Taylor Fritz is the No. 1 seed in Atlanta, but he doesn’t have an easy draw with Yibing Wu on the other side of the net in his opening match. Second-round action also wraps up on Thursday with J.J. Wolf facing Maxime Cressy.
(1) Taylor Fritz vs. Yibing Wu
Fritz and Wu will be going head-to-head for the second time in their careers and for the second time this season when they meet again in round two of the Atlanta Open on Thursday. Their only previous encounter came on the indoor hard courts of Dallas, where Wu won a 6-7(3), 7-5, 6-4 semifinal thriller on his way to the title. They also just faced each other in the final of the UTS Los Angeles event this past weekend, with Wu prevailing in a close one.
Wu already has a match under his belt in Atlanta, having defeated Corentin Moutet 6-3, 6-4 on Tuesday. The 23-year-old has to be feeling good about his game, but a matchup with Fritz in Atlanta won’t be easy. Fritz generally does his best work on American hard courts and in his last two appearances at this event he has reached the final (lost to Alex de Minaur) and the semis (lost to John Isner). The ninth-ranked American isn’t in his best form at the moment, but the start of the summer hard-court swing should be just what the doctor ordered for him.
Pick: Fritz in 3
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Maxime Cressy vs. (8) J.J. Wolf
It will be an all-American showdown when Wolf and Cressy collide for the third time in their careers (second on the main tour). Cressy cruised 6-1, 6-4 at the 2019 Tiburon Challenger before Wolf got the job done 6-3, 6-4 last fall on the indoor hard courts of Florence.
Both players looked good in round one. Cressy avenged a Newport loss to 18-year-old Alex Michelsen, but the world No. 105 is still a horrendous 9-18 at the ATP level this season. Wolf disposed of qualifier Jason Jung 6-2, 6-1, improving to 18-15 in 2023. Conditions in the Atlanta heat are good for Cressy’s serve-and-volley style, but he isn’t playing well these days and it wasn’t long ago when Wolf took care of him on an indoor hard court.
Pick: Wolf in 2
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Wu spoils the USA party, in 3; and JJ in 2.
Wu eats Fritz’s Poo