A couple of all-seeded showdowns are set for quarterfinal Friday in Dallas, both of which include top American players. Ben Shelton is going up against Jordan Thompson and Tommy Paul runs into Dominik Koepfer.
(7) Jordan Thompson vs. (3) Ben Shelton
Shelton and Thompson will be going head-to-head for the third time in their careers when they clash in the quarterfinals of the Dallas Open on Friday. Both of their previous encounters have gone Shelton’s way; 7-6(12), 6-4 at the 2022 Chicago Challenger and 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-3 en route to the Tokyo title last fall The 21-year-old American is up to No. 16 in the world thanks in part to his triumph in Tokyo plus a semifinal run at the 2023 U.S. Open.
As their previous matchups indicate, however, Thompson can be competitive. The 29-year-old Australian comes in at 44th in the rankings and so far in Dallas he has dismissed Adam Neff and Denis Kudla in easy straight sets. Of course, Shelton represents a massive step up in competition and Dallas’ third seed lost a grand total of three service points during his 6-3, 6-3 defeat of Michael Mmoh on Wednesday. If Shelton serves well, this should be a straight-set result.
Pick: Shelton in 2
(8) Dominik Koepfer vs. (2) Tommy Paul
Paul and Shelton are on a collision course for what would be a blockbuster semifinal showdown in Dallas. They should be able to make it happen. Paul also looked great in his opening match, erasing Taro Daniel 6-3, 6-2. Although the 15th-ranked American’s start to 2024 has been somewhat slow, he generally does his best work on home soil–and on hard courts.
It has already been a productive week for Koepfer, who is through to his first ATP quarterfinal since advancing to the Los Cabos semis in early August of 2023. The 60th-ranked German beat fellow former college standouts Aleksandar Kovacevic and Rinky Hijikata to earn his spot in the last eight, giving him his first main-tour, main-draw wins since before the U.S. Open last summer. Expect a high-quality encounter, but Paul will likely take care of business in front of the home crowd.
Pick: Paul in 2
Yes to Ricky’s picks … but Thompson is one of those nettlesome guys no one wants to face, & Koepfer’s game is impressive at this moment. You never know.
I had Koepfer going this far but lose to Paul
Think the court is much slower this year.Usually win by big servers
To be perfectly honest, I completely overlooked Shelton. He is not repulsive to me like the Cart Horse.
For the Dallas bracket, I picked Paul to win in the final.
Speaking of TDC do we know who cami is by now? She is becoming the one to beat, I see! 😀