Denis Shapovalov is coming off an Acapulco first-round win over Kei Nishikori and he has a another blockbuster matchup on his hands with Dominic Thiem on Wednesday. Juan Martin Del Potro and David Ferrer are also aiming for a place in the quarterfinals.
(3) Dominic Thiem vs. Denis Shapovalov
Thiem and Shapovalov will be going head-to-head for the first time in their careers when they clash in round two of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel on Wednesday. It was been a busy February for both players, as Thiem heads into this showdown with a 9-1 record for the month that includes a title on the clay courts of Rio de Janeiro. The sixth-ranked Austrian got crushed 6-4, 6-0 by Fernando Verdasco in the Rio de Janeiro quarterfinals, however, and he just barely scraped past qualifier Cameron Norrie 6-3, 5-7, 7-5 on Tuesday in Acapulco.
Shapovalov is 5-2 in February with a semifinal showing in Delray Beach, where he beat Ivo Karlovic, Jared Donaldson, and Taylor Fritz before succumbing to eventual champion Frances Tiafoe 7-5, 6-4. That setback prior to the title match gave the 18-year-old Canadian some extra rest prior to Acapulco and he benefited to the tune of a 6-7(3), 6-3, 6-1 victory over Kei Nishikori on Tuesday. This is another big opportunity for an in-form Shapovalov to pick up a huge win, as Thiem’s transition from clay back to hard courts is predictably off to a rough start.
Pick: Shapovalov in 2
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(6) Juan Martin Del Potro vs. David Ferrer
Del Potro and Ferrer will be squaring off for the 12th time in their careers and for the second time this season when they meet again on Wednesday. The head-to-head series stands at 6-5 in favor of Ferrer, but Del Potro has won three in a row–including via a 6-4, 6-4 decision last month in Auckland. Not including retirements, the Argentine is 4-2 lifetime against Ferrer on hard courts.
Acapulco, however, may be a different story. Ferrer is a four-time champion of this tournament (2010, 2011, 2012, and 2015), albeit with just one of those titles (2015) coming on hard courts. The 35-year-old Spaniard resumed his winning ways on Monday with an impressive 6-4, 6-3 defeat of Andrey Rublev. Ranked 30 spots ahead of his opponent at ninth in the world, Del Potro is the obvious favorite on paper–but he has underwhelmed so far in 2018. The Argentine lost to Roberto Bautista Agut in the Auckland final, to Tomas Berdych in the Australian Open third round, and to Tiafoe in the Delray Beach second round. Ferrer, always confident at this event, should be able to use a steady diet of his favorite inside-out forehand to expose Del Potro’s vulnerable backhand.
Pick: Ferrer in 3
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