British tennis fans will have high hopes for their No. 1 Jack Draper at the US Open this week. He plays against Zhizhen Zhang this Monday in a match that on paper, may seem close. But as you’ll see, we settled on our Draper vs Zhang prediction and betting tips to be the Brit winning 3-0.
It might seem odd with the quickness of the tennis court, but the Brit is the better player. He loves to play in New York, and he will show it here. Zhang is solid but simply not good enough to make this that close.
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Player form: Contrasting paths to New York
Zhang is no stranger to taking out seeds as he bested Casper Ruud here last year. This year though, he’s not arriving in the best form. He’s only 1-3 in his last four matches and even the last event in Cincinnati didn’t show him in the best light.
Draper, on the other hand, has been pretty good recently. He made the quarter-final in Cincinnati, a court that plays similarly to the one in New York, so he’s expected to do well there. He has had good showings here in the past, so it wouldn’t be anything new to him.
How the bookies view it: Draper the heavy favourite
Due to how they have performed in recent weeks Draper is heavily favoured in this one. To win he’s only 7/25, which paints a rather clear picture.
Zhang is 3/1 so he doesn’t enjoy much trust from the bookies. There is a very good reason for this. It’s because the Chinese player hasn’t been that good lately, and he’s never been the most consistent either.
Recent head-to-head: First meeting
This will be the first time Draper and Zheng face each other on the ATP Tour.
Anything else catch the eye?
Draper is expected to do well here because he’s better at what Zhang does best. The Chinese player heavily relies on his serve, but Draper has a better one. He might not have the power of Zhang, but he is far more consistent with it.
He also has solid shots from both sides, certainly less erratic than Zhang. This means even in a close tiebreak, which we might see, he’s more likely to hold his serve.
Draper also has had a good run here in the past. Clearly, the conditions are not a problem for him, especially now when the court will be ever faster. Zhang generally performs better on slower courts, such as clay.
Draper vs Zhang betting tips & predictions
The reason why the pick is a 3-0 win for Draper was explained above. He’s just too solid all around. One of these sets they play might be close but even then Draper is more likely to hold his serve.
In general, though, he is a better fit on the court and is playing better right now, which should yield a 3-0 win for him.
- Draper to win @ 7/25
- Draper to win 3-0 @ 8/5
Draper and Zhang clash on Tuesday, August 27th at approximately 1pm local time.
Bren is our resident Kiwi, and has been playing or watching sports down under in New Zealand for the better part of three decades. With 12+ years experience as a professional writer, Bren loves to dive deep into all things sport to bring the best betting analysis and predictions here at Mr Fixits Tips.
