U.S. Open R1 previews and predictions: Fils vs. Tsitsipas, Tien vs. Borges

First-round action at the U.S. Open continues on Monday, when the order of play begins with Arthur Fils vs. Stefanos Tsitsipas in Louis Armstrong Stadium. Learner Tien hopes to lead the American contingent as he faces Nuno Borges.

Stefanos Tsitsipas vs. (10) Arthur Fils

Fils and Tsitsipas will be going head-to-head for the sixth time in their careers when they collide in round two of the U.S. Open on Monday. All five of their previous encounters have gone the way of Fils, who most recently humiliated Tsitsipas 6-0, 6-1 at the Miami Masters earlier this season. In five meetings, Tsitsipas has taken a grand total of one set — and that was unsurprisingly on clay (Rome in 2025).

That isn’t the only bad news for Tsitsipas, because Fils is red hot. The 11th-ranked Frenchman is coming off the biggest title of his career in Cincinnati, a result that was preceded by a quarterfinal performance in Montreal. The one knock on Fils is that he has never done anything at a Grand Slam, but that is entirely due to injury problems that have kept him on the sidelines far too often. And if there is one slam at which Fils would want to see Tsitsipas on the other side of the net, it’s the U.S. Open. The 53rd-ranked Greek is just 7-8 lifetime in New York and has never made it past the third round. Although Tsitsipas has shown some decent form this summer, it’s hard to see him seriously competing with Fils in this scenario.

Pick: Fils in 4

Nuno Borges vs. (14) Learner Tien

Is it time for an American man to win a major title. This might be the host nation’s best chance in a while to produce its first slam champion since Andy Roddick at the 2003 U.S. Open. Although Tien is certainly not at the top of that list of contenders, you can’t entirely rule him out of the picture. The 20-year-old has been awesome this season, climbing to 15th in the rankings. He won a clay-court title in Geneva and his hard-court summer is highlighted by a semifinal run in Montreal.

Up first for Tien on Monday is a third meeting with Borges, who trails the head-to-head series 2-0. The left-hander prevailed 6-2, 7-6(7) last fall in Paris and 7-6(9), 6-4, 6-2 at the 2026 Australian Open. Borges is also playing well this summer, with fourth-round efforts in both Montreal and Cincinnati. Unfortunately for the world No. 41 from Portugal, this is a terrible matchup for him. He would match rather break down an inconsistent big hitter than face a counter-puncher like Tien who can — and has — beat Borges at his own game.

Pick: Tien in 3

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