Before each day’s play at the U.S. Open, Steve Tignor will preview and predict three must-see matches.
David Ferrer vs. Juan Martin del Potro
Head to head: Ferrer leads 6-3
Del Potro looked to be in tournament-winning form in his straight-set win over Steve Johnson in the second round. Will he be able to survive three out of five sets with tennis’ version of the honey badger with that form intact? Ferrer is 6-3 versus Delpo, and at 34 he’s still ranked No. 13 in the world. The last time they played, at Wimbledon in 2013, Del Potro won easily, and this time Ferrer is coming off five late-night sets against Fabio Fognini. Ferrer can still run down Delpo’s shots, but does he have the juice to get the ball into his backhand on a regular basis? He’s going to need to.
Winner: Del Potro
Stan Wawrinka vs. Daniel Evans
Head to head: First meeting
Going by the numbers, the first meeting between the the Swiss and the Brit shouldn’t be particularly competitive; Wawrinka is ranked No. 3 and Evans No. 64. They’ve never played, and they mostly reside at different echelons of the sport—Evans plays a lot of Challengers; Wawrinka plays a lot of Masters and majors. But Evans does like this particular major, and he’s coming off a win over Alexander Zverev and a three-set loss to Richard Gasquet last week in Winston-Salem. If Stan does prove to be too good, lovers of the single-handed backhand should be satisfied with this one-on-one duel.
Winner: Wawrinka
Venus Williams vs. Laura Siegemund
Head to head: First meeting
The sixth-seeded Williams plays her first night match against the 27th-seeded, 28-year-old German. Siegemund is primarily a clay-courter, and she had an excellent spring on the surface; she came out of qualifying to reach the Stuttgart final, and made the quarters in Charleston. Playing Venus on Ashe—in the evening, on a fairly slick hard court—will be a very different ballgame. Venus has been erratic and streaky at the Open so far, and if she is again, Siegemund should be able to make this interesting, and maybe even a little scary, for the crowd. But Venus has also been finding a way around her streaky play at the majors this year.
Winner: V. Williams