Jack Sock and Steve Johnson will be making quick turnarounds following United States Davis Cup duty in Australia when they contest their openers at the 250-point event in Houston on Thursday. They are set for respective second-round meetings with Tommy Haas and Dustin Brown.
(1) Jack Sock vs. (PR) Tommy Haas
Aside from the fact that he just made quick flights to Australia and back, Sock has to be feeling good about his chances heading into second-round action at the U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship on Thursday. Not only is the 16th-ranked American the defending champion of this tournament, but he is also in outstanding form at the moment. Sock is 18-5 this season with titles in Auckland and Delray Beach plus a semifinal showing in Indian Wells and a quarterfinal finish in Miami.
Up first for the the top seed on Thursday night is a third career meeting with Haas. They split their two previous encounters, with Haas prevailing 7-6(3), 6-2, 7-5 at the 2013 French Open before Sock scored a 6-4, 6-4 victory one season later on Auckland. At 39 years old, Haas is finally wrapping up his outstanding career and plans to call it quits sometime after the grass-court swing this summer. The German plays sparingly now, instead focusing most of his efforts on being the tournament direction in Indian Wells. Haas had been 0-3 this season before outlasting American wild card Reilly Opelka 7-6(5), 4-6, 6-3 on Tuesday. A steep step up in competition–Haas’ toughest so far 2017, in fact–will likely see the end of the veteran’s week.
Pick: Sock in 2
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(4) Steve Johnson vs. Dustin Brown
Johnson and Brown will be going head-to-head for the second time in their careers on Thursday. Their only previous encounter did not disappoint, requiring a third-set tiebreaker to decide it before Johnson finally triumphed 4-6, 7-5, 7-6(3) on the indoor hard courts of Memphis in 2015. Like Sock, the 29th-ranked American is back from a short trip to Australia for Davis Cup action. The United States’ losing effort was no fault of Johnson’s, as he suited up only for the doubles rubber and prevailed with Sock in a five-setter over John Peers and Sam Groth. This week’s No. 4 seed owns an 11-7 singles record in 2017 with quarterfinal performances in Memphis, Delray Beach, and Acapulco in addition to a semifinal run in Auckland.
Brown was decent at the ATP level in January and early February, but he went 0-5 in his next five matches on the main tour and that kind of slump sent him back to the Challenger circuit last month. The 75th-ranked German likely restored some confidence by reaching the Dallas semifinals, beating Borna Coric in the process, but he promptly lost his Miami opener to Donald Young. Brown got back on track earlier this week by defeating Juan Monaco 7-6(7), 6-3 in his Houston opener. That is a solid clay-court win for the 32-year-old, but his high-risk style of tennis may prove to be his undoing in what will likely be a competitive showdown against Johnson.
Pick: Johnson in 3
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who ya got?
Brown in three and Sock in two