Sebastian Korda makes his Truist Atlanta Open debut on Monday and fellow American Brandon Nakashima is also in action. Korda is going up against qualifier Taro Daniel, while Nakashima meets Jordan Thompson.
Sebastian Korda vs. Taro Daniel
In early May Sebastian Korda was ranked a career high 30th in the world, but he was sidelined with shin splints, lost last year’s round of 16 Wimbledon points, and now finds himself at No. 57. Atlanta is his first tournament since he lost to John Millman in the opening round of Eastbourne last month.
The American has struggled closing out matches when he’s up a break. He was close to knocking out Rafael Nadal in Indian Wells, served for the match at 5-2 and again at 5-4, only to lose to the Spaniard in a third-set tiebreaker. Korda will surely hope that the layoff will improve his tendency to get nervous when he nears victory.
Korda’s first opponent in Atlanta is qualifier Taro Daniel, ranked 102 in the world. Daniel earned his way into the draw with wins over Ricardas Berankis and Adrian Mannarino in qualifying. He spends the majority of his season on the Challenger circuit. Daniel did manage to successfully qualify for the grass court event in Mallorca, but he lost in the opening round.
Even if Korda is rusty (and he almost certainly will be), he should get through this one.
Cheryl pick: Korda in 2
Ricky pick: Korda in 2
(8) Brandon Nakashima vs. Jordan Thompson
American Brandon Nakashima is on a roll. The world No. 49 would have picked up round of 16 points at Wimbledon if the ATP had awarded them (they removed the points allotment because Wimbledon banned players from Russia and Belarus due to the ongoing invasion of Ukraine). Regardless of the missing points, Nakashima goes into the summer hard-court swing with plenty of confidence.
Nakashima produced his first ATP breakthrough performances in Los Cabos and Atlanta last year, making the final in both. In Atlanta he lost to John Isner but it was a competitive match and he made Isner work to win his favorite (and most successful) tournament.
Jordan Thompson of Australia is ranked 95th in the world. He has had a miserable season in 2022. Most of his success came on the Challenger circuit; otherwise it has been one early-round disappointment after another. The one bit of good news is that he does have a win over Nakashima in Dallas earlier this year. Still, it’s hard to imagine that translating at a tournament that Nakashima has demonstrated success at in the past.
Cheryl pick: Nakashima in 2
Ricky pick: Nakashima in 2
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