Hard opening number for Niemeier

After the first round of the US Open 2022, there could already be a rude awakening for the German participants. The draw has almost always resulted in very tough lots and so there could be the super-GAU that we will possibly hardly have any male or female athletes from the DTB in the second round.

Jule Niemeier would be one who could at least improve the balance a little. The young woman from Dortmund will face Sofia Kenin in the first round. The US-American triumphed at the Australian Open in 2020, but has since fallen significantly in the world rankings due to a lack of success and a long injury. In Flushing Meadows, she will now only be competing with a wild card.

Jule Niemeier definitely has the potential to keep this match open. In recent weeks, however, she has rarely managed to bring her skills onto the tennis court. Therefore, we do not necessarily expect her to be involved in the second round. Our tendency in the duel between Sofia Kenin and Jule Niemeier is to bet on a victory for the American.

Sofia Kenin – Statistics & Current Form

Current world ranking: 327
Position in the seedings: unseeded

2020 was the year of Sofia Kenin. It looked like the United States had finally found the successor to Serena Williams. After her triumph at the Australian Open in Melbourne, the now 23-year-old also reached the final of the French Open. Fourth place in the world rankings and within touching distance of the tennis throne in the rankings were the result.

Hard crash to the ground

After that, however, not much went right. 2021 and 2022 could be completely written off. After weak Grand Slam tournaments, she lost numerous points that pushed her back to the edge of the top 100. This year, a protracted injury added to the list, so Sofia Kenin is currently ranked 327.

It is a key moment in her career. If she now manages to attack once more and brings her former class back to the court, she will achieve many more positive results. Otherwise, she could go down in history as a “one hit wonder”. In the last twelve matches, however, she has only won twice.

However, those two victories came last week in Cleveland, where she advanced to the quarter-finals before losing to Bernarda Pera. But if she manages to show that upward form at Flushing Meadows, we’ll definitely be looking at the odds in the clash between Sofia Kenin and Jule Niemeier for a home win.

Jule Niemeier – Statistics & current form

Current world ranking: 108
Position in the seedings: unseeded

Jule Niemeier has been in New York for a while now. At first, everything seemed to indicate that the player from Dortmund would compete in the qualifying in Flushing Meadows. After a few cancellations, including one by Angelique Kerber, the German was just the last player to enter the main draw and was able to avoid the grind of qualifying.

Not much going on after Wimbledon

Whether she would have survived this one can also be questioned, because after reaching the quarter-finals at Wimbledon, not much went right. In the last seven matches, the German only managed two victories and she by no means played against the strongest opponents on the tour. That’s why we’re sticking to our prediction of the American advancing between Sofia Kenin and Jule Niemeier.

Recently, Jule Niemeier suffered three defeats in a row. The defeat at the home game in Hamburg was particularly bitter, when she lost to the young Swiss Joanne Züger. Most recently, she played in an ITF tournament in the Bronx and lost directly to Lesley Pattinama Kerkhove from the Netherlands. The Dortmund player’s form is more than capable of improvement.

Moreover, one should not forget that after the quarter-finals of Wimbledon and the withdrawal of Angelique Kerber and soon also Andrea Perkovic and probably Tatjana Maria, the hopes of the German tennis ladies rest on her shoulders. It is time to follow up this claim with further deeds. The US Open would not be the worst stage for this.

Sofia Kenin – Jule Niemeier Direct comparison / H2H-balance

Sofia Kenin and Jule Niemeier are both the same age. However, the US-American made the jump to the world elite early on and has fallen far behind again in the last two years. So while Kenin was already playing the big tournaments, the German was still playing Challengers. Recently, the player from Dortmund experienced an upswing and her American opponent was injured or only played in the tournaments for a short time. That’s why both will play against each other for the first time on Tuesday.

Sofia Kenin – Jule Niemeier Tip

Will Sofia Kenin return to her old strength. If she can make the turnaround, it might be at the US Open at Flushing Meadows, where the local ladies will be extremely vociferous in their cheers. With the crowd behind her, we at least trust her to win her opening match against Jule Niemeier on Tuesday.

But you have to realise that the US-American has only won two of her last twelve matches. However, her German opponent has also only won two of the last seven matches. Both are not in Grand Slam form.

While the US American showed at least a small upswing in form recently in Cleveland, the Dortmund player continues to be in a sporting slump, which has now lasted since Wimbledon. It wasn’t easy, but in the end we decided to play the betting odds between Sofia Kenin and Jule Niemeier on a home win for the American