New York SF previews and predictions: Isner vs. Opelka, Querrey vs. Schnur

It’s an all-North American, all-giant semifinal lineup in New York, where John Isner, Reilly Opelka, Sam Querrey, and Brayden Schnur make up the quartet. Isner and Opelka also faced each other in the Australian Open first round.

(1) John Isner vs. Reilly Opelka

Isner and Opelka will be squaring off for the third time in their careers and for the second time this season when they meet again in the New York Open semifinals on Saturday. The head-to-head series is tied at one win apiece; Isner prevailed 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-2 in the 2016 Atlanta semis, while Opelka recently scored a 7-6(4), 7-6(6), 6-7(4), 7-6(5) upset at the Australian Open. The 6’11” American is up to a career-high ranking of 89th in the world and he already owns five ATP-level match victories in 2019 after compiling just two in total last season. Opelka has advanced in New York with three-set defeats of Adrian Mannarino and Denis Istomin (via retirement) followed by a 6-3, 6-4 rout of Guillermo Garcia-Lopez.

It has been a much more routine week for Isner, who earned an opening bye as the top seed before cruising past Australians Bernard Tomic and Jordan Thompson in straight sets. The 6’10” American fired 27 aces past Tomic without double-faulting a single time and he served at a ridiculous 92 percent against Thompson. Isner will be eager for revenge in this one and that kind of incredible serving will likely be enough in the critical moments.

Pick: Isner in 3

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(Q) Brayden Schnur vs. (6) Sam Querrey

At 6’4”, Schnur is the shortest–and by far the least-known–of the four semifinalists. The former University of North Carolina standout is enjoying a breakout week on tour, having qualified for the main draw before ousting fellow Canadian Jack Mingjie Lin, Steve Johnson (in a third-set tiebreaker), and Paolo Lorenzi (7-5 in the third). Schnur, 23, had never won an ATP-level match prior to his arrival in New York.

Up next for the world No. 153 on Saturday is a first-ever encounter with Querrey, who has defeated Lloyd Harris, Radu Albot, and Jason Jung. The 6’6” American has capitalized on a friendly draw to take six of seven sets, dropping only one to Jung during quarterfinal action. Querrey’s favorable path through the tournament continues with Schnur, who has to be running on fumes having played so much recent tennis.

Pick: Querrey in 2

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