Wimbledon Matches to Watch: Tsitsipas vs. Krygios and Gauff vs. Anisimova

Wimbledon Matches to Watch: Tsitsipas vs. Krygios and Gauff vs. Anisimova

4 min read

Universal Tennis INSIGHTS tournament favorites Rafael Nadal and Iga Swiatek are still marching toward victory but there is a lot of action still left to play out on the lawns of the All-England Club. The Brits made headlines with huge upsets while Nick Kyrgios and Coco Gauff were nearly flawless on Thursday; who will be able to follow it up to reach the second week of Wimbledon?

Kyrgios Sets the Tone

In second-round action, Nick Kyrgios (UTR Rating 15.70) dismissed Filip Krajinovic (15.16) in straight sets to send the message at the All-England Club that he means business.

“Today, obviously, I was kind of in my zone, just great body language, just played well,” Kyrgios said. “I just wanted to remind everyone that I’m pretty good.”

 

 

The 27-year-old Australian takes on No. 4 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas (15.85) on Saturday, where, according to INSIGHTS, he has a 40% chance of winning. Kyrgios leads 3-1 in career head-to-head meetings against the Greek with a recent win in Halle on grass in three tight sets. Tsitsipas has more recent wins under his belt (78-27 compared to 22-13) and has the edge in UTR Ratings (overall and three-month trending).

Nakashima Eyes Opportunity

INSIGHTS had given Brandon Nakashima (15.30) a 46% chance of taking out No. 13 seed Denis Shapovalov (15.37) and the 20-year-old American made good on the odds by winning 6-2, 4-6, 6-1, 7-6(6). Nakashima will have a huge opportunity against unseeded Daniel Galan (14.96) where he’s favored at 68% to reach his first Grand Slam fourth round.

 

 

Brits Thrill Home Crowds

British wild card Liam Broady (14.89) scored one of the most significant wins of his career over No. 12 seed Diego Schwartzman (15.58) in five wild sets, 6-2, 4-6, 0-6, 7-6(6), 6-1. Per INSIGHTS, his win over Schwartzman is the biggest upset of the tournament so far with an 0.69 UTR Rating differential. The 28-year-old has never been this far at a Grand Slam and making it happen at his home Slam is even more special.

Next up for Broady is a battle with No. 19-seeded Alex de Minaur (15.54) with Broady having 20% odds of reaching the fourth round. De Minaur won their only career meeting last year on grass in Eastbourne in straight sets.

Fellow Brit Katie Boulter (12.42) upset last year’s finalist Karolina Pliskova (12.45), 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-4, backing up a win over the Czech last week in Eastbourne. She will next face unseeded Harmony Tan (11.99) after the Frenchwoman followed up her win over Serena Williams with a straight-set victory over No. 32 seed Sara Sorribes Tormo (12.57).

 

 

“I feel like I’ve shown in some of the matches recently some of the stuff that I’m capable of,” Boulter said earlier this week. “It’s just doing it day in, day out. For me, that is the toughest challenge. Of course, I’ve got so much to work on in my game. I really feel like I can push on. But I do feel like I can compete with a lot of the best players in the world.”

She has compiled significant recent wins on grass including over Pliskova (twice), Alison Riske-Amritraj, and Caroline Garcia. Boulter is favored against Tan at 71% to continue her breakthrough run in London. Both Tan and Boulter will be contesting the third round of a major for the first time.

All-American Showdown to Come

Another exciting third-round match will feature No. 11 seed Coco Gauff (12.91) against No. 20 seed Amanda Anisimova (12.99). The two young Americans have only played each other once, in Parma last year, with Gauff winning. Both have Slam experience under their belt: Gauff is a 2022 Roland Garros finalist while Anisimova reached the Roland Garros semifinals in 2019.

Their INSIGHTS head-to-head comparison shows Anisimova with 54% odds of beating the 18-year-old. Anisimova has the higher UTR Ratings though Gauff has the stronger recent win-loss record and better record versus common opponents.

Coco Gauff found her rhythm in a 6-2, 6-3 win over Mihaela Buzarnescu on Thursday. (AP Photo: Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Players to Watch

Petra Kvitova (12.73) is a two-time champion at Wimbledon but her seeding of No. 25 makes her a bit of a dark horse. On Saturday, she has a 35% chance, per INSIGHTS, of getting past No. 4 seed Paula Badosa (12.99). Their only career meeting went Kvitova’s way at the 2020 Australian Open. Badosa has the edge in every INSIGHTS category including trending three-month UTR Rating (it’s up at 12.93 compared to Kvitova’s 12.68).

Jenson Brooksby (15.35), seeded No. 29, has got a challenge next in Cristian Garin (15.31). Per INSIGHTS, Brooksby has the slight edge at 52%. The 21-year-old American first established himself on tour last year and even reached the fourth round at the US Open. Garin, more well-known for his clay prowess, made a fourth-round run at Wimbledon last year to match his best major performance at Roland Garros.

Stay tuned for more from INSIGHTS, and to learn more about Universal Tennis, click here.

•UTR Ratings and INSIGHTS probabilities as of 6 a.m. EST, July 1, 2022.

Back to blog