The ATP’s Citi Open tournament moves into the second round for most players, but it’s still in the first round for a few players. That’s where we pick up our tennis picks.
On Monday, we saw some straightforward results with six of the nine matches ended in straight sets. Bjorn Fratangelo was one of the three matches that went the full three sets as he topped Alex Kuznetsov. We also saw Yuichi Sugita top Vasek Pospisil in three sets. He dropped the first set and then won the final two. Lastly, Jared Donaldson also lost the first set but won the final two sets to oust Vincent Millot. The other players to advance on Monday included Daniel Evans, James Duckworth, John Millman, Jordan Thompson, Taylor Fritz and Adrian Mannarino.
Meanwhile, the WTA is sharing Washington, D.C., in what is a rare joint event with non-Masters Series, non-Premier Level status. Usually, those are the only kinds of shared events on tour other than the Grand Slams, but Washington is an exception. Whereas the women have a five-round tournament, the men have a six-round tournament. A total of 16 players got first-round byes while 32 players played a first-round match. We’ll make note of all the differences and details below. Here are our tennis picks for the day.
First Round: Donald Young vs. Ernesto Escobedo
There is no doubt that Donald Young is an enigmatic player. He bombs out of a lot of tournaments but usually manages to put together a win or two at the Grand Slams. He just can’t make himself into a more consistent tennis player, someone who can regularly make the round of 16 at most tour stops. Those results are rare, not normal. At any rate, Young now moves to a part of the calendar he should really like, the part of the year when the United States hosts various hardcourt tournaments. Young should have a lot of backing from the local crowd in this opening-round match. What should also help him is that his opponent, Escobedo, is ranked outside the top 250. This is a gift draw for Young, and as erratic as he often is, he really should have no trouble putting this match to bed. He should be able to win this one easily.
Pick: Young in straight sets
Second Round: Grigor Dimitrov vs. Dan Evans
This should be a routine match, but Grigor Dimitrov doesn’t make anything routine these days. He actually showed some signs of life at Wimbledon, beating Gilles Simon in the second round and winning back-to-back matches for one of the rare times this season. However, just when it seemed he was about to turn the corner, he lost the very next match to Steve Johnson, a player who is simply not as talented as the Bulgarian. Dimitrov is still searching for answers, and for that reason, a lot of bettors might pick against him here. However, Evans is just not as skilled. Evans was blown out by an average version of Roger Federer at Wimbledon. Dimitrov, as much as he struggles, plays Federer fairly competitively. He should be able to get by Evans here and give himself a chance to advance deeper into the Citi Open. One other thing: Evans had to play a first-round match while Dimitrov had a bye. In this heat, that should help Dimitrov even more. Take Dimitrov with your tennis picks in this spot.
Pick: Dimitrov in three sets
Second Round: Sam Querrey vs. Bjorn Fratangelo
This is a matchup in which Fratangelo comes off a first-round win on Monday. Querrey will be the more rested player and he’s the much better player. Remember that Querrey just beat Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon and rolled to the quarterfinals. It was definitely one the biggest moments of his career and easily the best Grand Slam tournament of his career. Querrey will be soaring with confidence. It’s hard to see how he can lose in this situation in the first round versus an opponent that shouldn’t threaten him too much. Take Querrey with your tennis picks.
Pick: Querrey in straight sets
