US Open Tennis 2013: Red-Hot Lower Seeds to Watch in New York

Half the fun of any Grand Slam tournament is watching the early upsets.

The 2013 Wimbledon Championships was such a great tournament, and not just because Andy Murray made history. With so many top seeds getting upset in the first couple rounds of the tournament, it begged the question if any top player were truly safe.

If fans are lucky, the 2013 U.S. Open will continue that trend. Everybody expects Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic or Andy Murray to advance to the final. There's not that much drama. Early upsets can at least inject some excitement into the tournament.

These four low seeds might not make a run to the final, but they could pick up a big upset or two and throw off the balance of the U.S. Open.

You can view the men's singles draw and women's singles draw on the U.S. Open's official website.

Men's Singles

No. 29 Jurgen Melzer

Jurgen Melzer couldn't have possibly done better in his run leading up to the U.S. Open. He won the Winston-Salem Open after Gael Monfils retired in the final. It's the only title he's won in 2013.

Melzer has done well on hard courts this year. He advanced to the third round of the Australian Open but lost to Tomas Berdych in three sets. Then there was the run to the quarterfinals at the Sony Open, where he lost to David Ferrer.

The 32-year-old has a nice path to the third round, where a likely date with Juan Martin del Potro looms.

No. 30 Ernests Gulbis

Ernests Gulbis started off 2013 very well. He won his only singles title of the season in February at the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships. He followed that up with a run to the fourth round at Indian Wells, where he was defeated by Rafael Nadal. Given Nadal's form this year, that's not all that bad of a loss.

For his next nine tournaments, however, the 24-year-old failed to get past the third round.

Then came a quarterfinal run at the Rogers Cup, where Gulbis upset Fabio Fognini in the second round and then Andy Murray in the third.

He hasn't made it past the second round at the U.S. Open since 2007. That should change this year, but Gulbis is unlikely to make it much further, as he could see David Ferrer in the third round.

Still, on his best day, Gulbis can cause fits for any top seed.

Women's Singles

No. 26 Alize Cornet

Alize Cornet has been consistent in her first three Grand Slam appearances in 2013. She advanced to the second round at the Australian Open and then the third rounds of both Wimbledon and the French Open.

Clay is Cornet's surface of choice, but that hasn't stopped her from registering a couple of big upsets in her preparation for the U.S. Open.

She knocked off Ana Ivanovic in the first round of the Western & Southern Open and Maria Kirilenko at the Rogers Cup.

Cornet is no stranger to No. 2 Victoria Azarenka, whom she could meet in the third round. The two met at the French Open, with Azarenka needing three sets to take out the 23-year-old.

No. 29 Magdalena Rybarikova

Here's to hoping Magdalena Rybarikova doesn't have to play Serena Williams in the third round. The two met at the Rogers Cup, with Williams winning in straight sets, 6-1, 6-1.

A quarterfinal run in Toronto was a successful result overall. It followed a win from Rybarikova at the Citi Open.

Rybarikova is at her best on hard court. She's a talented player who could give top seeds some trouble.

The 24-year-old knows how to grind out victories. She's no stranger to needing three sets in order to pick up a win. Dealing with adversity is something Rybarikova will have to get used to, especially if she does win her first two matches in Flushing Meadows.