US Open 2021: Jenson Brooksby vs Aslan Karatsev preview, head-to-head & prediction

Match details

Fixture: Jenson Brooksby vs (21) Aslan Karatsev

Date: 4 September 2021

Tournament: 2021 US Open

Round: Third round (Round of 32)

Venue: Flushing Meadows, New York

Category: Grand Slam

Surface: Outdoor hardcourt

Prize money: $40,560,000

Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel & ESPN/ESPN 2 | UK - Amazon Prime Video | India - Star Sports / Disney+ Hotstar VIP

Jenson Brooksby vs Aslan Karatsev preview

Rising American sensation Jenson Brooksby will square off against Russia's Aslan Karatsev in the third round of the 2021 US Open on Saturday.

Brooksby is enjoying a fairytale run during the ongoing American hardcourt series. After a runner-up finish at the Hall of Fame Open, he finished as a semifinalist at the Citi Open in Washington.

Now, the 20-year-old is into the third round of a Slam for the first time in his career. Brooksby beat the in-form Mikael Ymer in the first round before going on to send compatriot Taylor Fritz packing in the second.

Brooksby was impressive in all aspects of the game against Fritz. He defended well, struck some meaty blows, was decent on his serve, and produced some glorious winners.

AROUND THE NET OMGJENSON BROOKSBY WE ARE NOT WORTHY pic.twitter.com/HXSRbupfbS

— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 3, 2021

Fritz did have a chance to go up by a set and a break, but he squandered that chance before losing 6-7(7), 7-6(10), 7-5, 6-2. Brooksby's defense and variety helped him earn a mammoth 19 break points against Fritz, out of which he converted on five occasions.

Aslan Karatsev, meanwhile, injected a new lease of life into his flailing season by coming back from two sets and a couple of match points down to beat Jordan Thompson. Karatsev won 3-6, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6(9), 6-1 to make it to the third round on his US Open main-draw debut.

✨ Aslan Karatsev magic ✨The 🇷🇺 rallies from two sets down to stun Jordan Thompson on Court 11! pic.twitter.com/P3omFt5rcv

— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 2, 2021

The Russian saved a couple of match points in the fourth set tiebreak and didn't look back from there, romping home in the deciding set. Karatsev struck a total of 57 winners in the match while coughing up 54 unforced errors.

Jenson Brooksby vs Aslan Karatsev head-to-head

Aslan Karatsev leads Jenson Brooksby by a margin of 1-0 in the head-to-head. The two had locked horns in the first round of the French Open this year, with Karatsev winning 6-3, 6-4, 6-4.

Jenson Brooksby vs Aslan Karatsev prediction

Aslan Karatsev in action at the 2021 US Open

This promises to be one of the standout matches from the first week of the 2021 US Open, given that both players can produce some scintillating shots.

Aslan Karatsev overpowered Jenson Brooksby with his heavy groundstrokes during their meeting in Paris. But Brooksby is an entirely different proposition when it comes to hardcourts.

The American's serve gets a lot more purchase on this surface, and Karatsev will not find it as easy to tee off on the return. Brooksby is also an expert at redirecting pace, so Karatsev might have to cut down the MPHs on his usually supersonic groundstrokes.

The Russian is the slight favorite in this match-up on paper, given his ranking and past accomplishments. But we are backing Brooksby as his game has proven to be much tougher to break down this week than Karatsev's.

Prediction: Jenson Brooksby to win in five sets.