2016 US Open Expert Predictions
Posted by Henry Watkins on Friday,August 26, 2016 3:19, EDT in
Friday will see the draw made for the 2016 US Open, with first round play scheduled to begin on Monday, August 29 at Flushing Meadow in New York. This Grand Slam tennis event is always one of the most anticipated tournaments of the year, usually due to the fact that games get played under the lights, and can sometimes stretch into the wee hours of the morning. While it’s tough to make predictions before we know how the draw is going to look, we can still look at the seeds, which are based on the current rankings, to see who might be able to come away with the title on the men’s and women’s side. We already pretty much know who the online betting favorites are going to be, so let’s take a quick look at both events.
2016 US Open Expert Predictions
US Open Men’s Betting Prediction
You have to go back to 2008 to find the last time there was a back to back winner of the US Open on the men’s side of things. That was the year that Roger Federer completed his run of 5 straight titles, but since then, no-one has been able to repeat. That trend would appear to mean bad news for defending champion Novak Djokovic, who will be the number one seed heading into this tournament. The Serbian has a win at the Rogers tournament in Canada earlier this season, but had disappointing showing at Wimbledon and at the Rio Olympics, getting bounced early in both. Djokovic has reached the final in 5 of the last 6 attempts, so expect him to be there in the closing stages of the tournament.
The main competition for Federer is going to be Andy Murray, who is having a banner year all round. He picked up the championship title at Wimbledon, and returned from Rio with a gold medal in tow. He hasn’t won the US Open since 2012, but you get the definite sense that he is the man to beat this time around. Murray just appears to be super confident at the moment, and is playing better than he ever has in the past. I think this is his tournament to lose.
US Open Women’s Betting Prediction
Serena Williams won her first US Open title in 1999, and has added 5 more to her trophy cabinet since then. She missed out on the final last year, and will be looking to get back on top this time around. There really isn’t anyone that can touch her when she is on her game, but she is coming off a disappointing showing in Rio, which suggests she may be vulnerable here.
Angelique Kerber and Garbine Muguruza, ranked 2 and 3 in the WTA, respectively, figure to be the main competition for Williams, but I would not sleep on Roberta Vinci. She has not had the best of seasons, and is getting up there in years, but let’s not forget that she was the beaten finalist last year. A lot of what she will do is going to depend on the draw. I think Serena bounces back to win it all again this year.
