The third round at the US Open begins on Friday, and with that there are plenty of familiar faces still lurking.
I want to turn our attention to two lesser-known players, however, as I think they hold a ton of value over their higher-ranked opponents.
Let's get into some picks.
Note: Match times are subject to change. Read here for tips on viewing US Open matches.
Nick Kyrgios (-800) vs. JJ Wolf (+550)
1:35 p.m. ET
Nick Kyrgios is surely one of the 10 best players in the world at this moment in time, yet I find this line to be a little bit ridiculous.
By his own admission, Kyrgios didn't play his best match against Benjamin Bonzi, and he'll be up against a much better player in the third round in JJ Wolf.
Wolf is red-hot, playing a near-perfect match in the first round to upset Roberto Bautista Agut and then scratching and clawing to take a difficult match against the tricky Alejandro Tabilo. He has a massive service and can hit through anyone with his forehand.
These weapons are downright scary, and they should create a very close match here against Kyrgios. I'm not really confident that the Aussie will break the American many times over, and I'm not even totally sure he'll win this match.
He was complaining of back pain after his win over Bonzi, and if he manages to slump to a lower level in this match like he did last time, it's going to get incredibly tough.
I'd anticipate this one going at least four sets, with breaks hard to come by against the powerful Wolf. He should have the crowd going nuts here and I expect him to flirt with victory.
Pick: Wolf +6.5 Games (-115 via FanDuel)
Daniel Elahi Galan (+190) vs. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (-235)
11 a.m. ET
If there's one thing I've learned in my year of traveling around and covering tennis, it's that the Colombians always show up for their countrymen and women.
Walking the grounds on Tuesday, I can confidently say that the fans for the Galan-Thompson match were the liveliest of the day. From all the way across the grounds on the Grandstand, you could hear the roars when Galan closed out his match in five.
It was so loud that one man next to me on Grandstand thought the noise must have been coming from Arthur Ashe Stadium, where Serena Williams was playing.
That's nothing new for Galan, whose support in Miami was also incredible, and with that kind of energy Galan has a chance to win this match.
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina has not had a very good season by any stretch, going 6-8 on hardcourts and 15-20 outside of his Monte Carlo run. He hardly got by as a relatively big favorite against the out-of-form Marton Fucsovics and blew chance after chance late in the match to grab a decisive break.
I'm not at all impressed with Davidovich Fokina at the moment, and on the other hand I couldn't be more impressed with Galan, who hits a huge ball and is a hard man to win return points against.
I think this is a mis-price, and I'd make Galan closer to +150.
Pick: Galan ML (+190 via PointsBet)
