tennis gut

First Quarter Aryna Sabalenka (seed #1) had a decent start to the year but has not been looking like a number one for the last four months.   She began by making the Aus Open final, then winning the Sunshine Double, Indian Wells and Miami. But since then her match win-loss record is 17-7, which isn’t terrible for a top ten player, but it’s not really #1 territory.   She’ll have been #1 for 99 straight weeks, but she can only make that 100 if she wins the US Open and Rybakina doesn’t make the semis.   Nevertheless, the bookies have Sabalenka as their top pick – but this is more by default than merit.   None of the top ten players are having a convincing year that establishes them as the prima diva. Sabalenka could rescue her year with a victory in New York.   We’d probably all revert to thinking she’s the obvious #1.   At the end of the day, she is the two-time defending champion and current #1, so perhaps should be regarded as the favourite – it’s ju...

The gaping hole in this draw is that left by #1 Jannik Sinner.  He would have been a shoo-in favourite.  But knee injury has felled him.  Can a returning Alcaraz find form fast enough?  Will Djokovic rally the troops one last time?   First Quarter Somehow, Alexander Zverev is the top seed. His reputation for beating up on domestic partners has made him my least favourite player.   But I won’t deny his talent.   He’s had a break through year, finally winning a slam title, at the French, and then following it up by giving Sinner a very difficult match in the Wimbledon final.   Zverev has been to the final here before, in 2020, falling to Dominic Thiem in a pathetic fifth set, fraught with nerves. The slam win seems to have relieved those.   His serve and ground strokes are formidable, and he’s improving his net game.   With Sinner absent and Alcaraz taking the court for the first time since April, Zverev may well be the favourite...