US Open 2022, quarter-finals, Tuesday, 06.09.2022
The US Open 2022 is getting serious: It’s time for the quarter-finals! Even though there have been one or two surprises so far, on the whole we are seeing the names we had already expected in the round of the best eight.
Among them are two players who have established themselves among the world’s best for some years now. One is particularly good on grass, the other on clay. So what result will they get when it comes to hard court?
On Tuesday evening, the semi-finals will be contested, and Betway offers almost identical odds. In my Berrettini Ruud tip, I not only reveal why the Norwegian is narrowly ahead at the bookies, but also why I expect at least four sets!
Matteo Berrettini or Casper Ruud, what will be the name of the first semi-finalist of the US Open 2022? On Tuesday, we’ll see a quarter-final that should have it all. Both definitely have what it takes to be able to call themselves Grand Slam winners.
If we take a look at the performances so far in New York, the close odds of our bookmakers are absolutely understandable. 1.80 to 1.95, it is Ruud who is ahead by a small margin.
It already starts with a commonality: once three, twice four, once five, both Berrettini and Ruud have had their share of battles. But one after the other. On the Italian side, Nicolas Jerry and Hugo Grenier were defeated first.
After these must-win victories, the Roman collected a 6-4, 6-4, 6-7, 6-3 against Andy Murray before he had to face his toughest test. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina made it really tough for him until eventually a 3-6, 7-6, 6-3, 4-6, 6-2.
Berrettini showed unusual weaknesses in the round of 16. Normally, he is known for his relentless service, but his return is much worse. In this match, however, things were different.
He gave Fokina 13 chances, but was lucky that he could only use four. Will he also weaken in this respect against Casper Ruud? The two have met five times so far, with the lead going to Norway at 3:2.
A special feature is that four duels, including Ruud’s three wins, took place on clay, his great strength. It could be seen as a clear plus for Berrettini that he won the only match on hard court.
And: that it took place two years ago at the US of all places! In a match between two players who are roughly on a par, it’s little things like that that could decide the winner in the end.
Casper Ruud showed performances in New York that can be rated very similar to those of the Italian. Against Kyle Edmund in the 1st round he had no problems in his smooth victory, but afterwards the matches became tighter.
Against Tim van Rijthoven he won 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. A few days later, it was even closer against Tommy Paul. 6-7, 7-6, 6-7, 7-6 – after four sets and hours of tennis, it was not at all clear who would be the winner.
But then Ruud struck the final blow and secured his place in the last 16 with a 6-0 win. Here he faced Corentin Moutet, whose 6-1, 6-2, 6-7, 6-2 was again much more commanding.
In terms of serve, the Norwegian is actually a tad weaker than Berrettini, also because he lacks 13 centimetres of body length. A quarter-final at the US Open is not new territory for the Italian, but it is for Ruud.
A few months ago, he reached the final of the French Open, which is probably thanks to his favourite surface. So is there a favourite for Tuesday or not?
My Berrettini Ruud tip
According to my analysis, this question is incredibly difficult to answer. Both players have the identical number of sets in their bones, are not exactly known for smooth success.
Therefore, I don’t want to settle on one star having a decisive lead. Rather, I absolutely cannot imagine that there is one who beats the other easily. So one can really only come to the following conclusion:
We’ll see at least four sets!
