By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Thursday August 22, 2019
If you’re into classic Grand Slam matchups that pit superstar versus superstar in popcorn battles, you won’t have to wait long at this year’s U.S. Open. Here’s five that will happen in the first round, with a few "honorable mentions" thrown in at the bottom of the page…
Serena Williams v Maria Sharapova
H2H: Williams 19-2
They have met 21 times before, but never before the round of 16. But this year 23-time major champion Serena Williams and 5-time champion Maria Sharapova will resume their rivalry-that-is-actually-too-lopsided-to-be-called-a-rivalry right off the bat in Flushing Meadows.
This contest comes at a difficult time for both players, as Sharapova has struggled to an 8-6 record in 2019 and never really steered herself clear of the litany of injuries that have plagued her since her comeback from a PED ban began in 2017; meanwhile Williams has similar issues, but she’s steered clear of her own personal struggles well enough to reach back-to-back finals at Wimbledon and Rogers Cup. Williams, who will turn 38 in September, is a lot closer to Grand Slam winning form than Sharapova, and that’s been the case for most of their careers, but nothing about the lopsided nature of the rivalry or either player’s current form—or lack thereof—will do anything to quell the excitement for this matchup this early in the draw.
Stefanos Tsitsipas v Andrey Rublev
H2H: Tsitsipas 1-0
Stefanos Tsitsipas and Andrey Rublev would always be a matchup that excites tennis fans, but this meeting of two of the best that generation next has to offer comes at a particularly interesting time as Rublev is fresh off a mammoth upset of Roger Federer at Cincinnati, while Tsitsipas stumbles into New York on a three-match losing streak.
Could the cards be tipping in favor of Rublev?
The Russian is still alive in the Winston-Salem draw as we write, and he will come to New York match tough and with a lot of confidence to burn. Rublev, a 2017 US Open quarter-finalist at the age of 19, is finally finding himself in good enough health to put his special talents on his display again. As for Tsitsipas, he’s still very much a second-tier contender in New York—one of the five or six players that could potentially make a run to the semi-finals, especially now that he’s landed in a quarter that features Dominic Thiem as its highest seed.
But will the Greek shake loose from his slump in time to get past Rublev in week one?
Coco Gauff v Anastasia Potapova
H2H: First Meeting
The excitement surrounding 15-year-old wild card Coco Gauff has been palpable ever since she stunned Venus Williams in the first round at Wimbledon less than two months ago (die-hards will take you back to two years ago, when she reached the US Open Girls Singles final as a 13-year-old). And now that she’s on home soil and ready to make her second Grand Slam main draw appearance, the buzz is so thick it’s hard to breathe. Just yesterday we saw Gauff featured on the cover of Teen Vogue as New Balance, her apparel sponsor, launched a new commercial in her honor. It must be a lot to process for the World No.141 but she seems so comfortable with it all—it’s uncanny.
In the first round we’ll get to see how comfortable Gauff is on the court when all the pressure that comes with her growing fame beats down on her and the crowd roars in her favor. Her test will not be simple. She faces Russia’s Anastasia Potapova in round one. The Russian is the third highest-ranked 18 and younger player on the WTA Tour and she made waves of her own when she defeated Angelique Kerber at Roland Garros this spring for her first Top 10 win.
This one should be an affair to remember.
Denis Shapovalov v Felix Auger-Aliassime
H2h: Tied 1-1
One thing we know about the draw gods—they can be ridiculously cruel. And if you want proof look no further than an enticing matchup between Canada’s brightest ATP stars in the first round-for the second consecutive year.
Denis Shapovalov got the win last year when Felix Auger-Aliassime retired in the third set due to irregular heartbeat. Auger-Aliassime was 117 in the world at that time and largely unproven, but in 2019 he has been a breakout performer and he has racked milestones one after the other until he finally overcame Shapovalov (and beat him in Madrid along the way) to become Canada’s No.1.
There can be no doubt about the talent that each teenager possesses, but it’s also been obvious that each has had his struggles with nerves—and serves—in 2019. It will be interesting to see which player can shrug off this awkward situation and keep his eyes on the prize in this must-watch first-round tilt.
Rafael Nadal v John Millman
H2H: Nadal 1-0
On paper Rafael Nadal’s first-round matchup with Aussie John Millman isn’t close. It’s a straight-set drubbing like so many of the great Spaniard’s Grand Slam encounters, but anybody who watched what Millman did to Roger Federer last year on Arthur Ashe Stadium now knows that the Brisbane native should not be taken for granted. If it’s 100 degrees and muggy as all get-out when this first-round encounter takes place, all the better for Millman.
The Aussie loves the heat and he craves the opportunity to measure up against first-rate competition. He’ll get that chance against three-time champion Nadal, a player who burns for the white-hot intensity of Grand Slam competition like no other.
Others to watch:
Aryna Sabalenka v Victoria Azarenka, in a battle of Belarus
Angelique Kerber v Kristina Mladenovic
Janko Tipsarevic v Denis Kudla, in Tipsarevic's final US Open
Nick Kyrgios v Steve Johnson, come for the kookoo stay for the tennis
Johanna Konta v Daria Kasatkina.