By Tony Fairbairn
- Coco Gauff [6] v Jelena Ostapenko [20]
- Novak Djokovic [2] v Taylor Fritz [9]
- Karolina Muchova [10] v Sorana Cirstea [30]
- Frances Tiafoe [10] v Ben Shelton
NEW YORK, USA – Coco Gauff looks to take advantage of an open draw while Novak Djokovic begins his bid to end American hopes in the men’s draw as the US Open quarter-finals begin on day nine.
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Coco Gauff [6] v Jelena Ostapenko [20] | H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Coco Gauff [6] v Jelena Ostapenko [20] | H2H: Tied at 1-1 |
| US Open 2023 | New York, USA |
| Hard (O) | Prize Money: $455,000 |
| First on Arthur Ashe Stadium (17:00 BST) | Sky/Now TV Subscription Required |
A confident and reassured Coco Gauff is into her second US Open quarter-final after remaining patient in her three set win over former Grand Slam champion Caroline Wozniacki. The American is in some of the best form in her career but will know that this is only the beginning of what is going to be a long and tense second week of the US Open. Now Gauff will look to hold her nerve as she looks to book a spot in her second Grand Slam semi-final as she aims to take a giant step towards Grand Slam glory.
Next for Gauff is former Grand Slam champion Jelena Ostapenko who ended Iga Swiatek’s reign as world number one after beating the defending champion for a fourth consecutive time. The Latvian’s powerful precision isn’t new to anyone but Ostapenko’s performance in the fourth round was controlled as she limited her unforced error count. If the former Roland Garros champion can continue to play with controlled aggression then there may be no player in the draw that can stop her. The question is can she be consistent enough to go all the way in New York?
Gauff will look to maintain a high percentage of serves as she looks to neutralise Ostapenko’s power and accuracy on return. Meanwhile Ostapenko will look to continue to be aggressive from the forehand but use the angles to test the American’s power on return. This is a 50-50 match-up tactically but Gauff may be more nervous given what’s on the line so for that reason, Ostapenko will have the slight edge heading into an exhilarating quarter-final showdown.
Prediction: Ostapenko in three sets.
Novak Djokovic [2] v Taylor Fritz [9] | H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Novak Djokovic [2] v Taylor Fritz [9] | H2H: Djokovic leads 7-0 |
| US Open 2023 | New York, USA |
| Hard (O) | Prize Money: $455,000 |
| Second on Arthur Ashe Stadium (18:30 BST) | Sky/Now TV Subscription Required |
After a five set thriller in his third round match, it was back to business as usual for Novak Djokovic in the last 16. The Serb is chasing his 24th Grand Slam title and boosted his quest for more history with a comfortable win over Borna Gojo. Djokovic’s mix of aggression and defensive solidity has made him firm favourite for the title but with Carlos Alcaraz awaiting on the other half of the draw, the Serb will be determined to not let standards slip ahead of a potential final with the Spaniard.
Next up for Djokovic is Taylor Fritz who has continued to elevate his game when it matters most as he is into his first US Open quarter-final. The world number nine has remained extremely solid over the first four rounds as he is yet to drop a set so far but Fritz’s lack of intense matches could hurt him when facing a player like Djokovic. Now Fritz will look to bring his athletic power game to the big stages as he looks to reach a maiden Grand Slam semi-final after coming so close at Wimbledon last year.
Djokovic will look to bring Fritz into the net as possible as he looks to dictate the tempo of the match with his backhand, extracting as many tactical errors from the American as possible. Meanwhile Fritz will look to be consistent on serve as he looks to move Djokovic in wider areas of the court to set up efficient winners. It’s expected that Fritz will get off to a quick start before Djokovic cruises to another Grand Slam semi-final.
Prediction: Djokovic in straight sets.
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Karolina Muchova [10] v Sorana Cirstea [30] | H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Karolina Muchova [10] v Sorana Cirstea [30] | H2H: Muchova leads 3-1 |
| US Open 2023 | New York, USA |
| Hard (O) | Prize Money: $455,000 |
| Third on Arthur Ashe Stadium (Midnight BST) | Sky/Now TV Subscription Required |
After reaching the Roland Garros final a few months ago, Karolina Muchova has continued her Grand Slam momentum into the US Open as she continues to be a threat at the big tournaments. The tenth seed’s mixture of power and variety has been a successful combination and has continued to cause problems to the opposition. Now Muchova will look to continue the momentum as she fancies her chances of another incredible Grand Slam run.
Standing in Muchova’s way is Sorana Cirstea who is sky high on confidence right having knocked out former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina and Belinda Bencic at this year’s US Open. The Romanian’s mix of aggression and defensive consistency has seen her play her best tennis and Cirstea has proven that age is just a number. Now Cirstea looks to reach her first Grand Slam semi-final at 33 years ago.
Muchova will look to produce a balance of attack and variety to set up open spaces in the court to hit efficient winners. Meanwhile Cirstea will look to play on the counter-attack as the Romanian will look to neutralise Muchova’s power with deep and consistent groundstrokes. Cirstea will start the match strongly but Muchova should have too much tactical quality for the resilient Romanian.
Prediction: Muchova in three sets.
Frances Tiafoe [10] v Ben Shelton | H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Frances Tiafoe [10] v Ben Shelton | H2H: First Meeting |
| US Open 2023 | New York, USA |
| Hard (O) | Prize Money: $455,000 |
| Fourth On Arthur Ashe Stadium (01:30 BST) | Sky/Now TV Subscription Required |
Despite not hitting his best form before the US Open, Frances Tiafoe is one match away from successfully defending his semi-final points from last year. The American has played confident and reassured tennis as he has cruised into the last eight. However Tiafoe will be hoping he can play better under pressure as he will be firm favourite on paper to reach the last four in New York for a second year in a row.
A tough test awaits Tiafoe in the next round as he takes on impressive American rising star Ben Shelton, who is into his first Grand Slam quarter-final. Shelton produced a dominant display as he comfortably beat Tommy Paul to reach the last eight in New York. The American is built for the big occasions and will once again revel in being the underdog in such an important match. The question is will Shelton feel the moment of creating more history or will that motivate him to elevate his tennis to new heights?
Tiafoe will look to serve consistently well as he looks to use his forehand to get Shelton to move into different positions on the court. Meanwhile Shelton will continue to launch powerful serves and forehands as he looks to limit the tenth seed’s tactical options. This will be an entertaining match between two players who will welcome the energetic New York crowd. In the end experience should prevail over youth in what should be an entertaining quarter-match match.
Prediction: Tiafoe in five sets.
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