US Open 2025: Men's singles qualifying R2 predictions ft. Arthur Cazaux vs Jay Clarke, Jesper de Jong vs Harold Mayot

The qualifying event for the men's singles is underway at the 2025 US Open. The first round of matches has almost come to a close, reducing the field of players from 128 to 64.

Of the seeded Qualifiers, 13 seeds have already bowed out of the competition, including 27th-seeded American qualifier Colton Smith, leaving 22nd-seeded Zachary Svajda as the only seeded American in the qualifying draw. Mitchell Krueger, Martin Damm, Murphy Cassone, Garrett Johns, Patrick Maloney, and Andres Martin are the unseeded American players to have reached the second round of qualifying.

Let's take a look at some of the second-round matches of the men's singles qualifying at the 2025 US Open

#1 Arthur Cazaux vs Jay Clarke

Top-seeded qualifier Arthur Cazaux will take on Great Britain's Jay Clarke in the second round of the men's singles qualifying at the 2025 US Open.

Cazaux has won 20 of the 37 matches in 2025, with his best result being a runner-up finish in Kitbuhel. At the US Open, he began his campaign with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Mark Lajal in the first round of qualifying.

Clarke has a 43-20 win/loss record this year, having won three ITF events in Chandigarh, Ahmedabad, and Santa Marigheta di, and a Challenger title in Skopje. At the US Open, he began his qualifying journey with a 7-6 (5), 6-1 win over Jack Satterfield in the first round.

Cazaux won his only match against Clarke 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 back in 2022 in a Challenger event, making him the favorite to win the upcoming match.

Predicted winner- Arthur Cazaux

#2 Jesper de Jong vs Harold Mayot

Second-seeded qualifier Jesper de Jong will face Harold Mayot in the second round of the men's singles qualifying at the 2025 US Open.

De Jong has a 28-24 win/loss record this year, with runner-up finishes at the Nordea Open and at the Murcia Challenger. At the US Open, he began with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Vilius Gaubas in the first round of qualifying.

Mayot has won 27 of the 50 matches this year, with his best result being a runner-up finish at the Zug Challenger. At the US Open, he began his qualifying journey with a 7-5, 6-3 win over Johannus Monday in the first round.

The head-to-head is tied at 1-1, with De Jong winning the last encounter at qualifying in Rome this year, making him the favorite to win the upcoming match in New York.

Predicted winner- Jesper de Jong

#3 Juan Manuel Cerundolo vs Yuta Shimizu

In Picture: Juan Manuel Cerundolo in action (Getty)

Fourth-seeded qualifier Juan Manuel Caerundolo will face Japan's Yuta Shimizu in the second round at the men's singles qualifying at the US Open.

Cerundolo has a 39-23 win/loss record in 2025, with runner-up finishes at the Swiss Open and at the Braunschweig Challenger. In New York, he won 6-4, 6-3 against Calvin Hemery in the first round of qualifying.

Shimizu has a 15-16 win/loss record in 2025, with multiple quarterfinal finishes at Challenger events as his best outing. He began his qualifying journey in New York with a 6-7 (3), 6-3, 6-3 win over Sho Shimabukuro in the first round.

This is the first meeting between the two players, with Cerundolo being the favorite to win as he is the seeded player.

Predicted winner- Juan Manuel Cerundolo

#4 James Duckworth vs James McCabe

Fifth-seeded qualifier James Duckworth will face compatriot James McCabe in the second round of the men's singles qualifying at the 2025 US Open.

Duckworth has a 26-23 win-loss record this year, including a victory at the San Luis Potosi Challenger. In New York, he started with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Facundo Bagnis in the first round of qualifying.

McCabe has a 23-24 win/loss record this year, with his best result being a semifinal finish at the Bengaluru Challenger. He began his qualifying journey in New York with a 6-3, 6-7 (2), 6-4 win over Francesco Maestrelli in the first round.

Duckworth has won both matches against McCabe in Challenger and qualifying events, making him the favorite to win the upcoming match.

Predicted winner- James Duckworth

About the author

Sagnik, a Mass Communication and Journalism graduate, is a tennis journalist at Sportskeeda. Before finding his spot in the tennis writing team, he worked as a junior content specialist for academic content writing firms for a couple of years.

Before putting out any information in the public domain, Sagnik makes sure that every element of his content is well-researched and backed with credible data so that there is no misinterpretation of facts or quotes and ethical standards are maintained. To do so, Sagnik follows reputed websites like the Tennis Channel and Tennis TV, and renowned journalists on social media.

He is a fan of former player Roger Federer, and just like his favorite player, Sagnik likes to bring perfection to his write-ups by providing concise and on-point content. Speaking of the ‘GOAT’ debate, Sagnik believes that it is a bit unfair to compare the legends of the game from different eras who have played on different terms. But if he were to pick one, he’d go for Novak Djokovic based on his tally of 24 Grand Slam titles.

When not writing about tennis and technically analyzing the sport, which he believes are his 'forte', Sagnik indulges in reading books.

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Edited by SAGNIK DATTA