It will be a showdown between best friends on tour when Ernests Gulbis and Dominic Thiem meet at the U.S. Open on Friday. Kevin Anderson and Jerzy Janowicz are also in second-round action.
Dominic Thiem vs. (11) Ernests Gulbis
Thiem and Gulbis will be going head-to-head for the second time in their careers when the two frequent hitting partners collide in the last 64 of the U.S. Open on Friday afternoon. Their only previous encounter came two years ago in Winston-Salem qualifying, with Gulbis rolling 6-4, 6-3. The Latvian said earlier this week that he played horribly in that match but that Thiem could not capitalize simply because it was Gulbis–a good friend and fellow protege of coach Gunter Bresnik–on the other side of the net.
If the two comrades can overcome that mental block, this one should be of much higher quality. Gulbis, a French Open semifinalist, is in the midst of by far his most consistent season on tour. The world No. 12 is 36-15 for the year following a blowout of Kenny De Schepper on Wednesday. Thiem has not been as good on hard courts (or grass) as he has been on clay in 2014, but the 20-year-old Austrian may have picked up some momentum by thrashing Lukas Lacko 6-3, 6-3, 6-2. This is likely a tougher predicament for Thiem, five years Gulbis’ junior. Current form and surface also favor the 11th seed, so he should be able to get the job done.
Pick: Gulbis in 4
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Jerzy Janowicz vs. (18) Kevin Anderson
It will be a huge-serving, big-hitting affair on Friday when Janowicz and Anderson collide for the second time in their careers on Friday. A 2013 clay-court clash in Monte-Carlo went Anderson’s way via a 7-5, 7-6(9) decision. The 6’8” South African registers at a solid 20th in the world, but his U.S. Open Series has been lackluster. He reached the quarterfinals in Washington, D.C. and Toronto only to bow out against Donald Young at the former and endure an epic collapse versus Grigor Dimitrov at the latter.
Anderson opened on Wednesday with a 6-3, 6-7(3), 4-6, 2-6, 7-6(1) survival of Pablo Cuevas, while Janowicz held off Dusan Lajovic 6-3, 7-5, 5-7, 7-5.. The 43rd-ranked Pole, a semifinalist at the All-England Club in 2013, is suddenly showing decent form again. He upset Dimitrov in Cincinnati and finished runner-up in Winston-Salem prior to his arrival in New York. Janowicz will have to serve well and keep double-faults to a minimum, but he finally has the confidence to do just that against favored opponents.
Pick: Janowicz in 5
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