Tennis has seen a wave of American talent making a mark both in the ATP circuit, as well as on the WTA Tour. While players like Taylor Fritz and Coco Gauff are already established names, other stars like Ben Shelton and Emma Navarro are rising up the ranks. Among them is another young American, Alex Michelsen. The 19-year-old is having a breakthrough year and is playing consistently tournament after tournament. Later today, he will take on Lorenzo Sonego of Italy in the summit clash of the Winston-Salem Open.

With the US Open nearing with each passing day, this match will prove to be a crucial one for the two players to carry the momentum into the last Grand Slam tournament of the season. As a result, expect some fiery play on the court later today.

Alex Michelsen vs Lorenzo Sonego: Preview

It has been a dream tournament for Michelsen, playing in front of the home crowd. Although his path hasn’t been the smoothest, he defeated players like Chris Eubanks and Pablo Carreno Busta, who are much more experienced than him. However, he has been looking for a breakthrough performance for a long time.

Although Alex Michelsen didn’t have the best of starts to the season, he reached the finals of the Hall Of Fame Tennis Championships, apart from a consistent display lately. Thus, he will be determined to go a step ahead and clinch the title in Winston-Salem.

On the other hand, a much experienced Sonego is not having the best of times on the tennis court. Before the Winston-Salem Open, his best performance on the ATP Tour this year was a quarterfinal finish in Grand Prix Hassan II. Additionally, he has had an inconsistent run of form lately and today’s match will be redemption time for the tall and lanky Italian if he has to carry on the momentum going into the US Open.

Michelsen vs Sonego: Head-to-head

Both Michelsen and Sonego have played on the ATP Tour as well as the Challenger Tour this year. Although they have yet to face off against each other on the ATP Tour, Michelsen and Sonego played at the Cagliari Challenger back in May this year, where the Italian star dug deep to see off the challenge from Michelsen. However, with the stakes much higher this time around, Alex Michelsen would look to start afresh in his match today.

Prediction: Sonego to continue his winning run over Michelsen

While Sonego is the tenth seed at the tournament, Alex Michelsen closely follows him on the 11th spot. The American star is, however, ranked 6 spots above Sonego at the 52nd position in the ATP rankings chart.

However, there has been a major difference between the campaigns of the two players at Winston-Salem. Sonego is yet to lose a set in the tournament and has had comfortable victories. On the contrary, Michelsen has had to dig deep in his matches here and lost a set against Eubanks.

Another major factor going in favor of Sonego is his serve in the tournament. The 6’3″ Italian has been serving brilliantly in his matches and his semifinal opponent, David Goffin, could win just 27% of points on return.

If Sonego continues serving the way he has done in this tournament, he will win his match against Michelsen in straight sets. On the other hand, Michelsen will be determined to level his h2h record against Sonego. All in all, it promises to be a thriller of a contest before the US Open.