US Open Tennis 2018: TV Schedule, Picks for Wednesday Afternoon Draw
Former champions are littered across the afternoon schedule for the third day of action from the 2018 U.S. Open on Wednesday.
Andy Murray is back on court as he takes on No. 31 seed Fernando Verdasco in the second round, while Juan Martin del Potro faces America's Denis Kudla.
Defending women's champion Sloane Stephens is first up at Arthur Ashe Stadium against Anhelina Kalinina before Venus Williams takes on Italy's Camila Giorgi.
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Stan Wawrinka is also in action against 20-year-old Frenchman Ugo Humbert.
Here is a selected schedule for Wednesday's early action, via USOpen.org:
Arthur Ashe Stadium (Play begins noon ET, 5 p.m. BST. Selected matches)
(3) Sloane Stephens* vs. Anhelina Kalinina
Andy Murray* vs. (31) Fernando Verdasco
Louis Armstrong Stadium (Play begins 11 a.m. ET, 4 p.m. BST)
Tatjana Maria* vs. (7) Elina Svitolina
Camila Giorgi vs. (16) Venus Williams*
(3) Juan Martin del Potro* vs. Denis Kudla
*Picks to win
TV Info: The action will be shown live on ESPN and the Tennis Channel in the United States. In the UK, the live matches can be streamed via Amazon Prime.
Murray and Verdasco have met on 14 previous occasions and the Scot has won 13 of the them.
He has beaten the 34-year-old eight times in a row since his sole defeat to the Spaniard at the 2009 Australian Open.
In normal circumstances, there would only be one winner of Wednesday's clash.
But Murray, 31, is still gradually making his return to full fitness and was on court for more than three hours on Monday when he beat James Duckworth in the first round.
The sapping heat in New York could play a key role in Wednesday's daytime matches, and Verdasco will likely look to take advantage of the fact the 2012 U.S. Open champion is not quite at his physical peak.
Kudla will have no such luxury against Del Potro, who has enjoyed a rare injury-free run of late and worked his way back to No. 3 in the world.
The 2009 U.S. Open champion dispatched Donald Young in one hour, 43 minutes on Monday and looked in fine shape.
Assuming the Argentinian brings the same kind of form to his second-round match, world No. 72 Kudla is unlikely to be able to stop Del Potro powering through to the third round, where he could set up a mouthwatering clash with Murray.
In the women's draw, American duo Williams and Stephens will have the backing of the crowd in their second-round matches.
Stephens, 25, has endured a topsy-turvy year in the Grand Slams. She made it to the final of the French Open before losing in three sets to Simona Halep.
However, she was dumped out in the first round at Wimbledon and the Australian Open.
Defending her title on home soil, though, she has the ability to go deep again at Flushing Meadows.
Stephens dispatched Evgeniya Rodina in efficient fashion in the first round, and world No. 134 Kalinina should not pose a major threat to the third seed.
Williams, meanwhile, will be hoping for an easier match against Giorgi than she endured in the opening round.
The 38-year-old slugged it out against fellow former champion Svetlana Kuznetsova for almost three hours on Monday before prevailing 6-3, 5-7, 6-3.
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