Americans Ben Shelton and Tommy Paul find themselves in the most favorable spot in the U.S. Open draw and they will try to continue capitalizing on it. They now face Dominic Thiem and Roman Safiullin, respectively, in round two.
Dominic Thiem vs. Ben Shelton
Shelton and Thiem may be unseeded at the U.S. Open, but this is without question Wednesday’s marquee matchup. Thiem is a former Grand Slam champion (2020 U.S. Open) and Shelton is one of the rising stars in the game. Will experience win out, or will bold, brash, and big hitting make the difference? Thiem predictably defeated Shelton on clay this spring (6-2, 6-2 in Estoril), but the 20-year-old American now has home-court advantage and is playing on a surface that is much more conducive to his game.
Both players looked good on Monday, with Thiem ousting No. 25 seed Alexander Bublik 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 while Shelton got past Pedro Cachin 1-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4. Although the 29-year-old Austrian played well, an erratic Bublik might as well have given him a free pass to round two. Shelton won’t be so generous. The world No. 47 reached the quarterfinals of this year’s first hard-court Grand Slam (lost to Tommy Paul at the Australian Open) and should thrive with the crowd behind him in a similarly boisterous atmosphere in New York.
Pick: Shelton in 5
(14) Tommy Paul vs. Roman Safiullin
Both Paul and Safiullin have already made plenty of noise at majors this season. After Paul produced a run to the semifinals at Melbourne Park, Safiullin made an even more surprising appearance in the Wimbledon quarterfinals. They are off to good starts in Flushing Meadows, too. Paul beat Stefano Travaglia 6-2, 6-3, 4-6, 6-1 on Monday; Safiullin made quick 6-4, 6-2, 6-0 work of Marco Cecchinato.
Safiullin won their only previous meeting 6-3, 7-6(3) a few of months ago at the Madrid Masters, but–like Shelton–Paul will much prefer playing on a hard court at home in the United States. The world No. 14 is back in spectacular form, too, with a recent semifinal showing in Toronto (upset Carlos Alcaraz) and a three-set loss to Alcaraz in the Cincinnati third round. Paul is on fire right now, and even against a tough opponent probably won’t come close to slowing down.
Pick: Paul in 3
Roman Safiullin in 5
Tommy squeaked out the win in five sets.
That’s a relief . Have him in the semis