Cincinnati R1 previews and predictions: Shapovalov vs. Tiafoe, Nishikori vs. Rublev

A jam-packed slate of action is on the Monday schedule in Cincinnati, where Frances Tiafoe vs. Denis Shapovalov is among the highlights. Kei Nishikori and Andrey Rublev are also kicking off their campaigns.

(WC) Frances Tiafoe vs. Denis Shapovalov

Shapovalov and Tiafoe will be going head-to-head for the second time in their careers and for the second time in 2018 when they meet again in round one of the Western & Southern Open on Monday. Their only previous encounter came in the Delray Beach semis, with Tiafoe prevailing 7-5, 6-4 on the eventual way to his first career ATP title. The 20-year-old American’s breakout season has only continued since then, featuring 24 main-tour match victories–raising his career total to 33. Tiafoe advanced to the third round in Washington, D.C. and did the same in Toronto, where he beat Marco Cecchinato and Milos Raonic before succumbing to Grigor Dimitrov in a third-set tiebreaker.

The Rogers Cup did not prove to be as kind to Shapovalov as it was in 2017, when he upset Rafael Nadal en route to the semis. It had the makings of something similar, but following wins over Jeremy Chardy and Fabio Fognini the 19-year-old Canadian got bounced in easy straight sets by Robin Haase. A slight edge in current form goes to Tiafoe, who has not lost in the first round of a tournament since Roland Garros (to Sam Querrey) and has done so only once since Indian Wells.

Pick: Tiafoe in 3

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Kei Nishikori vs. Andrey Rublev

Things seemed to be materializing nicely for Nishikori when he maintained momentum from a quarterfinal run at Wimbledon by beating Shapovalov in the Washington, D.C. second round, but he has since gone downhill. The world No. 23 lost to eventual champion Alexander Zverev in the district and then dropped his Toronto opener in straight sets to Haase. Nishikori is 22-12 for during what has been a somewhat abbreviated season–although not as abbreviated as his career in Cincinnati (his lifetime record there stands at an alarming 3-4).

Up next for the 2014 U.S. Open runner-up is a first-ever showdown with Rublev on Monday. Rublev has dealt with even more injury issues than Nishikori of late, missing the French Open and Wimbledon due to a lower-back problem. The 20-year-old Russian’s comeback began in earnest with a semifinal showing in Washington, D.C., but he suffered a colossal collapse against Alex de Minaur and showed signs of fatigue in an immediate Toronto loss to Evgeny Donskoy. An aggressive baseliner who likes to to take balls early, Rublev possesses a similar style to that of Nishikori but does not do anything quite as well–especially not off the backhand side–other than serve bigger. Nishikori’s backhand advantage and his experience should make the difference as Rublev tries to find his way back to his best form.

Pick: Nishikori in 2

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