U.S. Open Preview: Federer and Loeb’s Pro Debut Highlight Day Two

September 1, 2015 | By New York Tennis Magazine Staff
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The second day of the U.S. Open gets underway today, as the second half off the first-round matchups conclude on both the men’s and women’s sides. Day One saw a number of top seeds go down, including last year’s runner-up Kei Nishikori on the men’s side along with the seventh-seeded Ana Ivanovic and eighth-seeded Karolina Pliskova on the women’s side, so seeded players will be on high-alert in Flushing Meadows today.

To start things off at Arthur Ashe Stadium, second-seeded Romanian Simona Halep takes on Marina Erakovic of New Zealand. After a rocky middle part of the season, Halep has picked up her play on the hard-courts recently. She reached finals in Cincinnati and Toronto, and will look to rebound from a disappointing first-round exit at her last Grand Slam (Wimbledon). She takes on an unfamiliar opponent in the 99th-ranked Erakovic. The two have never played before.

Following this match, New York’s Jamie Loeb, who received a wild card entry into the tournament by winning the NCAA Singles National Championship, will take on fourth-seeded Dane Caroline Wozniacki. A finalist last year, Wozniacki has struggled a bit during the hard-court season and U.S. Open series, bouncing out early at a couple of early tournaments, but reached the finals in New Haven last week.

Loeb is making her Grand Slam main draw debut. The Ossining, N.Y. native and University of North Carolina standout turned pro early last month, and will look to kick her pro career off with a huge victory.

The third match on to Ashe will feature the second-seeded Roger Federer. The Swiss maestro holds the record for most Grand Slams all-time and will look to once again hold off Father Time in these next two weeks. The 34-year-old will battle with Argentina’s Leonardo Mayer. Federer looked outstanding on his way to the title in Cincinnati, including his wins over Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray, in the finals and semifinals respectively. The five-time U.S. Open champion is 21-2 on hard-courts this year and defeated Mayer in the pair’s only ever meeting back in 2014.

American John Isner will kick off his U.S. Open campaign when he takes on Tunisia’s Malek Jaziri in the second match on Louis Armstrong Stadium. He had another good U.S. Open series run, winning the title in Atlanta and reaching the finals in Washington, D.C. at the Citi Open, but struggled towards the end including a first-round exit in Cincinnati to fellow American Sam Querrey. The 30-year-old won the only previous meeting against Jaziri, a straight-set victory at the 2012 Olympics.

Following that match, former world number one Victoria Azarenka will take on Czech Republic’s Lucie Hradecka. The Belarusian is a two-time finalist (2012 and 2013) and is starting to show signs of that form after injuries slowed her down for much of the last couple of seasons. She is 3-0 all-time against Hradecka, including a second-round victory at this year’s French Open.

One of, if not the, most intriguing matchups of the opening round will kick off the night session on Ashe, as third-seed Andy Murray will play polarizing Australian Nick Kyrgios. The big-hitting Kyrgios has been in the news a lot recently, but not for his tennis, and he will look to change that narrative in Queens. But he draws a tough task against Murray, who is playing some of the best tennis of his career as of late. The Scot has never lost in the first-round at any U.S. Open, and is 3-0 all-time against Kyrgios, including a straight-set win at the French Open quarterfinals earlier this year.

Click here for the full schedule of matches for Day 2 of the 2015 U.S. Open.


New York Tennis Magazine Staff
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