A semifinal spot will be at stake when Grigor Dimitrov does battle with Milos Raonic on Friday in Cologne. Meanwhile, Karen Khachanov continues his indoor hard-court campaign against Dan Evans.
(4) Grigor Dimitrov vs. (5) Milos Raonic
Dimitrov and Raonic will be squaring off for the sixth time in their careers at the ATP level when they clash in the quarterfinals of the European Open on Friday. The head-to-head series stands at 3-2 in favor of Dimitrov, but they have not faced each other since 2018 and Raonic won their only previous indoor hard-court encounter at the 2011 Stockholm Open (7-5, 6-4).
Raonic missed the French Open due to injury, but his indoor swing is off to a solid start. The Canadian reached the St. Petersburg semifinals last week and so far in Antwerp he has disposed of Aljaz Bedene and Cameron Norrie in straight sets. Dimitrov earned a first-round bye before overcoming Pablo Andujar 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 on Wednesday. This will be just the second indoor match of the fall for the 20th-ranked Bulgarian, and Raonic’s serve will likely be too much for him on this surface. The world No. 19 has not been broken through two matches, saving the only two break points he has faced.
Pick: Raonic in 2
Dan Evans vs. (3) Karen Khachanov
Khachanov and Evans will be going head-to-head for the second time in their careers on Friday. They previously collided earlier this season in Rotterdam (also on an indoor hard court), where Evans got the job done 4-6, 6-3, 6-4. The 35th-ranked Brit is back in fine form after struggling on clay, which is nothing out of the ordinary. He lost a tight three-setter to Stan Wawrinka last week in St. Petersburg and so far in Antwerp has taken out Salvatore Caruso and Frances Tiafoe.
Following a first-round bye, Khachanov struggled against Belgian wild card Zizou Bergs on Thursday night but managed to prevail 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 in two hours and 22 minutes. The 17th-ranked Russian also reached the St. Petersburg quarterfinals despite not playing his best before losing to Raonic 7-6(1), 6-1. This is a good opportunity for Evans, whose slice backhand will once again present plenty of problems for Khachanov.
Pick: Evans in 3
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Raonic and Evans in three .Goffin so disappointing in his home tournament. My gut said De Minaur would go through if he could get past Gasquet.
Dtrov in 2; Knov in 3.
Grigor Dimitrov has a great talent, but cannot fully realize it. Of course, he had good games, made some great tours, but actually far away from what everyone expected.