Wild-card entry Dominic Thiem will be back in action in Winston-Salem when he takes the court against No. 13 seed Jack Draper on Wednesday. A quarterfinal spot will also be at stake when Richard Gasquet faces Steve Johnson.
(13) Jack Draper vs. (WC) Dominic Thiem
When Thiem was on tour prior to getting injured in the summer of 2021, Draper had a grand total of zero ATP-level match wins. Now Thiem is back and starting to improve 14 months later, and heading into their first-ever meeting Draper has 14 ATP-level match wins. The 20-year-old Brit has climbed to a career-high ranking of 55th in the world thanks in part to a semifinal showing in Eastbourne and a quarterfinal run earlier this month at the Montreal Masters. Draper continued his fine form with a 6-2, 4-6, 6-1 victory over Fabio Fognini on Tuesday night at the Winston-Salem Open.
Thiem is pretty much on his third life in Winston-Salem. On Monday he saved two match points during a 6-7(5), 7-5, 7-6(6) defeat of J.J. Wolf and on Tuesday he lost the first set 6-0 to Grigor Dimitrov before the top seed retired in set two. Thiem has now won multiple matches at three consecutive tournaments. That is huge for the 28-year-old Austrian’s confidence–and his ranking–but how fortunate can he continue to be this week? With Draper on fire, it would probably require another stroke of good luck for Thiem to advance.
Pick: Draper in 3
Steve Johnson vs. Richard Gasquet
Gasquet and Johnson will be squaring off for the fourth time in their careers and for the first time since 2016. The head-to-head series stands at 2-1 in favor of Gasquet, although there is nothing of substance to take away from those encounters given that both veterans are now well past their prime. It’s an important contest for each player, as a quarterfinal–even at a 250 event–would be a good result for either one.
If Gasquet prevails, it will mark just the second time this season that he has won three matches in the main draw of an ATP tournament. So far the 36-year-old Frenchman has gotten past Kamil Majchrzak and Lorenzo Musetti while dropping a set on each occasion. Johnson, on the other hand, has disposed of Emilio Nava and Pedro Martinez in straight sets. That isn’t spectacular competition, but nonetheless it is clear the 32-year-old American is playing well again. Johnson generally does his best work at home on hard courts and he should have a slight edge with Gasquet coming off two three-setters.
Pick: Johnson in 3
WWW?
Thiem was garbage until Dimitrov almost passed out. Draper should win in 2
Thiem in 3; Gasquet in 3.
good pick of GasK
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