This article is part of our Tennis Picks series.
Second-round play at the US Open begins Wednesday from the USTA Billie Jean King Tennis Center in Queens, New York. A pair of French Open third-round rematches could prove much more challenging for high seeds who prefer clay, while a couple of underrated players who have quietly posted some impressive hard-court results lately are poised to keep rolling. All Tennis Odds & Lines are taken from DraftKings Sportsbook, but you can sometimes find more favorable odds on some of these matches by checking mobile sportsbooks such as FanDuel Sportsbook, BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook, or any of the other best sports betting sites. We offer exclusive sign-up bonuses for some of those sportsbooks in states where sports betting has gone live.
All men's singles matches at Grand Slams such as the US Open are best of five sets, while women's singles matches are best of three sets. A mix of players' previous hard court results, recent form and stylistic matchups can help pinpoint intriguing betting opportunities, both among favorites likely to cruise to victory and underdogs ready to pull off upsets. The aforementioned underdogs are highlighted in the Upset Alert section, the Lock It In section covers players who can safely be considered overwhelming favorites, while the Value Bets section recommends enticing options in matchups that are considered closer to toss-ups.
US Open Picks: Upset Alert
Zhizhen Zhang (+380) vs. Casper Ruud
Ruud has gone just 7-8 on hard courts in 2023, and the No. 5 seed got all he could handle from 154th-ranked Emilio Nava in the first round before escaping with a hard-fought 7-6 (5), 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5) victory. Zhang needed five sets to win his first-round match, but he was facing a far more impressive opponent in American J.J. Wolf, who came into the US Open with a 14-11 record on hard courts. Zhang took the first set off Ruud in the third round of the French Open on Ruud's preferred clay-court surface, and the Shanghai native has a better chance of winning more than just one set on hard courts.
Mirra Andreeva (+340) vs. Coco Gauff
This battle between two of the game's brightest young stars promises to be an entertaining one, and unless Gauff raises her level compared to her opening round, she could be in trouble here. Gifted an easy first-round draw against world No. 121 Laura Siegemund, Gauff was pushed to 6-4 in the third set. Andreeva also won 6-4 in the third against Olivia Gadecki after overcoming some early jitters, but the nervousness was more defensible for a 16-year-old making her first US Open appearance. It's the third Grand Slam overall for Andreeva, who reached the third round at the French Open and fourth round at Wimbledon. The French Open run ended in a three-set loss to Gauff, but considering the French has been by far Gauff's best major, this rematch between talented teenagers could well go the other way.
Honorable Mention
Caroline Wozniacki (+195) vs. Petra Kvitova
US Open Odds: Lock It In
Victoria Azarenka (-300) vs. Lin Zhu
Azarenka cruised through the first round, dropping just three games against Fiona Ferro. She has failed to make the third round only once in 15 previous US Open appearances (2010), and the No. 18 seed is still a top-10 hard-court player on the WTA Tour, as illustrated by Azarenka's semifinal result at this year's Australian Open. That run included a victory over Zhu, who is just 8-16 in Grand Slams.
Mackenzie McDonald (-270) vs. Borna Gojo
McDonald added to his strong summer with a first-round win over No. 15 seed Felix Auger-Aliassime. The American didn't miss being seeded by much, as he's climbed to No. 40 in the world after making the quarterfinals in Toronto and Round of 16 in Cincinnati at the two Masters 1000 tournaments preceding the US Open. The 105th-ranked Gojo capitalized on a favorable draw to make the second round, beating 147th-ranked Hugo Dellien on Monday, but he's just 2-12 against top-100 players in 2023 and doesn't have a top-50 win.
Honorable Mention
Laslo Djere (-200) vs. Hugo Gaston
US Open Predictions: Value Bets
Sorana Cirstea (-180) vs. Anna Kalinskaya
Cirstea has been quietly effective on hard courts this year. Since the Dubai WTA 1000, she's 14-6 on the surface. Nine of those wins came against top-50 opponents, and three came against top-five foes. Five of the six losses were against top-20 players, and the sixth came to Karolina Muchova, who was still working her ranking back up at that point but is now in the top 10. Kalinskaya has lost her last six hard-court matches against top-50 opponents, and she still has some rust to shake off, as a leg injury had kept the Russian out since mid-May prior to her first-round win over doubles specialist Katerina Siniakova.
Ben Shelton (-120) vs. Dominic Thiem
Thiem won this tournament back in 2020, but a subsequent wrist injury has reduced him to a shell of his former self. His first-round win over the enigmatic Alexander Bublik — who helped Thiem's cause with numerous disinterested points, 17 double faults and even more ill-advised drop shots — was Thiem's first hard-court victory in 2023. Shelton has had trouble maintaining consistent form in his first full year on tour, as he's failed to win back-to-back matches since his quarterfinal result at the Australian Open, but the 20-year-old former NCAA star will feel right at home playing in front of a hyped American crowd. With an opportunity to make another deep hard-court Grand Slam run in front of him, look for the big-hitting Shelton to seize it.
Honorable Mention
Lauren Davis (-140) vs. Kaja Juvan
