Juan Martin Del Potro will continue his Delray Beach campaign when he goes up against familiar foe Frances Tiafoe on Thursday. A place in the quarterfinals will also be at stake for a NextGen showdown between Denis Shapovalov and Jared Donaldson.
(WC) Frances Tiafoe vs. (2) Juan Martin Del Potro
Del Potro and Tiafoe will be going head-to-head for the third time in their careers and for the second time this season when they meet again in round two of the Delray Beach Open on Thursday. Both of their previous encounters have gone Del Potro’s way; 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(1) last year in Acapulco and 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 at last month’s Australian Open. The 10th-ranked Argentine ended up getting blown out by Tomas Berdych in the third round Down Under, which was preceded by a runner-up performance in Auckland (lost to Roberto Bautista Agut). Del Potro is now 6-2 in 2018 following a 6-2, 6-4 rout of Jeremy Chardy on Tuesday.
Tiafoe started the season in disastrous form–even at the Challenger level–but finally picked up the pace to reach his first career ATP quarterfinal last week in New York. The 20-year-old American earned three-set victories over Sebastian Korda and Dudi Sela before succumbing to eventual champion Kevin Anderson 6-3, 5-7, 6-4. Tiafoe, ranked 91st in the world, advanced on Monday in Delray Beach by avenging a recent Brisbane loss with a 6-2, 2-6, 6-2 victory over Matthew Ebden. This will be another huge-hitting affair featuring two of the biggest forehands in the game, but nothing suggests Tiafoe will suddenly be able to turn the tide against his idol.
Pick: Del Potro in 2
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Jared Donaldson vs. Denis Shapovalov
Shapovalov and Donaldson will be squaring off for the first time in their careers on Thursday. Both players took part in the inaugural NextGen ATP Finals last fall, but they found themselves in different groups and Donaldson failed to reach the semifinals. Whereas Donaldson had already been on tour for a while, 2017 announced the 18-year-old Shapovalov’s true arrival. The world No. 46 made a run to the Montreal semifinals and also advanced to round four of the U.S. Open. His 2018 record stands at an even 4-4 following Tuesday’s 7-5, 7-6(4) defeat of Ivo Karlovic.
Donaldson lost to Karlovic 6-4, 7-6(4) during first-round action last week in New York, but he bounced back with a 7-6(6), 6-1 victory over lucky loser Peter Polansky to begin his Delray Beach campaign. The 21-year-old American is a modest 3-4 this season despite not exactly dealing with overly difficult draws (his losses have come to Karlovic, Denis Istomin, Daniil Medvedev, and Albert Ramos-Vinolas). A considerable edge in current form goes to Shapovalov, who should be able to drop Donaldson to 0-4 in the world No. 57’s last four matches against left-handers.
Pick: Shapovalov in 2
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WYG?
Shapo and Del Po in three