Serena to get past Kovinic in round one
Serena Williams takes to the courts in New York having won the US Open four times, but with her last success in 2014. In the meantime, she's reached the final twice but was defeated by Naomi Osaka, in 2018, and by Bianca Andreescu, the year later.
Unfortunately for the veteran - a legend of the game - things aren't getting easier. She's played just four matches this season, winning three and was eliminated in round one of Wimbledon by Harmony Tan. Last time out, Williams was defeated by Emma Raducanu, including a second-set bagel and winning just 36% of points in the match.
These scenarios aren't a positive for Williams ahead of the tournament, although her round one draw is - she faces Danka Kovinic in round one who hasn't won a match, or indeed a set, since May. Serena is 1.331/3 to progress, before tougher tests await.
Wang generously priced against clay-courter Parry
In other matches, I'm surprised to see Xiyu Wang as big as 1.774/5 for her meeting with Diane Parry. The price might be explained slightly by Wang's back problem which saw her miss a week or two, but prior to this, she was in great form, reaching the semi-finals in Washington and beating Victoria Azarenka in straight sets.
Opponent Parry tends to do her best work on clay courts, and unless fitness issues come significantly into play here, I think Wang should get the job done as a slight favourite.
Vandeweghe likely to have too much for Zanevska
American veteran Coco Vandeweghe has struggled to get her ranking back up to a decent level following long-term injury, but her win in the Concord Challenger several weeks ago will have helped boost her confidence - she picked up three underdog victories in that event including wins over the top two seeds.
Her level should be too much for the Belgian, Maryna Zanevska, who tends to prioritise clay courts, and has only played one match on hard courts so far all summer. With poor medium-long term serve numbers on hard court, I'd be surprised if Zanevska took this and I like Vandeweghe's price as the 1.564/7 favourite.