Best US Open matches to watch on Wednesday

The US Open is the last Grand Slam of the year and there and it's a stacked draw with almost every top 50 player participating on the men's and women's side. When there are so many top-quality players, there is never a shortage of exciting matches to watch. Each day offers a new lineup of must-see encounters.

In a tournament filled with so many daily matches, it's easy to get lost in the shuffle. But within the daily schedule lies a selection of standout encounters. This article highlights the top matches from Wednesday so that fans don't miss a single moment of the tournament's best tennis.

This article features a local young talent in Peyton Stearns. Former top 10 players Daria Kasatkina, Gael Monfils, Matteo Berrettini, and Taylor Fritz. Former US Open finalist and current world No.8, Casper Ruud. The defending US Open champion and world No. 2, Novak Djokovic. And the only player who won a set against Novak Djokovic at last year's US Open, Laslo Djere.

Wednesday's best US Open matches

Daria Kasatkina vs Peyton Stearns

The 2023 US Open was a breakthrough tournament for Peyton Stearns and people noticed a 21-year-old American going through her gears and beating some quality players en route to a fourth-round run. Stearns had previous success, but her performance at the US Open catapulted her to prominence. Since then, she has won her maiden WTA title and has been fairly consistent.

Daria Kasatkina has been a regular top-20 player for many years and is one of the most consistent players on the tour. Her form coming into this year's US Open wasn't great but she played a fantastic match in the first round. These two have already played twice in Slams this year where they split the wins, so this would be a decider. It would be a stern test for Kasatkina against a player who has been in better form recently. This has the makings of the best women's match on Wednesday.

Novak Djokovic vs Laslo Djere

On paper and ranking difference, this wouldn't look like a great match but that's the beauty of tennis. Laslo Djere has turned out to be one of the most difficult matchups for Novak Djokovic in recent years. Both of their matches so far went the distance, with Djokovic winning the second and third sets in tiebreakers at the 2022 Serbian Open and coming back from 2 sets to 0 down at last year's US Open.

However, there is a big difference in Djere's form between this year and last year. In 2023, Djere won matches in three of the four Slams, defeating Brandon Nakashima and Hugo Gaston in straight sets before facing Djokovic. This year, Djere barely played on the ATP Tour in the tournaments leading up to the US Open. His win over Jan-Lennard Struff via comeback from two sets to one down is his first Grand Slam match win of the year. It is still a tough match-up for Djokovic and playing your compatriot is never easy.

Casper Ruud vs Gael Monfils

Gael Monfils will turn 38 on September 1st but he has arguably played some of his best tennis in the last two weeks. Beating Carlos Alcaraz was no mere feat and the Frenchman almost backed it up against Holger Rune. In my opinion, his performance against Diego Schwartzman after the first set was even more spectacular. Hitting 50 winners against one of the fastest players ever is an impressive feat.

Casper Ruud is one of the most reliable players in tennis but he can be vulnerable outside of clay. The US Open courts are playing faster this year which doesn't suit Ruud's game, although his serve gets more effective, which was evident in the first round. Monfils came close to beating the Norwegian when they met in Indian Wells, where the conditions favor Ruud.

This is the best chance for Monfils to get his first top-10 win in a Slam since 2014 when he beat Grigor Dimitrov in the fourth round of the US Open. Coincidentally, Dimitrov was also ranked #8 at that time.

Taylor Fritz vs Matteo Berrettini

This doesn't feel like a second-round match but it was always possible due to Berrettini's ranking. Fritz leads the head-to-head 3-0 with all three matches taking place on hard courts. On paper, he should be the clear favourite here as well, but he had disappointing results in both the Canada Masters and Cincinnati Masters. Berrettini has a win percentage of 72 at the US Open which is significantly better than Fritz's win percentage of 50.

However, Fritz has been very consistent at Slams this year, making the second week in all of them. The conditions could also play a major factor in this match. Berrettini's serve works better in day conditions while it would be easier for Fritz to put returns in play and outplay Berrettini from the baseline in the slower and more humid night conditions. Regardless of the outcome, fans are probably in for a show.

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