US Open: Unpleasant opening opponent for Thiem

The unseeded Lower Austrian, who won the tennis major in Flushing Meadows in 2020, meets number 25 seeded Kazakh Alexander Bublik.

Bublik is not a blank slate for Thiem, the only duel with the cunning Kazakh, who was also known for his service from below, was won by Thiem in four sets in 2019 in the second round of the French Open. If Thiem wins, he will play against Pedro Cachin (ARG) or the American Ben Shelton. However, there is a question mark behind Thiem’s ​​state of health, who, according to his brother and manager Moritz Thiem, suffers from a “kind of gastritis”.

Ofner meets Portuguese Borges

Austria’s number 1, Sebastian Ofner, plays for the first time against the Portuguese Nuno Borges. It’s a dress rehearsal for September’s Davis Cup against Portugal. If Ofner masters the first hurdle, it will be very difficult for the Styrian: In all likelihood he would meet Frances Tiafoe, number 10. Because this is clearly to be favored in the US duel with Learner Tien (wildcard).

First US Open for Grabher

For women, the draw made on Friday in the US borough of Queens gave Julia Grabher a manageable first-round opponent. Austria’s number one meets a Chinese for the third time in a row, and again Wang Xiyu. Only last Monday, the Vorarlberg native defeated this player in the first round in Cleveland 6:3,6:4, but then lost to Zhu Lin. In the event of a win, Grabher will either play against the number 16 seeded Russian Veronika Kudermetowa or Bernarda Pera (USA). For Grabher it is the premiere in the main competition of the US Open.