Yuliia Starodubtseva vs Ella Seidel Prediction U.S. Open - New York · Aug 31, 2026

Analysis

This is a first-round meeting between two players who both sit in the tour's chasing pack rather than among the seeds, which usually means a long, physical opening match in New York. Starodubtseva arrives after a straight-sets loss to Elise Mertens on 28 August, a result that offers little momentum but plenty of recent match rhythm against a high-quality opponent. Her game is built on heavy first-strike hitting from the baseline, which the quick hard courts at Flushing Meadows reward when her length holds, but the same aggression pushes her error count up on bad days. Seidel is the younger of the pair and tends to rely on movement, consistency and depth rather than raw power, so the pattern of the match should be shot-maker against retriever. No head-to-head data is available for this pairing, so neither player carries a psychological edge into the court. With daytime heat and slow-ish conditions after the changeover, a three-set battle looks entirely plausible.