We're into the second day of the quarterfinals at the US Open, and we've got three of the game's brightest young stars in action.
Who will prevail in these popcorn matches? Let's take a look at the Wednesday matchups.
Note: Match times are subject to change. Read here for tips on viewing US Open matches.
Andrey Rublev (-110) vs. Frances Tiafoe (-110)
3:30 p.m. ET
Andrey Rublev and Frances Tiafoe met last year at the US Open, and while Tiafoe was a sizable underdog in that match you simply never would have known.
He was the better player throughout the match, utilizing his athleticism and touch around the net to dismantle Rublev.
The match finished in five sets, but it seemed rather surprising given the fact that Tiafoe was on top of the Russian for four sets, and a one-sided fifth seemed to prove that.
While Rublev got his revenge at Indian Wells this year, it wasn't a result totally worth reading into. Tiafoe was fresh off of a long injury layoff, and even with that he still led by a break early in the proceedings.
His conditioning is far more up to snuff at this point, and his level is back where it was last year at the US Open.
Rublev has had to work incredibly hard over the last week, and even in victory against Cam Norrie I wasn't overly impressed given the lack of quality from the Brit.
I expect Tiafoe to bring points to the net like he did against Rublev last year and against Rafael Nadal in the fourth round, and I also think he will win the majority of backhand trades given the huge disparity in the quality of each player's stroke.
Pick: Tiafoe ML (-110 via FanDuel)
Carlos Alcaraz (-185) vs. Jannik Sinner (+145)
8:15 p.m. ET
Sure, the head-to-head reads 2-2 here, but I don't think this one will be quite the cracking affair we all expect it to be.
Sinner got Alcaraz on the grass this summer — a surface the Spaniard is unfamiliar with — and also on the clay in Umag at a rather low-stakes event. I don't think we'll see the same story unfold on a hard court, where Alcaraz has actually been at his best over the course of his career.
I can not stress enough how battered, bruised and exhausted Sinner looked late on Monday as he won a five-set war with Ilya Ivashka. I can not stress enough how fresh Alcaraz looked at the end of his five-set win over Marin Cilic.
Sure, he finished later in the night, but there is a significant difference in the way these men finished their evenings.
I don't think Sinner has enough in the tank for another physical match like the one Alcaraz will force him to play, and I think we've seen far too many mental lapses from Sinner all tournament to trust him to put together a win over arguably the best player remaining in the draw.
Sinner dropped a set to Brandon Nakashima, nearly dropped one to Chris Eubanks and went five with Ivashka and Daniel Altmaier. He's failed to put away easy opponents in short order, and now he will pay the price.
Pick: Alcaraz -2.5 Games (-115 via PointsBet)
