U.S. Open mixed doubles SF previews and predictions

Day 2 of the U.S. Open mixed doubles competition will feature both the semifinals and the final. Among the players still vying for the title are Jessica Pegula, Jack Draper, Iga Swiatek, and Casper Ruud.

(1) Jessica Pegula and Jack Draper vs. (3) Iga Swiatek and Casper Ruud

Swiatek made a quick turnaround after winning the Cincinnati title on Monday evening. The world No. 2 got right back in action to win a pair of U.S. Open mixed doubles matches on Tuesday afternoon, teaming up with Ruud to defeat Madison Keys and Frances Tiafoe (4-1, 4-2) and Caty McNally and Lorenzo Musetti (4-1, 4-2).

Up next for the Polish-Norwegian duo is a semifinal showdown against Pegula and Draper on Wednesday night. The latter pairing looked every bit like the top seed in round one and the quarterfinals, erasing Emma Raducanu and Carlos Alcaraz 6-2, 6-2 before defeating Mirra Andreeva and Daniil Medvedev 6-1, 6-1. Those really aren’t great doubles teams, however, so Swiatek and Ruud represent a significant step up in competition. And Swiatek will be well rested now–which definitely wasn’t the case on Tuesday.

Pick: Swiatek and Ruud in 3

Danielle Collins and Christian Harrison vs. Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori

The Italians are not messing around. As the only duo in the entire draw consisting entirely of doubles specialists, Errani and Vavassori have made no secret that they are playing for all of the doubles players who weren’t given a spot in the field of 16. They are also playing for themselves. After all, Errani and Vavassori are the U.S. Open mixed doubles defending champions–they are not about to relinquish the trophy without a fight, especially not to singles players. It was a routine first day at the office with convincing wins over Elena Rybakina and Taylor Fritz followed by Karolina Muchova and Andrey Rublev.

This American duo is composed of one singles player (Collins) and one doubles specialist (Harrison). It worked well on Tuesday after they got into the draw earlier in the day when Jannik Sinner withdrew due to illness. The Americans beat Belinda Bencic and Alexander Zverev 4-0, 5-3 before dismissing compatriots Taylor Townsend and Ben Shelton 4-1, 5-4(2). They played well, but Collins does not appear to be serving 100 percent as a result of a back issue that gave her problems in Cincinnati. Errani and Vavassori’s title defense will likely continue.

Pick: Errani and Vavassori in 2