No qualifiers this time!

Faria finally doesn’t have to go through qualifying for the big tournaments, and it’s really going to do her good!

No Winston-Salem either for the Portuguese player, who pulled out without giving a reason. I think he mostly put in a big effort at the last tournament and really couldn’t afford to burn himself out even more before the US Open, smart decision. He’s going to have to loosen up at the start of this tournament because he’s a tense, often nervous player; he needs to play his best tennis to be happy and struggles when he’s not at the top of his game. In the last few weeks he’s had good results again and it’s not surprising given his level: he’s complete and with that big temperament it’s bound to click at some point.

It’s a trickier period for Brooksby, who’s piling up disappointing performances. I still found him really bad against Tsitsipas, unable to tighten up his game even though he had a bunch of chances. His tennis is less solid at the moment and you can tell he’s not confident. The US Open is a tournament where he usually plays well; I think the conditions do suit him and he can become a pain to beat when you’re short on solutions. He’s emotional too, sometimes wants too much to do well and can take time to get into his matches. I’m predicting an average start to the match from both players.

They played recently in Cincinnati and it was no contest, Faria ran over him. The Portuguese serves well but he’s not only reliant on his serve, he’s comfortable from the baseline and he’s a fighter, the long format is made for him. Brooksby is going to cause him problems over the distance with his consistency but...