Zverev’s five-set escape and Djokovic’s exit reshape a men’s draw already missing injured world No. 1 Jannik Sinner
In U.S. Open tennis action, going on in New York, there are lots of eyes on the men’s side, after No. 2-ranked Alexander Zverev barely survived a five-hour match last night against Lorenzo Sonego, 6-4, 3-6, 6-7 (7), 7-5, 6-4.
Sonego came into the night 1-9 against top-10 men in Grand Slams, but to his credit, tracked down balls with his speed, served aggressively, and attacked, finishing with 13 volley winners.
With World No. 1 Jannik Sinner having withdrawn from the tournament due to a right knee injury, Zverev would have been the first men’s No. 1 seed to lose in the first round of a Grand Slam tournament since 2003.
No. 5-ranked Novak Djokovic has already been eliminated from the tournament, so that means all eyes are on No. 3-ranked Carlos Alcaraz, who is returning from a long layoff due to a wrist injury. He had an encouraging result against Roman Safiullin, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4, but bettors will still be watching his health when he hits the court at Arthur Ashe Stadium tonight against Portuguese Jaime Faria (ATP rank #72).
In tennis betting at Betway this morning, Alcaraz is the -1200 favourite, Faria +700.
On the women’s side, Aryna Sabalenka, chasing her third consecutive U.S. Open championship, advanced comfortably 6-2, 6-4 against Camila Osorio Monday. She’s the betting favourite at Betway to win the tournament, at +275, followed Coco Gauff (+375), Iga Swiatek (+450), Jessica Pegula (+900), Naomi Osaka (+1200) and Elena Rybakina (+1400).
On the men’s side, Alcaraz is favoured to win, at +140, followed by Zverev (+300), Ben Shelton (+750), Taylor Fritz (+900), Rafael Jodar (+1000), then Canadian Felix Auger Aliassime (+2200).
Today’s big matches include Pegula (-2000) versus Sofia Kenin (+900) at 11:30 a.m., Shelton (-250) versus Hubert Hurkacz (+200) at 1 p.m. EST, Mariano Navone (+150), following up his upset with over Djokovic, versus Matteo Berrettini (-182) at 4 p.m. EST, Sabalenka (-5000) versus Polina Iatcenko (+1400) at 7 p.m. EST, Canadian Leylah Fernandez (-275) versus Mananchaya Sawangkaew (+225), at 11 a.m. EST, along with Alcaraz versus Faria.
Shelton to cover -3.5 games at -125 is one pick, considering his monster serve and the fact he’s on home court, with the crowd there naturally connecting to his energy. He entered the tournament with a 20-6 hard court record and recently won the Canadian Open.
Alcaraz to win 3-0 at -110 is another pick, since the Spaniard is the clear favourite and should be too strong for the Portuguese qualifier.
On the women’s side, Pegula to win 2-0 in sets is -350, which is too expensive. Look at Pegula Game Handicap -6.5 (-110), which carries more risk but offers better value. Her consistency, return game and recent hard-court form give her a realistic chance to pull away once Kenin starts to press.
