The entire slate of Adelaide second-round action will play out on Wednesday, when Miomir Kecmanovic and Jack Draper take the court. Lorenzo Musetti and Jordan Thompson are also aiming for a place in the quarterfinals.
Miomir Kecmanovic vs. Jack Draper
Kecmanovic and Draper will be going head-to-head for the third time in their careers when they clash in round two of the Adelaide International on Wednesday afternoon. They have split their two previous encounters; Draper prevailed 6-4, 7-5 last spring on the red clay of Lyon before Kecmanovic earned a 7-6(2), 7-6(6) Davis Cup victory a few months later on an indoor hard court.
The latter result was surprising because Draper has enjoyed incredible success on indoor hard courts in the early stages of his career. An outdoor setting, which is the case in Adelaide, gives Kecmanovic more of an advantage. The 55th-ranked Serb opened this week with a 6-4, 6-2 rout of Mackenzie McDonald, while Draper eased past clay-court specialist Sebastian Baez 6-1, 6-3. This could be one of the best matches of the week, but Kecmanovic is the more reliable player on anything other than grass or indoors and Draper’s physical status is always a question mark.
Pick: Kecmanovic in 3
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(4) Lorenzo Musetti vs. Jordan Thompson
Thompson is off to a hot start to the 2024 campaign in his home country. Last week the 47th-ranked Australian upset Rafael Nadal en route to the Brisbane semifinals. He is getting right back in action in Adelaide and took care of Facundo Diaz Acosta 6-2, 6-2 on Tuesday.
Up next for Thompson is much tougher test against Musetti, who got a first-round bye as Adelaide’s No. 4 seed. The 25th-ranked Italian advanced just one round last week in Hong Kong, losing to Pavel Kotov 6-4, 6-3. Thompson is in superior form, is the better hard-court player, and has home-court advantage–giving him every reason to reach another quarterfinal.
Pick: Thompson in 3
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WWW?
How much tennis does Jordan Thompson want to play before the Australian open?
He had a massage be battle with Nadal, a massive battle with Dimitrov and still wants to play more before a major. Wasn’t that level of competition good enough for him to be in peak form a week later.
“a massive battle”
And Rybakina. Played 5 matches and won Brisbane.