Tennis Prediction Flavio Cobolli vs Alexander Blockx: US Open

🇺🇸 #USOpen

🇮🇹 Cobolli ML · 1.88 | 0.65u**

• Flavio Cobolli has lost the first set in 13 of his last 18 matches and yet he has still won 12 of those 18 matches.

• And honestly, I don't know another player in the draw who operates like that.

• This week again. Down 2 sets to 0 against Francisco Comesana in R1, he won the next 3. Down 1 set to 0 against Tristan Schoolkate on Thursday, he won the next 3.

• His season explains his 6th place world ranking: the title in Acapulco with Frances Tiafoe beaten in the final, the Roland-Garros final lost in 5 sets against Zverev, a quarter-final at Wimbledon with Alex De Minaur defeated, and a semi-final in Cincinnati beating Rafael Jodar and Tommy Paul.

• And in that Cincinnati semi-final, the path went through Alexander Blockx. 7-5 4-6 7-5 for Cobolli, 3 weeks ago, on hard court.

• It was the rematch of Monte-Carlo, where the Belgian had beaten him 6-3 6-3 on clay in April. One set all, and the hard court set goes to the Italian.

• Blockx deserves to be taken seriously, and the market does. He's playing his first final draw in New York and he served 27 aces in 2 matches, with 88% of points won behind his first serve against Marco Trungelliti.

• He has 7 sets and 60 games in his legs, Cobolli has 9 and 86. If he holds his serve and Cobolli starts slow again, the first set goes, as usual.

• But it's exactly the Cincinnati match, and Cincinnati ended 7-5 for the Italian in the 3rd set.

• I'm taking Cobolli. In 4 or 5 sets, a contested, tense match where the grinta could well make the difference.