2015 U.S. Open Second Round Review and Third Round Preview

2nd Round Women's Upsets:
(WC) Bethanie Mattek-Sands d. Coco Vandeweghe 6-2, 6-1
(Q) Anett Kontaveit d. (31) Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 7-5, 6-4
(LL) Daria Kasatkina d. Ana Konjuh 6-4, 6-4
(Q) Johanna Konta d. (9) Garbine Muguruza 7-6(4), 6-7(4), 6-2
(PR) Petra Cetkovska d. (4) Caroline Wozniacki 6-4, 5-7, 7-6(1)
(Q) Shelby Rogers d. Kurumi Nara 6-4, 6-4

2nd Round Men's Upsets:
Mikhail Kukushkin d. (17) Grigor Dimitrov 6-3, 7-6(2), 2-6, 4-6, 6-4
Ruben Bemelmans d. (28) Jack Sock 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 2-1 ret.
Jiri Vesely d. (21) Ivo Karlovic 7-6(3), 3-6, 3-6, 6-2, 7-6(4)

3rd Round Women's Matches to Watch/Upset Alert:
(19) Madison Keys vs. (15) Agnieszka Radwanska
(12) Belinda Bencic vs. (23) Venus Williams
(17) Elina Svitolina vs. (13) Ekaterina Makarova
(25) Eugenie Bouchard vs. Dominika Cibulkova
(16) Sara Errani vs. (22) Samantha Stosur
(26) Flavia Pennetta vs. (PR) Petra Cetkovska
(20) Victoria Azarenka vs. (11) Angelique Kerber
Barbora Strycova vs. (24) Sabine Lisicki

3rd Round Men's Matches to Watch/Upset Alert:
(23) Roberto Bautista Agut vs. (14) David Goffin

(10) Milos Raonic vs. (18) Feliciano Lopez
This series is tied 3-3, but Lopez won there most recent matchup in the first round in Cincinnati a few weeks ago. Raonic has been working his way back from foot surgery a couple of months ago and is looking to regain his form. These are two of the best servers in tennis today. So, there should be plenty of tiebreakers and aces in this match.

(32) Fabio Fognini vs. (8) Rafael Nadal
Nadal has a 5-2 lead in their head-to-head meetings, but Fognini has beaten Rafa two out of three times (Rio and Barcelona) this year. However, all three meetings have been on clay. Will Fognini's game cause problems for Rafa on the hard court? Will Rafa be able to salvage a rough season and exact revenge on one of his tormentors this year on tour? Even though Fognini has proven he can beat Rafa, will he be engaged in this match, or will he have the "I don't care" attitude that has plagued him in his career?

Benoit Paire vs. (26) Tommy Robredo

(27) Jeremy Chardy vs. (7) David Ferrer
Ferrer leads this matchup 7-1, but is playing his first tournament since the French Open. Chardy advanced to the semifinals at the Rogers Cup. Ferrer's earned the nickname "The Little Beast", but will have his hands full with the surging Frenchman.

(15) Kevin Anderson vs. (20) Dominic Thiem
Thiem is a rising young gun who's quickly rising up the rankings. He is in the midst of a breakthrough year with three titles (Nice, Umag, and Gstaad) under his belt. However, the three titles are on clay. How will he be able to handle the crafty vetern, Anderson? Anderson has a booming serve and will serve a host of problems for returners.

Jiri Vesely vs. (13) John Isner
Vesely won his first career ATP tour level title in Auckland in January. Isner has underwhelmed in the majors in his career. Isner is one of the worst returners, but one of the best servers. Isner's tall frame is also one of the reasons of his problems in the majors. Vesely needs to look to make the match physical and keep the "Marathon Man" on the court. One thing going for Isner is a fifth set tiebreaker. We will see a conclusion to this match sooner rather than later. So, we won't see a 70-68 fifth set at this tournament.