Opening day Grand Slam matches don’t get much bigger than this.
In the first men’s match of the US Open on Arthur Ashe Stadium, fifth seed Alexander Zverev will face 2017 runner-up Kevin Anderson for a place in the second round.
For the second straight event since the ATP Tour resumption, World No. 7 Zverev will face former Top 5 opposition in his opening match. At the Western & Southern Open, the 23-year-old fell to 2012 US Open champion Andy Murray for the second time in as many ATP Head2Head meetings. Zverev will enter his clash against Anderson with history on his side.
Zverev has won all five of his ATP Head2Head meetings against Anderson. In the pair’s most recent match, Zverev outlasted the South African in a Match Tie-break to clinch the 2018 Laver Cup for Team Europe on American soil in Chicago.
[ATP HERITAGE]
Anderson will also be looking to recover from a second-round loss at the Western & Southern Open. The 6’8” South African, who reached a career-high No. 5 in the FedEx ATP Rankings in July 2018, recorded a three-set win against Kyle Edmund before suffering a straight-sets loss to Stefanos Tsitsipas at the ATP Masters 1000 event.
Following Zverev and Anderson’s battle, Western & Southern Open champion Novak Djokovic will begin his chase for an 18th Grand Slam title during the night session. Just two days after defeating Milos Raonic to lift a record-equalling 35th Masters 1000 crown, the World No. 1 will attempt to extend his unbeaten 23-0 start to the year against Damir Dzumhur.
Djokovic and Dzumhur will be contesting their third ATP Head2Head encounter. The top seed most recently beat Dzumhur 6-1, 6-2 at the 2019 Qatar ExxonMobil Open.
Djokovic is bidding to capture his fourth US Open crown and narrow the gap on Big Three rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the Grand Slam titles leaderboard. The Belgrade-native currently sits two trophies behind 19-time major champion Nadal and three crowns behind all-time leader and 20-time Grand Slam champion Federer.
[NUMBER ONES]
Reigning Nitto ATP Finals champion Stefanos Tsitsipas will also feature in Day 1 action. The fourth seed begins his US Open title bid on Court 17 against Albert Ramos-Vinolas. Tsitsipas enters the first-round encounter in form, having reached the Western & Southern Open semi-finals (l. to Raonic). The Greek has won 13 of his past 15 tour-level matches. Prior to the ATP Tour suspension, Tsitsipas captured the Open 13 Provence trophy in Marseille and finished as runner-up at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships for the second straight year.
In one of the standout matches of the first round, seventh seed David Goffin will meet Reilly Opelka in the final match of the day on Court 17. Goffin and Opelka are tied at 1-1 in their ATP Head2Head series, with both previous meetings requiring a deciding set. Opelka enters the first-round contest in form, but was forced to retire from his maiden Masters 1000 quarter-final at the Western & Southern Open with a right knee injury. Goffin will hope to bounce back from a third-round loss to Jan-Lennard Struff at the Masters 1000 tournament.
Three American men will make Monday appearances at Louis Armstrong Stadium to start their US Open campaigns. Following his Masters 1000 debut at the Western & Southern Open, #NextGenATP American Sebastian Korda will face 2017 quarter-finalist Denis Shapovalov for a spot in the second round. Later in the day, 16th seed John Isner and Steve Johnson will contest the only all-American clash of Day 1.
ORDER OF PLAY – MONDAY 31 AUGUST 2020
ARTHUR ASHE STADIUM start 12:00 pm
WTA Match
Kevin Anderson v [5] Alexander Zverev
Not Before 7:00 pm
[1] Novak Djokovic v Damir Dzumhur
WTA Match
LOUIS ARMSTRONG STADIUM start 11:00 am
WTA Match
[12] Denis Shapovalov v Sebastian Korda
Not Before 3:00 pm
WTA Match
Steve Johnson v [16] John Isner
WTA Match
COURT 17 start 11:00am
WTA Match
WTA Match
[4] Stefanos Tsitsipas v Albert Ramos-Vinolas
WTA Match
Reilly Opelka v [7] David Goffin
Click here to view the full US Open Day 1 schedule.
from Tennis - ATP World Tour https://ift.tt/34NiCMA
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