U.S. Open R2 previews and predictions: Brooksby vs. Fritz, Opelka vs Musetti

Americans Jenson Brooksby and Taylor Fritz will square off in the second round of the U.S. Open on Thursday evening. Meanwhile, countryman Reilly Opelka takes on Italian up-and-comer Lorenzo Musetti.

Taylor Fritz vs. Jenson Brooksby

Thanks to Taylor Fritz’s defeat of Alex de Minaur, this second-round match features a pair of unseeded American players. Jenson Brooksby withstood a dramatic first-round encounter with Sweden’s Mikael Ymer. The Swede erupted at chair umpire Carlos Bernardes for what he thought was an unfair time violation and eventually refused to continue playing until he spoke to a tournament referee. The ensuing fracas cost Ymer the second set after he received a point and game penalty.

Brooksby burst onto the tennis scene like a freight train this summer. The young American made the final in Newport and the semis in Washington. He played well enough to beat the out-of-sorts Ymer on Tuesday, but he didn’t care for his serve very well–which will be liability going into the second round against Fritz.

Fritz hasn’t been at his best for the past month or so. He endured a pair of first-round losses in Toronto and Cincinnati, but he righted the ship this week with his first-round win over de Minaur. Given his recent form Brooksby is a dangerous opponent, but mentally he looked a bit shaky against Ymer. This one should go Fritz’s way.

Cheryl pick: Fritz in 5

Ricky pick: Fritz in 4

(22) Reilly Opelka vs. Lorenzo Musetti

It’s probably not good news for the Italian Lorenzo Musetti that his only other meeting against Reilly Opelka ended in a loss, but worse that it happened on the clay courts of Rome earlier this year. Although Opelka moves well for a big man (he’s nearly 7’0”), he’s not exactly a dirt-baller. But perhaps more dire is the fact that since Musetti’s controversial retirement against Novak Djokovic in the round of 16 at the French Open, he has won exactly one match–a victory on Tuesday over American Emilio Nava, who is ranked 385th in the world.

For his part, Opelka is having a good summer. He made his way all the way to the finals of the Toronto Masters, where he lost to Daniil Medvedev. He defeated Soonwoo Kwon in the first round on Tuesday and with the courts playing fast so far and the American playing well, this should be a tidy victory for Opelka.

Cheryl pick: Opelka in 3

Ricky pick: Opelka in 3