Atlanta QF previews and predictions: Tiafoe vs. Nishioka, Thompson vs. Davidovich Fokina

Frances Tiafoe is the highest seed remaining in Atlanta heading into the quarterfinals and he will face Yoshihito Nishioka on Friday. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and Jordan Thompson are also aiming for a spot in the semis.

Yoshihito Nishioka vs. (3) Frances Tiafoe

With Ben Shelton’s exit on Thursday night, Tiafoe is the undisputed main attraction at the Atlanta Open. Following a first-round bye, the American treated the fans to what they came to see–a three-set victory over Aslan Karatsev. Thus continued what Tiafoe hopes is a turnaround in his 2024 campaign, which had been lackluster prior to Wimbledon. At the All-England Club he staged his first comeback from two sets down (defeated Matteo Arnaldi in the opening round) and in the third round he pushed eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz to five sets. With new coach David Witt in tow for the first time this week, Tiafoe finally has multiple reasons to be encouraged.

Up next for Tiafoe on Friday afternoon is a fifth meeting with Nishioka. The world No. 29 has won all three of their previous encounters on the main tour, although Nishioka at least managed to win their 2016 Winnetka Challenger final matchup. With defeats of Zachary Svajda and Mackenzie McDonald earlier this week, the Japanese left-hander is above .500 for the year (12-11 record). Unfortunately for Nishioka, he has not defeated anyone ranked better than No. 46 since last September in Zhuhai.

Pick: Tiafoe in 2

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(4) Jordan Thompson vs. (5) Alejandro Davidovich Fokina

Thompson and Davidovich Fokina will be squaring off for the third time in their careers and for the first time in three years. Thompson prevailed in straight sets at the 2019 French Open before Davidovich Fokina got the job done 6-3, 6-3 on the indoor hard courts of Antwerp in 2021.

The proverbial rubber match should be a good one. Thompson has been good pretty much all year long, and at No. 41 in the world he could snag a seed at the U.S. Open with a nice run over the next month. The Aussie kicked off his hard-court swing with a 6-2, 7-5 win over Harold Mayot on Thursday. Davidovich Fokina had been struggling this summer with injuries and poor play, but he has looked great in Atlanta so far with straight-set victories over Arthur Cazaux and Reilly Opelka. A slight edge goes to Thompson since he has been racking up plenty of wins in 2024 whereas the Spaniard remains somewhat rusty by comparison.

Pick: Thompson in 3

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