US Open 2022: Favorite roulette on the Big Apple – is Coric stealing the show from the stars around Nadal and Medvedev?

It may be coincidence, it may be late in the season – the fact is that the US Open is the most open of the four Grand Slam competitions. Seven different champions have been registered in the past ten years – roughly twice as many as at the Australian Open (4), French Open (3) and Wimbledon (3).

“It’s because of the lateness Scheduling in the seasonal calendar. It’s usually the case that the professionals who shine in the first six or seven months weaken in the second half of the year.” Mischa Zverev in an exclusive interview with Eurosport.de. “Even Novak Djokovic didn’t quite have the power to win the US Open in 2021 after three Grand Slam titles and being number one in the world.”

The Serb will also go away empty-handed this year as he not enter the USA due to the lack of vaccination against the corona virus can.

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And Alexander Zverev and Roger Federer are also out as title candidates, Daniil Medvedev and Rafael Nadal are at the top of the list for many experts.

Mischa Zverev: Nadal and Medvedev not top favorites

Not so with Mischa Zverev. “For me, Rafa and Daniil are not so much the favorites. Nadal has only played the Masters in Cincinnati since Wimbledon and lost his opening match there,” said the 35-year-old. With Medvedev he lacks the dominance of a number one, as embodied by Nadal, Federer or Djokovic.

But then who has the best tickets in New York?

Of course there are candidates. Tennis icon John McEnroe brought a rather unexpected name into play: Borna Coric. The Croatian has only one Grand Slam quarterfinal to his credit – but that was at the US Open two years ago. And: with that Winning his first Masters title a few days ago in Cincinnati Coric has gained a lot of self-confidence.

McEnroe brings Coric into play as a title contender

“Borna looked better to me than anyone in Cincinnati. Physically, he seemed like a step above what I’d seen most players do. He’s one of those guys who US Open be able to decide for themselves”, notes McEnroe to Eurosport clear. In fact, Coric caught a good draw. A qualifier awaits in round one, followed by the winner of the game between Jenson Brooksby and Dusan Lajovic.

Masters victory for world number 152! Coric makes history

Remarkable: In addition to the world number 29. Another player from Croatia is coming up as a title candidate from similar spheres of the ranking: Nick Kyrgios. “He’s ready to do great things again,” he said Eurosport-Expert Àlex Corretja, who reached the final of the French Open twice. “For Nick, the experience he had at Wimbledon was very important.” Kyrgios “found his rhythm this year and proved with the title in Washington that he can win on hard courts.”

In Wimbledon, Kyrgios was already close to the first Grand Slam crown, only in After the set lead Djokovic he had to admit defeat in the final. The US Open starts with a bang for the Australian: It’s against his good buddy Thanasi Kokkinakis, with whom he won the Australian Open in doubles at the beginning of the year.

“Kyrgios delivers the greatest show”

“I don’t think anyone wants to play Nick early in the tournament. Mainly not because the atmosphere suits him very well. It’s New York, it’s all about the show – and Kyrgios puts on the biggest show on the tennis tour,” says Corretja.

Kyrgios wins tournament in Washington: first title since 2019

The other favorites besides Nadal, Medvedev, Coric and Kyrgios can be found – not surprisingly – in the Top 15 in the world rankings. All eyes are on Carlos Alcaraz, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Félix Auger-Aliassime and Jannik Sinner.

Although Auger-Aliassime played a moderate preparation, but has good arguments. In February, the Canadian snagged the first ATP title of his career on hard court in Rotterdam, last year he made it to the semifinals at the US Open. The draw said it well with Auger-Aliassime, who first has to deal with a qualifier and would also have feasible opponents in the next two rounds.

Tip for Sinner: Don’t look at social media

For Sinner, on the other hand, the round of 16 was the last stop last year. A brand that the Italian definitely wants to surpass. The four-time New York champion McEnroe has a curious tip for the 21-year-old. “He shouldn’t be looking at social media.”

At Wimbledon, Sinner “slowly got better” and played “greatly”. “But then Djokovic raised the level again and it was over for Jannik. It’s a constant process and he made steady progress,” said McEnroe, who sooner or later sees a Grand Slam champion in Sinner.

Alcaraz? Don’t be fooled

For most experts, however, Alcaraz and Tsitsipas are a bit above Sinner. Barbara Schett, for example, believes that one shouldn’t be fooled by the Spaniard’s fluctuating performances in recent weeks. “In 2021 he made his first big breakthrough at the US Open. Physically he wasn’t quite able to get past the quarter-finals – but Carlos is a different player now, especially physically.” The number four in the world has “a good chance of going very far,” said the former World ranking seventh at Eurosport.

Alcaraz on rivalry with Sinner: “Like Nadal and Federer”

Tsitsipas has always been one of the favorites for a long time when the big events are coming up. At the US Open, however, things have been tough for the Greek so far, it’s his weakest major competition. Round three – more was not possible so far. After all, the dress rehearsal gives hope. At the Cincinnati Masters, Tsitsipas reached the final and beat Medvedev or John Isner and Diego Schwartzman on the way there. Of course, that doesn’t make him a tournament favorite.

So who will prevail? It is quite possible that in the end a man who has done it 22 times will take the Grand Slam trophy in his arms…

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