US Open 2022 Day 2: Men's singles predictions ft. Rafael Nadal vs Rinky Hijikata, Carlos Alcaraz vs Sebastian Baez
Day 2 of the US Open 2022 will see the bottom half of the men's singles draw begin their campaign at the final Major of the season.
Third seed Carlos Alcaraz kickstarts the proceedings at Arthur Ashe Stadium while four-time champion Rafael Nadal headlines the night session.
11th seed Jannik Sinner features in the Louis Armstrong Stadium line-up on Tuesday, as does home hope Jack Sock.
Recently crowned Cincinnati Masters champion Borna Coric and British No. 1 Cameron Norrie are also among the players who are on the August 30 schedule at Flushing Meadows.
Without further ado, here are the predictions for some key men's singles matches on Day 2 of the 2022 US Open:
#1 Rafael Nadal vs Rinky Hijikata
(H2H: First meeting)
It goes without saying that Rafael Nadal will be the cynosure of all eyes on the men's side on Day 2 of the US Open. After a terrific first half of the season, which saw him win the Australian Open and the French Open, fans will be eager to see if he can add another Major to his record tally of 22 Slams.
However, the four-time US Open champion's form remains doubtful. The Spaniard suffered an abdominal injury that forced him to withdraw from his Wimbledon semifinal clash against Nick Kyrgios.
Although the former World No. 1 returned to action in Cincinnati last week, it ended in a three-set defeat to eventual champion Borna Coric in his first match of the tournament.
Nadal will hope to play himself into form as he begins his campaign against Australian wildcard Rinky Hijikata in what will be their first meeting.
The World No. 198 will be making his main-draw debut at a Slam. The 21-year-old is inexperienced at the highest level of the sport, with his best performance of the season coming on the ITF circuit, where he won a couple of $25,000 events.
Predicted winner: Rafael Nadal to win in straight sets.
#2 Carlos Alcaraz vs Sebastian Baez
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(H2H: Alcaraz leads 1-0)
It was this Major where Spanish sensation Carlos Alcaraz made his breakthrough last year with a run to the last eight. The 19-year-old has taken his game to another level altogether this year, as evident from his haul of four titles, including the Miami and Madrid Masters.
The World No. 4 also added a French Open quarterfinal appearance to his burgeoning achievements.
That said, the teen hasn't been at his sharpest in the past few weeks, losing back-to-back finals at Hamburg and Umag. His US Open Series has so far been underwhelming as well, with a quarterfinal finish at Cincinnati being his best performance.
Alcaraz cannot afford a slow start against the fast-rising Sebastian Baez. The World No. 37 won the Estoril title this year, besides making the finals at Santiago and Bastad.
However, the 21-year-old Argentine will be entering this contest low on morale, having lost his last six matches and might not be able to dig deep against Alcaraz.
Prediction: Carlos Alcaraz to win in straight sets.
#3 Jannik Sinner vs Daniel Altmaier
(H2H: First meeting)
World No. 13 Jannik Sinner broke new ground this year by reaching the quarterfinals of the Australian Open and Wimbledon for the first time in his career. He also made several other quarterfinals this season, including Miami, Monte-Carlo and Rome.
However, a title was lacking, which he corrected on the claycourts of Umag with a gritty three-set win over Carlos Alcaraz in the final.
The young Italian, however, has struggled to replicate that form on the North American hardcourts, falling in the Round of 16 at both Montreal and Cincinnati.
Sinner should breathe easy that he has drawn an opponent, Daniel Altmaier, who has a 5-19 ATP tour win-loss record this year heading into the US Open. Other than a couple of quarterfinals at Pune and Mallorca, the 93rd-ranked German hasn't done anything noteworthy on the tour.
Prediction: Jannik Sinner to win in straight sets.
#4 Diego Schwartzman vs Jack Sock
(H2H: Sock leads 1-0)
It's interesting to note that although Diego Schwartzman is currently ranked 16th, 92 places above Jack Sock, it is the American who has the edge in their head-to-head. However, that solitary win came at the 2017 Rome Masters before Sock was struck by injuries and slipped down the rankings ladder.
Although the 29-year-old mainly plies his trade on the ATP Challenger circuit these days, he can still pack a punch as he showed at Wimbledon, where he made the third round from qualifying. Sock will also have the home crowd on his side this time.
Argentine pocket dynamo Schwartzman could still be a tough barrier for the American. He is a two-time US Open quarterfinalist and has made the finals at Buenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro this year.
His most recent tournament, the Cincinnati Masters, ended in a pre-quarterfinal loss to eventual runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas. Schwartzman is now evidently much better placed to earn his first win over Sock.
Prediction: Diego Schwartzman to win in straight sets.
#5 Pedro Martinez vs Christopher Eubanks
(H2H: First meeting)
Although Pedro Martinez and Christopher Eubanks have never squared off on the tour before, they have split their two meetings in Slam qualifying rounds. Martinez came through 6-4, 6-4 in their most recent encounter at Roland Garros qualifying in 2019.
Martinez is currently placed 54th in the rankings while the 147th-ranked American secured his place in the main draw of the US Open by winning three rounds of qualifying matches.
Naturally, the Spaniard is the favorite to come through this clash, having won the Santiago title and made the quarterfinals of Gstaad and Kitzbuhel.
The 26-year-old Eubanks, on the other hand, has managed just three tour-level wins all year heading into the US Open and could find it difficult to navigate his way past a higher-ranked opponent.
Prediction: Pedro Martinez to win in straight sets.
#6 Grigor Dimitrov vs Steve Johnson
(H2H: Dimitrov leads 5-3)
Grigor Dimitrov has a sizeable lead of 5-3 in his head-to-head over Steve Johnson but their most recent meeting, at the 2022 Wimbledon Championships, went in favor of the latter as the Bulgarian retired due to a thigh injury.
It paved the way for the 115th-ranked American to reach the third round at SW19 for his best Slam performance of the season.
Other than that, Johnson also made the quarterfinals at Los Cabos and Newport in an otherwise drab season.
Former US Open semifinalist Dimitrov, on the other hand, is placed at 19th in the world rankings. He has made a bunch of deep runs this season, including semifinals in Monte-Carlo as well as Melbourne and the quarterfinals at Indian Wells. However, consistency is one aspect that the 31-year-old has been strongly lacking this year.
His last 10 events saw him bow out before the quarterfinal stage, including Washington, Montreal, Cincinnati, and Winston-Salem, where he has won a combined two matches.
Dimitrov's fitness also remains under the scanner as he had to retire from his Winston-Salem opener against Dominic Thiem after feeling unwell.
It could thus take the Bulgarian some time to find his groove in his US Open first-round match.
Prediction: Grigor Dimitrov to win in four sets.
#7 Cameron Norrie vs Benoit Paire
Cameron Norrie will reach a new career high of at least #9 next Monday. Would be #8 guaranteed if the Wimbledon points counted.
Indian Wells 2021 points to drop soon in october but gosh, what an incredible two years he is having.
(H2H: Norrie leads 1-0)
This first-round match pits two players who are at the opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of results.
Since reaching the quarterfinals in Cincinnati last year, Benoit Paire's career has taken a nosedive. With COVID-19 and several injuries rearing their ugly heads this year, the Frenchman has had a hard time both on and off the court.
He has a 4-21 tour-level win-loss record heading into Flushing Meadows, with his world ranking having plummeted to 164.
In sharp contrast, Cameron Norrie has hit a purple patch, acquiring the seventh seeding at the US Open. The British southpaw is currently at a career-high No. 9 in the rankings with two titles under his belt this season.
He has had a terrific run over the last few weeks as well. Norrie reached the quarterfinals at Eastbourne, semifinals at Wimbledon, final at Los Cabos, Round of 16 at Montreal, and semifinals at Cincinnati, making him the overwhelming favorite to win this clash.
Prediction: Cameron Norrie to win in straight sets.
#8 Borna Coric vs Enzo Couacaud
(H2H: First meeting)
Borna Coric made a fairytale comeback from injury by winning the biggest title of his career at the Cincinnati Masters. Along the way, the 25-year-old Croat accounted for the likes of Rafael Nadal, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Cameron Norrie, and Stefanos Tsitsipas.
A shoulder injury hampered much of Coric's last season, pushing him down the rankings to 152 when he entered Cincinnati. His remarkable achievement saw him jump a massive 123 spots to 29 right ahead of the US Open, boosting his confidence by miles.
The 2015 US Open quarterfinalist Coric now enters the final Major of the season with a great deal of momentum, which he will be keen to continue.
Coric will be a heavy favorite to come through against the 194th-ranked Enzo Couacaud. The Frenchman is a mainstay on the ATP Challenger tour and hasn't had any tour-level wins this year.
He earned three wins in the qualifying rounds this week to secure his first-ever main-draw berth at the US Open.
Prediction: Borna Coric to win in straight sets.
Also Checkout:- US Open 2022 Results