US Open Day 1 Men’s Predictions Including Taylor Fritz vs Emilio Nava

US Open action kicks off on Sunday with a bevy of intriguing matches on both the men’s and women’s sides. 2024 finalist Taylor Fritz gets his campaign underway on Louis Armstrong against fellow American Emilio Nava. As always, we at LWOT provide the preview and prediction for all matches on the slate, with Ateet Shrivastava, Damian Kust, and Tope Oke offering their insights.

Our other prediction pieces feature Ben Shelton vs Ignacio Buse, Novak Djokovic vs Learner Tien, Daniil Medvedev vs Benjamin Bonzi, and Jakub Mensik vs Nicolas Jarry. But who will advance?

US Open Day 1 Men’s Predictions

Jiri Lehecka vs Borna Coric

Ateet
Borna Coric has had a monumental decline this season as he is still looking for his first tour-level win. Jiri Lehecka is a ruthless opponent and won’t give any opening for the out-of-form Croatian. This can get ugly for Coric if he doesn’t serve well.
Prediction: Lehecka in 3

Damian
Coric won four Challenger titles earlier this year, but is now struggling for wins after injuries took him out for a bit after the French Open. This should be enough for Lehecka to take advantage, even if the Czech has already disappointed a few times in the Slams recently. For this tournament, the expectations aren’t that high. Maybe that can actually help.
Prediction: Lehecka in 4

Tope
A few months back, Jiri Lehecka looked completely jaded, but he has steadily turned things around and is now on the brink of making it into the top #20 after almost dropping out of the top #40. His opponent, Borna Coric, is on a five-match winless streak, and he needs a strong result to turn the tide, having dropped out of the top #100. Coric is capable of winning this in peak form, but in current conditions, it’s the Czech’s star match to lose.
Prediction: Lehecka in 4

Pablo Carreno Busta vs Pablo Llamas Ruiz

Ateet
Pablo Carreno Busta must be disappointed with his second-round loss to Sebastian Baez in Winston-Salem, but consistency has been a problem for the Spaniard in this stage of his career. However, I expect him to raise his level at his most successful Slam and defeat his compatriot, who is making his US Open main draw debut.
Prediction: Carreno Busta in 5

Damian
For the second time this year, Llamas Ruiz qualified for a Grand Slam a bit out of the blue. He’s very crafty but retired in his two previous events, only to show up in New York and play extremely disciplined off the ground. 2-time semifinalist Carreno Busta will probably put him away, but he looks painfully past his peak at the moment.
Prediction: Carreno Busta in 4

Tope
Pablo Carreno Busta has returned from an injury during the North American summer hard court season and now heads to a major where he has advanced to the semi-finals twice. He will face Pablo Llamas Ruiz in the first round, who, after dealing with a wrist injury last year, seems to be gradually gaining some momentum. While the older Spaniard holds a significant experience advantage, his younger compatriot is capable of winning this the longer the match goes.
Prediction: Llamas Ruiz in 5

Marcos Giron vs Mariano Navone

Ateet
Marcos Giron thrives on home soil, but his record at the US Open is not good, with just 2 wins in 7 main draw appearances. However, he will be motivated to defeat Mariano Navone, who dismantled the American in Winston-Salem. It was one of Navone’s most impressive performances on a hard court, but Giron’s level helped him. I expect Giron to make fewer errors this time and get his revenge.
Prediction: Giron in 5

Damian
They just played in Winston-Salem with Navone coming out on top 6-2 6-2. He’s typically not the stronger hard-courter of the two, but Giron has been on a rough run of late and doesn’t seem to be high on confidence. Perhaps the Argentinian will get the job done again, just don’t expect it to be as easy as their clash last week.
Prediction: Navone in 5

Tope
Although Mariano Navone has distinguished himself on clay courts, he has also displayed flashes of talent on hard surfaces as he gears up for the US Open. On the other hand, Marcos Giron is currently struggling to find his rhythm, suffering five consecutive defeats. He has been eliminated in the first round at Washington, Toronto, Cincinnati, and Winston-Salem. These two faced off for the first time at Winston-Salem, a week ago, where Navone won convincingly and should be able to replicate that showing in New York.
Prediction: Navone in 4

Taylor Fritz vs Emilio Nava

Ateet
This is the rematch of their second-round encounter at the Cincinnati Open recently. Emilio Nava is playing some good tennis at the moment and won’t go down without a fight against the #4 seed. Fritz knows he has to be at his top serving form, and I expect him to be ready.
Prediction: Fritz in 4

Damian
Nava is on the verge of a Top 100 debut, getting knocked down to No. 101 in the Live ATP Rankings the last couple of weeks. It seems like he’ll get there eventually, but probably not due to his run at this event. Fritz is too consistent and, like we saw at Wimbledon, perhaps also too strong mentally to allow the early upset.
Prediction: Fritz in 3

Tope
Taylor Fritz is expected to make another deep run in his favored Grand Slam, just months after reaching his first semifinal at Wimbledon. While he may not have claimed any titles during his pre-US Open season, he has adequately positioned himself for success in the Grand Slam event. Nava also impressed with his performances in Canada and Cincinnati and has the ability to win a few games against Fritz, but that will be about it.
Prediction: Fritz in 3