US Open Tennis 2021: TV Schedule, Picks for Saturday Afternoon Draw

No women's singles player has repeated as U.S. Open champion since Serena Williams won the event three straight years from 2012-14. And that isn't going to change in 2021.

On Friday night, No. 3-seeded Naomi Osaka, the 2020 champion, suffered a surprising upset loss to unseeded 18-year-old Leylah Fernandez. Osaka had won the U.S. Open two of the previous three years and had won 15 straight matches at hard-court major tournaments before this third-round defeat.

There are plenty of strong women's players still in the field, though, including No. 1-seeded Ashleigh Barty. She and Novak Djokovic, the No. 1 seed in the men's singles tournament, will both be in action Saturday, when the third round of the U.S. Open continues at the USTA Billie Jean King National Center in New York City.

U.S. Open coverage will air on ESPN2 from 11 a.m.-11 p.m. ET on Saturday. Here are some predictions for several notable matches from the early slate.

No. 1 Novak Djokovic vs. Kei Nishikori

Frank Franklin II/Associated Press

For the most part, Djokovic has been as dominant at the U.S. Open to this point as you'd expect. He's dropped only one set (which came via tiebreaker in his first-round match vs. Holger Rune), and in the six sets he's won, his opponent hasn't won more than three games.

So Nishikori is going to have his hands full going up against Djokovic, the No. 1 seed who is looking to achieve a calendar Grand Slam by winning his fourth major tournament of 2021. But it won't be a challenge unfamiliar to Nishikori, a 31-year-old from Japan.

Djokovic and Nishikori have played 19 times before, with Djokovic winning 17 of those matches. Nishikori hasn't defeated Djokovic since the 2014 U.S. Open, as the 34-year-old Serb has won the past 16 head-to-head meetings.

It's hard to imagine this one ends any differently. Nishikori hasn't faced much tough competition yet, and Djokovic showed up to New York in dominant form. Expect Djokovic to cruise to a third-round win.

Prediction: Djokovic wins in straight sets

No. 6 Bianca Andreescu vs. Greet Minnen

Frank Franklin II/Associated Press

Andreescu has still never lost at the U.S. Open, and if that changes this year, it may not happen until later in the tournament. The 21-year-old Canadian is again off to a great start and seems to be among the top contenders to potentially win the event.

After winning the U.S. Open in her debut appearance in 2019, Andreescu didn't play in 2020. She's returned this year by winning her first two matches and improving her all-time record at the tournament to 9-0.

In order to push that mark to 10-0, Andreescu will need to beat unseeded Greet Minnen, a 24-year-old from Belgium, in the third round. This will be the first time the two have played, and Andreescu will be the first seeded player who Minnen will face in the tournament.

With Andreescu playing well at this event again, she seems poised to continue her strong showing for at least a couple more rounds, if not more. She should handily defeat Minnen and keep her perfect U.S. Open record intact.

Prediction: Andreescu wins in straight sets

No. 11 Belinda Bencic vs. No. 23 Jessica Pegula

Aaron Doster/Associated Press

This has the potential to be one of the better matchups on Saturday afternoon's slate, as it features a pair of seeded players who should play a competitive match. Plus, Pegula is looking to get revenge from her last meeting with Bencic at the Tokyo Olympics in July.

In that matchup, Bencic won 6-3, 6-3 to improve to 2-0 in her career against Pegula. But it's not a sure thing that Bencic is going to beat her again. Pegula has gotten off to a strong start at the U.S. Open, making quick work of both Anastasia Potapova (6-2, 6-2) and Misaki Doi (6-3, 6-2).

At the Olympics, Bencic went on to win the gold medal after her victory over Pegula. And since arriving in New York, she's also won each of her first two matches in straight sets. So this should be an exciting match that is likely to be closer than their previous meetings.

Expect Bencic and Pegula to go a full three sets this time. And while it could go either way, Pegula will score the upset as the home player, as the 27-year-old Buffalo, N.Y., native will reach the fourth round of the U.S. Open for the first time in her career.

Prediction: Pegula wins in three sets