The final major of the 2022 tennis calendar will get started on Monday, August 29, as the US Open begins in Queens. This is the lone tennis major hosted in the United States each year, giving Americans a chance to see the most high-profile tennis imaginable in time zones they are actually awake for. As usual, this year’s US Open promises to be a thriller, even if there are several big names that will not be a part of the proceedings.
US Open 2022 Field
Perhaps the biggest news surrounding the 2022 US Open is not who is in the field, but rather who is not in the field. Novak Djokovic will not be participating in the tournament this year, as he is not permitted to enter the United States due to his COVID-19 vaccination status. No matter what your feelings on vaccines and politics in general, this is a loss from an on-court perspective as last year’s runner-up will not be taking the court in New York.
Also out of this year’s US Open will be Sascha Zverev, who is still not right after the ankle injury he suffered at the French Open earlier this year. Zverev was also a runner-up at this event previously, and losing him for this tournament is certainly unfortunate as well. His big serve will be missed on a fast surface that tends to reward players with his combination of heavy serving and the ability to follow it up with heavy groundstrokes from both wings.
While those two losses are certainly upsetting for tennis fans, there is still plenty of quality in the men’s draw for this year’s US Open. Daniil Medvedev will be the top seed in the tournament, as he looks to repeat as champion after denying Novak Djokovic his Grand Slam a year ago. He could end up facing Spaniards Rafael Nadal or Carlos Alcaraz in the final if those players manage to hold serve in their respective draws, though top stars like Stefanos Tsitsipas and Nick Kyrgios could crash the party as well.
Odds To Win The 2022 US Open
Player | Odds to win 2022 US Open |
---|---|
Daniil Medvedev | +225 |
Rafael Nadal | +400 |
Carlos Alcaraz | +550 |
Nick Kyrgios | +900 |
Stefanos Tsitsipas | +1400 |
Jannik Sinner | +1700 |
Taylor Fritz | +2000 |
Matteo Berrettini | +2500 |
Felix Auger-Aliassime | +2500 |
Borna Coric | +2500 |
Only 10 players enter the 2022 US Open at 25/1 odds or better to win the tournament. Daniil Medvedev enters the favorite now that Djokovic has been removed from the board by bookmakers. But with four players at under 10/1, this is set to be one of the more competitive and unpredictable majors in a while in men’s tennis.
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2022 US Open Draw Analysis
Quarter number one at this year’s US Open is headlined by top seed Daniil Medvedev. Medvedev has typically brought his best tennis to New York, which he will need to overcome a pretty tough draw. His quarter features Nick Kyrgios, Roberto Bautista-Agut, Pablo Carreno-Busta, and Felix Auger-Aliassime, all of whom have been dangerous at majors in the past. Also, keep an eye on American youngster Ben Shelton in this quarter, as a partisan crowd and a big game could propel him to a third round match against Medvedev.
Stefanos Tsitsipas is the headliner in the second quarter from the top in this year’s US Open. The Greek fell in the final of the Cincinnati Masters just last week to Borna Coric, but that is an encouraging performance for Tsitsipas so close to the year’s final major. His quarter also features Casper Ruud, Taylor Fritz, Matteo Berrettini, Tommy Paul, and last year’s surprise quarterfinalist Botic van de Zandschulp. Bettors will want to look out for American serve and volley specialist Maxime Cressy as well, who could be a thorn in Tsitsipas’ side in round three.
Carlos Alcaraz is the third seed in the US Open and headlines the third quarter of the draw. Alcaraz really announced himself to the casual viewer at last year’s US Open by beating Tsitsipas in a thriller. This year, he comes in with the weight of more expectations on his back. Alcaraz is joined in a tough quarter by Cincinnati winner Borna Coric, Jannik Sinner, Hubert Hurkacz, and Marin Cilic.
Finally, Rafael Nadal is the top seed in the bottom quarter of the 2022 US Open draw. Nadal has two majors under his belt already this year, winning the Australian Open and French Open. He is joined in this quarter by Cam Norrie and Andrey Rublev, in what could be the easiest quarter of the draw to navigate when compared to the others.
2022 US Open Winner Pick
Without Djokovic in the equation, the US Open winner market is a whole lot more interesting. Medvedev’s price dropped from around +250 to +225 in response, but he is still my pick to come away with the title.
A potential fourth round match between Medvedev and Kyrgios could blow this pick to smithereens, but Medvedev’s ability to play defensive tennis over five sets is unmatched in any tournament that Djokovic is not involved in. He will have to overcome the demons of his five-set loss to Nadal back in Australia in January, but Medvedev should be able to repeat as champion.