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Brandon Nakashima vs Holger Rune: US Open – First round
American Brandon Nakashima will face off Holger Rune in the first round of the US Open.
Brandon Nakashima Profile
Brandon Nakashima is 50th in the ATP rankings, seven spots lower than his career high. The American is 51-24 for the season and 18-8 on hard surface.
Nakashima is coming off a 7-6, 6-1 loss to Andrey Rublev in the round of 16 in Cincinnati. Earlier in the tournament, he defeated Arthur Fils and Taylor Swift.
Nakashima won the Challenger in Tenerife this season and lost the final in Koblenz.
This will be his sixth appearance at the US Open and his best result was the third round in 2022.
Holger Rune Profile
Former world No. 4 Holger Rune is currently 15th in the ATP rankings. The Danish is 34-17 for the season and 17-7 on hard surface.
Rune is coming off a 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 loss to Frances Tiafoe in the semifinal in Cincinnati and previously defeated Jack Draper, Gael Monfils, Nuno Borges and Matteo Berrettini in the tournament.
Rune’s best result this season was the final in Brisbane where he lost to Grigor Dimitrov.
This will be his fourth appearance at the US Open and his best result was the third round in 2022.
Head-to-Head Nakashima leads 2-0
- Nakashima vs Rune 6-0, 6-2 (2023 ATP Shanghai, second round)
- Nakashima vs Rune 3-4, 4-1, 4-1, 4-3 (2021 NextGen ATP Finals)
Prediction and Conclusion
Holger Rune lost his spot in the top 10 of the ATP rankings, but with his current form, he looks ready to get back into the elite company. The 21-year-old will start his US Open journey against a player he has never beat before. Nakashima is on the rise and is one of only a few players who have over 50 wins at this point in the season. He has never been close to Rune’s ranking but will definitely have a chance in this match. It will be a big fight, so we go with over 3.5 sets in total.
