena leads the head-to-head record 4-1. That one win importantly for Makarova came at a major in the Australian Open. The downside for Makarova, though, is that Serena has completely owned her since that win. However, the twist is, Serena is not 100 percent fit and would’ve liked to face a lesser opponent. Two years ago, Makarova was a semifinalist in New York and she hasn’t lost here at the U.S. Open before the fourth round since 2013.
Serena is surely carrying that shoulder injury into New York, but her No. 1 ranking is on the line and she won’t just give away her throne that easily. Take Williams with your tennis picks.
Prediction: Serena in three sets
Simona Halep vs. Kristen Flipkens
Halep enjoys a 4-0 head-to-head record against Flipkens. Also, the Romanian was a semifinalist last year in New York. Can she go all the way this time? Halep has been in good form in the U.S. Open tune-ups: She won in Montreal and was a semifinalist in Cincinnati. She is ranked No. 5 in the world, which means she could face either Serena Williams, Garbine Muguruza, Angelique Kerber or Agneiska Radwanska in the quarterfinals. Before Halep gets that far, she has to contend with Flipkens, who has not yet clinched a set off her.
Apart from being a finalist in Monterrey, having a semifinal showing in Mallorca, and reaching the quarterfinal in the recently concluded New Haven event, Flipkens has rarely been relevant on tour. Will she shock the tour by beating the more fancied Romanian? No. Halep has been strong enough to the point that Flipkens will not be able to outfox her. She’s the better choice for your tennis picks.
Prediction: Halep in straight sets
Lucie Safarova vs. Daria Gavrilova
After a career-defining 2015 season, Safarova has fallen off the cliff. The Czech is 13-13 on the year. Apart from her unexpected bronze medal in doubles in Rio, she has hardly done anything of note. She did wonderfully well in 2015, when she had to face tough opponents and she displayed amazing tennis. Injuries have kept haunting Safarova time and again and her 2015 form has eluded her. Can she turn her season around with a deep run in New York? Probably not but she’ll beat Gavrilova fair and square.
Safarova and Gavrilova have split their two meetings in 2015. The diminutive Australian is 21-17 this season. There is a huge opportunity for both of them but the Czech has the accuracy, mobility and her lefty serve that can do a lot of damage against the opponents not named Serena Williams and Petra Kvitova. This should be a three-set match, but Safarova has a little more veteran experience to call upon, and she should give Gavrilova a fair amount of problems with her lefty serve. Take her with your tennis picks.
Prediction: Safarova in three sets
