Lorenzo Musetti made it to the quarterfinals at the 2025 U.S. Open. Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP See more of our coverage in your search results.
Add The New York Post on Google It’s been a long time since it’s felt like anybody can win the Men’s U.S. Open, but with Jannik Sinner injured and Carlos Alcaraz set to return to action for the first time since April, the path is open for a surprise winner in Flushing.
Alcaraz remains the favorite to win his third U.S. Open title, but the bookies at bet365 Sportsbook have installed him at a lukewarm price of +175, just ahead of French Open champion Alexander Zverev (+300).
The narrow gap between Alcaraz and Zverev also reflects their respective draws.
While the Spaniard was dealt a tricky path to the semifinals, starting with a tough match against Roman Safiullin in Round 1, Zverev’s half of the bracket doesn’t feature nearly as many landmines.
Things get quite bunched up behind Zverev, as there are five players between +800 odds and 12/1: Novak Djokovic (+800), Arthur Fils (10/1), Rafael Jodar (10/1), Ben Shelton (11/1) and Taylor Fritz (12/1).
All of those players will fancy their chances to win with Sinner out of the picture and Alcaraz rusty, but each of them has significant questions to answer.
That should make the upcoming fortnight unpredictable, leaving the door open for an outsider to crash the party.
Injuries have derailed Lorenzo Musetti in 2026, but the former World No. 5 seems to be fit and firing after getting to the quarterfinals at the Cincinnati Masters.
If he’s operating at 100 percent, Musetti is absolutely a threat to win this tournament.
The Italian has all sorts of tricks up his sleeve and is a graceful mover, making him both a joy to watch and a chore to play against.
We usually tend to be biased towards big servers at the U.S. Open, but Musetti’s unpredictability makes up for his lack of power.
Casper Ruud is a former US Open runner-up. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect Casper Ruud (100/1, DraftKings) Casper Ruud can be a maddening player to back, but his upside is undeniable.
When he’s up for it, Ruud is a threat to win any tournament, but you just don’t know what you’re going to get from the Norwegian when he steps on the court.
You could get the composed player with a relentless motor that made it to the U.S. Open Final in 2022 or you can get the disinterested version of Ruud that gets bounced in the early rounds.
We’ll hope for the former, as Ruud has a favorable draw in the early chapters of this tournament.
Alexander Bublik possesses one of the best serves in tennis. JASON SZENES/ NY POST Alexander Bublik (130/1, DraftKings) Speaking of players who can drive you up a wall, that’s Alexander Bublik’s calling card.
A prodigious server and one of the most talented athletes in this field, Bublik can look like the best player in the world one moment and a country-clubber the next.
The Kazakh was drawn into Carlos Alcaraz’s half of the bracket, but his path to a potential meeting with Alcaraz is not all that daunting.
We’ll take a huge price on a huge talent here.
Michael Leboff is a long-suffering Islanders fan, but a long-profiting sports bettor with 10 years of experience in the gambling industry. He loves using game theory to help punters win bracket pools, find long shots, and learn how to beat the market in mainstream and niche sports.
