TipResumen

PREVIEW

Novak Djokovic made a bit of tennis history by becoming the first player to win every Masters event that is played when taking the title home in Cincinnati. Peter Polansky has had his name written in the history books for a different 'success' when he was given a Lucky Loser spot into the main draw of the US Open and becoming the first player to receive such a spot in every Grand Slam that is played. While the Canadian was happy to joke about his 'achievement', Polansky won't enter this match expecting to lose but instead play with a 'nothing to lose' attitude which could make him a danger. Ultimately he should be familiar with the conditions in New York having played three Qualifiers ahead of the start of the main draw and that has to be factored into the match. Alexander Zverev looked to be in good form in Washington having won the title there again, but the young German will be disappointed by his Toronto and Cincinnati showing. His overall record in Grand Slams is also very disappointing for a player who is Ranked as highly as Zverev and considering the clear potential he has to become one of the leading names on the ATP Tour in the years ahead. It would still be a huge surprise if Zverev is beaten by Polansky in this First Round match though and the numbers back that up. Zverev has been very impressive behind serve and on the return on the hard courts in 2018 and his game on this surface has taken a huge step up from 2017 too. The general Polansky numbers on the hard courts have been good to read too, but you can't ignore the majority of his matches are not played on the main ATP Tour. When you consider those numbers alone there is a significant step back from the Canadian and the return of serve has really suffered which puts a lot of pressure on Polansky to find his best serving days. Polansky's serve is one that has to be respected though and it is on rare occasions he is embarrassed on a tennis court. He was beaten comfortably by Novak Djokovic in Toronto but even then it was Polansky's serve that kept him in touch with the former World Number 1 in his 6-3, 6-4 defeat. I wouldn't be surprised if Zverev takes the first couple of sets by the same margin, but I think the pressure of his return of serve tells in this match and he can pull away and cover this big number in a likely straight sets win.



PREDICTION

I will look for the top five Ranked player to show his dominance in a straight sets win as he pulls away from the Lucky Loser.