John Isner and Taylor Fritz will kick off their campaigns at the inaugural Dallas Open on Wednesday night. Isner is facing familiar foe Kevin Anderson, while Fritz is set for an all-American showdown with Jack Sock.
Kevin Anderson vs. (3) John Isner
Isner and Anderson will be squaring off for the 13th time in their careers when they meet again in round two of the Dallas Open on Wednesday. The head-to-head series stands at 8-4 in favor of Isner, who has won five of their last six encounters–two of which were complete with three tiebreakers. They have not faced each other since the 2018 Wimbledon semifinals, in which Anderson triumphed 7-6(6), 6-7(5), 6-7(9), 6-4, 26-24.
Neither big-serving veteran is in good form at the moment. Anderson has slipped outside the top 100 in part due to injury, while Isner is a dreadful 1-4 so far this season. Despite Anderson’s 6-4, 6-4 victory over a struggling Sam Querrey in the Dallas first round, Isner is still the more reliable of the two players right now and he is playing in his current hometown of Dallas. The 26th-ranked American has generally gotten the best of this matchup and he should do so again on Wednesday.
Pick: Isner in 3
(1) Taylor Fritz vs. (WC) Jack Sock
Isner was the best American player for almost a decade after Andy Roddick retired, but now it is Fritz who has the title as highest-ranked American man. The world No. 19 ended last season fire, with a semifinal finish at Indian Wells, a quarterfinal run in Paris, and a runner-up showing in St. Petersburg. So far in 2022 he has already posted three top-18 wins (Cameron Norrie, Felix Auger-Aliassime, and Roberto Bautista Agut).
Up first for Fritz on Wednesday following a first-round bye is Sock, who dismissed Oscar Otte 6-4, 6-4 in the opening round. Their head-to-head series stands at 2-2, but they haven’t met since 2018–when Fritz prevailed twice on clay. The main reason for a lack of matches is that Sock has been injured more often than not in recent years. His latest comeback has him at No. 147 in the rankings, and progress is slow because his two tournaments so far this season (both Challengers) have ended in either walkover or retirement. Nothing suggests that Sock is suddenly ready to take down a red-hot opponent like Fritz.
Pick: Fritz in 2
WWW?