This article is part of the Tennis Picks series.
At the Cincinnati Open, Thursday will be devoted to second-round matches after several first-round matches were played following Wednesday's first-round matchup. One of the top seeds on the women's side could face a stiff challenge from a player with some recent experience of pulling off a major upset, while several players who have recently risen in the rankings will be looking to build on their recent success.
All tennis odds and lines come from DraftKings Sportsbook, but you may find better odds on some of these matches by checking mobile sportsbooks like FanDuel Sportsbook, BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook, or other top sports betting sites. In states where sports betting has launched, some of these sportsbooks offer exclusive sign-up bonuses.
All men's and women's singles matches at the Cincinnati Open will be best-of-three sets. A player's past hard-court performances, recent form and style of play, combined with other factors, will help pinpoint interesting betting opportunities, both with favorites looking to cruise to victory with ease and underdogs poised to pull off an upset. Said underdogs will be highlighted in the Upset Alerts section, while the Lock It In section will feature players who can be considered overwhelming favourites and the Value Bets section will recommend attractive options in matchups that are considered closer to even.
Cincinnati Open Tennis Predictions: Watch out for upsets
Yulia Putintseva (+265) vs. Coco Gauff
Though Gauff is the defending champion, second-seeded Putintseva will be a tough opponent in the second round, especially as Gauff will have to adapt to the conditions of this tournament after receiving an exemption from the first round. Putintseva needed one set in her first-round match but fought back to beat Harriet Dart 4-6, 6-0, 6-1. Putintseva, ranked 34th in the world, is fresh off a stellar grass-court season that included a win in Birmingham and an upset win over world number one Iga Swiatek at Wimbledon. Putintseva also performed well on hard courts earlier this season, posting 7-2 records in the Sunshine Doubles at Indian Wells and Miami, and reaching the quarterfinals at the Miami WTA 1000. Gauff's speed should help her counter Putintseva's frequent drop shots, but although the American leads 3-0 in head-to-head matches against Putintseva, all of which have been played on clay, she trailed 6-4 in the third set in two of them.
Jack Draper (+160) vs. Stefanos Tsitsipas
Tsitsipas lost his opening match to Kei Nishikori in Toronto last week, before narrowly defeating Jan-Lennard Struff 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 in the tournament. Tsitsipas, ranked 11th in the world, is 12-7 on hard courts in 2024, but 22-6 on clay, a surface that has been a weakness on his career so far, and Draper has a lot more weapons on the surface than either Nishikori or Struff at this stage. The hard-serving British left-hander has been performing well in big matches early in his career, beating Carlos Alcaraz in June. Draper has struggled to control his temper recently, but there's no doubt that the 22-year-old world number 28 has the talent to beat Tsitsipas again, as he is the only opponent to upset Tsitsipas at the 2022 Canadian Open.
Honorable Mention
Karen Khachanov (+265) vs. Alexander Zverev
Cincinnati Open Tennis Odds: Confirmed
Hubert Hurkacz (-275) vs. Yoshihito Nishioka
Hurkacz looked noticeably out of form last week in his first tournament since missing Wimbledon with a knee injury, but he still made it to the quarterfinals of the Canadian Open before losing 3-6, 7-6 (5), 7-5 to eventual winner Alexei Popyrin. The 6-foot-5 Polish player has the ability to serve out of tight spots, but the 5-foot-7 Nishioka will need to work harder to win his service games. Nishioka won in Atlanta last month, but then lost in the first round in two consecutive tournaments to players outside the top 80. A lack of power makes it hard for the 52nd-ranked Nishioka to keep up with a top 10 player like the 7th-ranked Hurkacz, as evidenced by his 4-26 record against top 10 players.
Jasmine Paolini (-225) vs. Anastasia Potapova
Paolini's hard-court success in early 2024 has been overshadowed by her appearances in the finals at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, but the Italian's breakthrough began long before the clay and grass courts began, with a Masters 1000 title in Dubai. She's 28-9 since the tournament began, and the world No. 5 should continue to build on her success against 44th-ranked Potapova, who has been a disappointment this season. After rising to No. 21 in the rankings last June, the 23-year-old Russian has dropped to No. 44 with a mediocre 20-17 record in 2024. Potapova beat Paolini at Indian Wells, despite losing the second set 6-0, but has since fallen to 10-12, while Paolini continues to play the best tennis of her career.
Honorable Mention
Andrey Rublev (-300) vs. Zhang Zhizhen
Cincinnati Open Tennis Predictions: Value Bets
Diana Schneider (-165) vs. Ashlyn Kruger
Schnyder has been at the top of the WTA Tour in recent months, going 18-3 in her last 21 matches, winning two titles in that time and defeating Gauff in the semifinals at last week's Canadian Open before losing to eventual champion Jessica Pegula. The 20-year-old Russian will be looking to show no signs of slowing down against Kruger, who enters the tournament with a 21-20 record this year. Kruger won her first hard-court match since March against Olympic silver medalist Donna Vekic, who was eliminated in qualifiers, but it will be tough for the American to back up that effort against an in-form Schnyder.
Flavio Covoli (-165) vs. Luciano Dardelli
Covoli has been great on hard courts, climbing his ranking to a career-high 31st. The 22-year-old Italian is 6-2 since the end of the clay court season, including top-20 wins over Ben Shelton, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Tommy Paul. Fellow 22-year-old Italian Dardelli is ranked 34th, just three spots below Covoli, but Dardelli clearly prefers clay, coming into this tournament without an ATP Tour-level hard court victory in his career. Dardelli picked up his first win here in his opening match against Alejandro Tabilo, while Covoli is coming off a more impressive first-round win over Paul. In the first official meeting between the Italian compatriots, born less than three months apart, the court conditions give Covoli the clear advantage.
Honorable Mention
Arthur Fils (+100) vs. Brandon Nakashima
