Showdown for the new German tennis hope
For the first time since 2014 (when Alexander Zverev was 17), such a young German player is competing in the qualifiers for a Grand Slam tournament. We are talking about 17-year-old Justin Engel from Nuremberg, who is now making his debut at the highest level of men’s tennis.
Roman Andres Burruchaga is not betting on shooting star Justin Engel making it through the first round of the 2025 US Open qualifiers in New York City. Nevertheless, the young hopeful has a chance to write himself into the history books: if he survives all three rounds of qualifying, he would be the youngest German after Boris Becker (1984, Wimbledon at 16) to reach the main draw of a Grand Slam.
Now, it’s not as if Roman Andres Burruchaga is an absolute heavyweight who is already fully established on the ATP Tour. Nevertheless, the Argentine has been around for a while and is almost 80 places higher (114) in the ATP world rankings than the German up-and-comer (223). The 23-year-old also made a big impression at the Rome Masters in May this year, when he knocked local hero Lorenzo Sonego (ATP 44) out of the competition 2-0 and only lost 1-2 to Karen Khachanov (ATP 24). However, the Argentine is also considered a classic clay court player.
Justin Engel, on the other hand, is the second-youngest player after the legendary Rafael Nadal to win a singles match at tour level on three different surfaces, which also makes him such an exciting player. Nevertheless, he was the last player to make it into the qualifying field, which also makes him a clear underdog in this shark tank. Add to that the nervousness, and the more experienced Roman Andres Burruchaga could well make short work of the Nuremberg native, which is why we clearly favor the Argentine on balance.
It would therefore also be conceivable to bet on the 17-year-old failing to win a set on his debut, for which Roman Andres Burruchaga is offered odds of 2.00 against Justin Engel at Winamax.
Roman Andres Burruchaga – Justin Engel Head-to-head record
The two players have never crossed paths in a ranked singles match before. There is therefore no head-to-head data available that could influence our prediction for Roman Andres Burruchaga against Justin Engel in any way.
Roman Andres Burruchaga – Justin Engel Tip
Of course, it would be a huge deal if Germany’s greatest male tennis hope since Alexander Zverev were to win his first ever match in the qualifying rounds of a Grand Slam tournament. However, we must be careful not to let wishful thinking get the better of us. After all, there is not much to be said for the youngster, who could quickly be overwhelmed by the atmosphere at Flushing Meadows. Although his Argentine opponent has also never played in the US Open men’s singles, he has already beaten some of the top stars on the ATP Tour and still has a lot more Grand Slam experience than the German.
In order not to categorically rule out a possible sensation, which would be particularly likely if Justin Engel actually wins the first set, we recommend betting on this match being decided in under 2.5 sets. After all, whoever falls behind first is unlikely to have much chance of making a comeback.
For under 2.5 sets, the betting odds for Roman Andres Burruchaga against Justin Engel are 1.50, which we are betting on with five out of ten units via the handy Bet-at-home app.
