USO 2024 Contender Draw Analysis

reaper

Legend
The draw is what you have been given on day one, whether you are able to navigate it or not, is another thing.
You don't really know what you're navigating. Drawing Djokovic in the 2nd round might seem a tough draw. It isn't if he withdraws with a knee injury after the 1st round. Draws that look tough on paper can open up very nicely.
 

ChrisJR3264

Hall of Fame
Nope, the Postgoat Always rings Twice...

The Shelton run last year was due to a favorable draw and taking out an overrated tiafoe which it seems they’re matched up again in round 3 instead of the qtrs this year.

Shelton still doesn’t offer much variety to his game outside of big serve and forehand. He’s got the athleticism to cover the court but his shot selection is poor and Novak will just counter those heavy using the entire court and wear him out. Shelton has mass power but doesn’t seem to hit spots consistently to effect all court baseliners who defend and counter well.
 

Hitman

Bionic Poster
You don't really know what you're navigating. Drawing Djokovic in the 2nd round might seem a tough draw. It isn't if he withdraws with a knee injury after the 1st round. Draws that look tough on paper can open up very nicely.

That is the point.

We are looking at what the draws are for everyone. But matches are still played out on the court and in sport, any thing can happen.

Tsitsipas has been dealt the toughest path to the title, should the draw hold up.
 

dking68

Legend
What was the result when Alcaraz last played Sinner in a HC slam? What was the result when Alcaraz last played Zverev in a HC slam?
That was before Sinner 2.0 and 2022 was his worst season to date. He only won 1 title and was constantly battling injuries
 

nolefam_2024

Bionic Poster
What was the result when Alcaraz last played Sinner in a HC slam? What was the result when Alcaraz last played Zverev in a HC slam?
Irrelevant

You are same type of members who hyped up loser zverev post Rome

Zverev last won a masters on hard court maybe in 2021

Sinner has won 2/4 he participated this year and is only major winner on hc this year.

By your own logic in may when you gave zverev too big a hype ,

He doesn't deserve squat now.

We are on hard courts
 

Hitman

Bionic Poster
Irrelevant

You are same type of members who hyped up loser zverev post Rome

Zverev last won a masters on hard court maybe in 2021

Sinner has won 2/4 he participated this year and is only major winner on hc this year.

By your own logic in may when you gave zverev too big a hype ,

He doesn't deserve squat now.

We are on hard courts

And yet he beat Sinner at USO last year, and Alcaraz at AO this year...
 

Sport

G.O.A.T.
What was the result when Alcaraz last played Sinner in a HC slam? What was the result when Alcaraz last played Zverev in a HC slam?
I'm sure Novak would've happily signed his draw before the tournament. Zverev has never beaten Novak at Slams, Sinner already did it, and in convincing fashion.
 

nolefam_2024

Bionic Poster
I'm sure Novak would've happily signed his draw before the tournament. Zverev has never beaten Novak at Slams, Sinner already did it, and in convincing fashion.
That is all you need to convince anyone


Nole would have signed for the draw with loser zverev blindfolded. Sinner and raz are far more complex.
 

reaper

Legend
That is the point.

We are looking at what the draws are for everyone. But matches are still played out on the court and in sport, any thing can happen.

Tsitsipas has been dealt the toughest path to the title, should the draw hold up.
He has tended to find any path tough the past couple of years. I think it's particularly hard to read who's going to be at their best here. Sinner may (or may not) struggle after the doping issue, Djokovic might struggle with injury or motivation post Olympics, Medvedev might be running out of steam having lost a couple of very winnable slam finals, Zverev is always capable of imploding. Alcaraz is the only top guy I can see no reason to doubt. Someone unheralded could make their way through to the final. Popyrn beat 5 top 20 players a fortnight ago. Can he beat Djokovic in round 3?
 

Hitman

Bionic Poster
I'm sure Novak would've happily signed his draw before the tournament. Zverev has never beaten Novak at Slams, Sinner already did it, and in convincing fashion.

I wasn't talking about Novak, I was talking about Alcaraz. Isn't Zverev the one who leads Alcaraz in best of five and has actually beaten him in a HC slam?

Match ups do play a part also.
 

NoleFam

Bionic Poster
Alcaraz potentially has Sinner in the SF, meaning his draw is twice as complex as Novak's. Sinner > Zverev.
Isn't Zverev 5-2 against Alcaraz on hardcourt, and beat him in Australia? He probably would rather play Sinner. In the form Zverev is in, he can potentially be just as tough as Sinner.
 

Hitman

Bionic Poster
He has tended to find any path tough the past couple of years. I think it's particularly hard to read who's going to be at their best here. Sinner may (or may not) struggle after the doping issue, Djokovic might struggle with injury or motivation post Olympics, Medvedev might be running out of steam having lost a couple of very winnable slam finals, Zverev is always capable of imploding. Alcaraz is the only top guy I can see no reason to doubt. Someone unheralded could make their way through to the final. Popyrn beat 5 top 20 players a fortnight ago. Can he beat Djokovic in round 3?

Well yes, Tsistipas has been struggling with form, no question.

But we are talking on paper here, IF the draw holds. That's how we do all draw analysis for all slams, many times it does not work out that way, but we know if everyone holds their seeding, then this is the toughest path of them all.
 

nolefam_2024

Bionic Poster
Isn't Zverev 5-2 against Alcaraz on hardcourt, and beat him in Australia? He probably would rather play Sinner. In the form Zverev is in, he can potentially be just as tough as Sinner.
Zverev is a 27 year old loser without a slam.

His wins in turin and long back do not matter.

Sinner just last year end turned into the fighting machine.
 

Hitman

Bionic Poster
Isn't Zverev 5-2 against Alcaraz on hardcourt, and beat him in Australia? He probably would rather play Sinner. In the form Zverev is in, he can potentially be just as tough as Sinner.

Yep, it seems like the match up issue is being overlooked here.

Alcaraz would rather play Sinner from a match up perspective on HC.

Of course Sinner is super tough, but for Alcaraz, Zverev is a massive problem also.
 

NoleFam

Bionic Poster
Yep, it seems like the match up issue is being overlooked here.

Alcaraz would rather play Sinner from a match up perspective on HC.

Of course Sinner is super tough, but for Alcaraz, Zverev is a massive problem also.
Yea Zverev is not a good matchup for Alcaraz on this surface. The serve is definitely tough for him to handle. He most likely would rather play Sinner who I think he leads on hardcourt.
 

NoleFam

Bionic Poster
Zverev is a 27 year old loser without a slam.

His wins in turin and long back do not matter.

Sinner just last year end turned into the fighting machine.
What does being 27, which is still young, have to do with anything? Sinner barely scraped past Zverev in Cincinnati.
 

nolefam_2024

Bionic Poster
What does being 27, which is still young, have to do with anything? Sinner barely scraped past Zverev in Cincinnati.
Sinner beat him

You saw the match do not lie

Sinner in third set tiebreak was far better even though the conditions were Uber fast.

Yes 27 has a lot to do with it. The base level of zverev is nowhere near sinner. The guy turned 27 and has not won a slam ever. Not everyone is destined to be a winner.
 

Hitman

Bionic Poster
Yea Zverev is not a good matchup for Alcaraz on this surface. The serve is definitely tough for him to handle. He most likely would rather play Sinner who I think he leads on hardcourt.

Sinner only has two wins over Alcaraz on HC, Miami and Beijing.

Zverev has done far more damage to Alcaraz on HC, gave him his only defeat so far in slam play at AO this year.
 

Hitman

Bionic Poster
Sinner beat him

You saw the match do not lie

Sinner in third set tiebreak was far better even though the conditions were Uber fast.

Yes 27 has a lot to do with it. The base level of zverev is nowhere near sinner. The guy turned 27 and has not won a slam ever. Not everyone is destined to be a winner.

Yeah, they said that about Wawrinka also when he was 27 and they were spot on....
 

NoleFam

Bionic Poster
Sinner beat him

You saw the match do not lie

Sinner in third set tiebreak was far better even though the conditions were Uber fast.

Yes 27 has a lot to do with it. The base level of zverev is nowhere near sinner. The guy turned 27 and has not won a slam ever. Not everyone is destined to be a winner.
That was the 1st win Sinner had against Zverev on hardcourt and it took a 3rd set tiebreak to do it. Far better? He doesn't have a Slam but he is definitely tough and loves to play spoiler. So he's not some mug like you are trying to say.
 

NoleFam

Bionic Poster
Sinner only has two wins over Alcaraz on HC, Miami and Beijing.

Zverev has done far more damage to Alcaraz on HC, gave him his only defeat so far in slam play at AO this year.
And Alcaraz has 4 I believe. It's a better matchup for him.

Yep, agreed.
 

nolefam_2024

Bionic Poster
That was the 1st win Sinner has against Zverev on hardcourt and it took a 3rd set tiebreak to do it. Far better? He doesn't have a Slam but he is definitely tough and loves to play spoiler. So he's not some mug like you are trying to say.
Zverev is absolutely best second tier player in 2024. Meddy dropped his level and zverev has gone up ahead of him

But there are only 3 top players on mens side and zverev loser is not among them.
 

NoleFam

Bionic Poster
Zverev is absolutely best second tier player in 2024. Meddy dropped his level and zverev has gone up ahead of him

But there are only 3 top players on mens side and zverev loser is not among them.
He was a set away from winning RG and a tiebreak away from making the AO final, but ok...
 

NoleFam

Bionic Poster
While being in absolute prime

Alcaraz barely played on clay and this loser won Rome but still at age 27 he was burnt to the ground

6-1 6-2
Alcaraz is the more talented player, although I think Zverev definitely had a real chance to win that match, but that doesn't make him a loser. Making 2 Slam finals, 6 SFs, winning 6 Masters, Olympic gold, and 2 ATP Finals is not a loser. Everybody is not an ATG.
 

nolefam_2024

Bionic Poster
Alcaraz is the more talented player, although I think Zverev definitely had a real chance to win that match, but that doesn't make him a loser. Making 2 Slam finals, 6 SFs, winning 6 Masters and 2 ATP Finals is not a loser. Everybody is not an ATG.
The zverev hype machine was in full steam after winning Rome

Who did he face. Who hyped him.

Dude Djokovic without injury beats this mug and clay is Nole's worst surface and his best.

Not everybody can be atg but a player who is 1st in the world at age 22/23 has more chance than a loser
 

NYTennisfan

Hall of Fame
Sinner beat him

You saw the match do not lie

Sinner in third set tiebreak was far better even though the conditions were Uber fast.

Yes 27 has a lot to do with it. The base level of zverev is nowhere near sinner. The guy turned 27 and has not won a slam ever. Not everyone is destined to be a winner.
Even if you ignore their earlier matchups, pre-prime Sinner, their last 2 matches have been tight as can be with Zverev winning at the slam and Sinner winning at the masters. Crazy for anybody to dismiss Zverev, he's a problem for anybody on just about any surface.
He hasn't won a Slam but he's been really close to breaking through a bunch of times and has beaten top guys many times at slams, he deserves more respect than he gets around here.
 

nolefam_2024

Bionic Poster
Even if you ignore their earlier matchups, pre-prime Sinner, their last 2 matches have been tight as can be with Zverev winning at the slam and Sinner winning at the masters. Crazy for anybody to dismiss Zverev, he's a problem for anybody on just about any surface.
He hasn't won a Slam but he's been really close to breaking through a bunch of times and has beaten top guys many times at slams, he deserves more respect than he gets around here.
I respect zverev

He is 4 th best player in the world now and I am not talking about atp rankings

But sinner is at the top. He is far better than anyone in field including raz. Won 2 masters a slam and made atp finals final along with Davis cup and a 500 title

This is like Djokovic on hc.
 

NoleFam

Bionic Poster
The zverev hype machine was in full steam after winning Rome

Who did he face. Who hyped him.

Dude Djokovic without injury beats this mug and clay is Nole's worst surface and his best.

Not everybody can be atg but a player who is 1st in the world at age 22/23 has more chance than a loser
Except Djokovic was injured and didn't beat him, and Zverev was a set away from winning it. I'm not about to go your route calling top 4 players in the world losers, who are way better than I could ever dream of being at tennis. Let's move on.
 

KingCarlitos

Hall of Fame
I respect zverev

He is 4 th best player in the world now and I am not talking about atp rankings

But sinner is at the top. He is far better than anyone in field including raz. Won 2 masters a slam and made atp finals final along with Davis cup and a 500 title

This is like Djokovic on hc.
Nah Medvedev is better by far, More potent at USO and AO and Wimbledon, the only surface favouring Zverev is clay and we ain’t in clay court season.
 

nolefam_2024

Bionic Poster
Tsitsipas doesn't even count. The guy is another loser just like zverev and especially in usopen he has never made past r3.

He has declined heavily since 2 years back.
 

KingCarlitos

Hall of Fame
Tsitsipas doesn't even count. The guy is another loser just like zverev and especially in usopen he has never made past r3.

He has declined heavily since 2 years back.
Sort of seems like Tsitsi has accepted his fate as a top 5-10 player and has lost the motivation and determination to claim his maiden slam title.
 

nolefam_2024

Bionic Poster
Nah Medvedev is better by far, More potent at USO and AO and Wimbledon, the only surface favouring Zverev is clay and we ain’t in clay court season.
Debatable.

Meddy is better overall. But his trajectory is downward and this losers is upward. That's only reason I think zverev is 4th best

Meddy can easily go past him if his form improves. He is no big deal.
 

KingCarlitos

Hall of Fame
Debatable.

Meddy is better overall. But his trajectory is downward and this losers is upward. That's only reason I think zverev is 4th best

Meddy can easily go past him if his form improves. He is no big deal.
While the sport is different from back then and careers are elongated, Meddy’s prime years are slowly whistling away, He’s 28 which for a big three talent isn‘t old but for a 1 time slam winner to win a second slam after passing their prime is very hard. Med has to win a slam in the next two years Or he‘ll be unfortunately relegated to A 1 slammer.
 

nolefam_2024

Bionic Poster
While the sport is different from back then and careers are elongated, Meddy’s prime years are slowly whistling away, He’s 28 which for a big three talent isn‘t old but for a 1 time slam winner to win a second slam after passing their prime is very hard. Med has to win a slam in the next two years Or he‘ll be unfortunately relegated to A 1 slammer.
Yes this is right time while nole is slipping and sineraz are younger. If meddy misses out zverev will win a couple
 

NYTennisfan

Hall of Fame
I respect zverev

He is 4 th best player in the world now and I am not talking about atp rankings

But sinner is at the top. He is far better than anyone in field including raz. Won 2 masters a slam and made atp finals final along with Davis cup and a 500 title

This is like Djokovic on hc.
I mean, you called him a loser and that his base level is nowhere near Sinner's. I'd say that's pretty disrespectful lol. He has one of the best serve/backhand combos in the game and his forehand, while wildly inconsistent, can go nuclear at times. Nobody wants to see Big Z in their draw especially before a Finals, I know Alcaraz and Sinner probably have a little PTSD from their last 2 hardcourt encounters with him at a HC slam.
 

KingCarlitos

Hall of Fame
Yes this is right time while nole is slipping and sineraz are younger. If meddy misses out zverev will win a couple
Wild how Sinner just turned 23, He better start getting his potentially ATG career back on track If he wants to compete in the all time pantheon and compete as a worthy rival for Carlos.
 

KingCarlitos

Hall of Fame
I mean, you called him a loser and that his base level is nowhere near Sinner's. I'd say that's pretty disrespectful lol. He has one of the best serve/backhand combos in the game and his forehand, while wildly inconsistent, can go nuclear at times. Nobody wants to see Big Z in their draw especially before a Finals, I know Alcaraz and Sinner probably have a little PTSD from their last 2 hardcourt encounters with him at a HC slam.
I agree, Looking at his game objectively Zverev should be a slam winner, Tall, Massive serve, big forehand, massive backhand, he has all the tools just zero mindset.
 

nolefam_2024

Bionic Poster
Wild how Sinner just turned 23, He better start getting his potentially ATG career back on track If he wants to compete in the all time pantheon and compete as a worthy rival for Carlos.
Dude just won his second masters of the year. He has done enough for the year already. And he has done well even on surface that doesn't suit him as well
Like clay
 

KingCarlitos

Hall of Fame
Dude just won his second masters of the year. He has done enough for the year already. And he has done well even on surface that doesn't suit him as well
Like clay
He has done well but If you put Novak in Zverev’s body I’m sure he would be able to do much more with it tbh.
 
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