French Open R4 previews and predictions: Thiem vs. Nishikori, Djokovic vs. Verdasco

A blockbuster battle between Dominic Thiem and Kei Nishikori is part of the Sunday schedule at Roland Garros. Novak Djokovic, who is showing signs of his former self, is also aiming for a place in the quarterfinals as he faces Fernando Verdasco.

(7) Dominic Thiem vs. (19) Kei Nishikori

Thiem and Nishikori will be going head-to-head for the third time in their careers and for the first time in more than two years when they clash in round four of the French Open on Sunday. Both of their previous encounters have gone Nishikori’s way; 7-6(4), 7-5 on the grass courts of Halle in 2015 and 6-3, 7-5 at the 2016 Rome Masters. Fast forward 25 months, though, and Thiem is now a two-time Roland Garros semifinalist who has emerged as arguably the second-best clay-courter behind Rafael Nadal. The eighth-ranked Austrian has not been quite that good this spring, but he still boasts a 32-8 record in 2018 with a pair of titles in Buenos Aires and Lyon (both on clay) plus a runner-up performance in Madrid. So far this fortnight, Thiem has taken care of Ilya Ivashka, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Matteo Berrettini without too much trouble.

Nishikori needed five sets to escape Benoit Paire during second-round action, but he otherwise cruised at the expense of Maxime Janvier and Gilles Simon. The world No. 21 reached the Monte-Carlo final before getting some bad draws and losing to Novak Djokovic in both Madrid and Rome while also bowing out right away in Barcelona at the hands of Guillermo Garcia-Lopez. Nishikori has displayed flashes of top-10 tennis during his comeback from a wrist injury, but inconsistency remains a concern. In what is likely to a competitive contest with plenty of furious baseline exchanges, Thiem is the more reliable of the two when it comes to surviving from physical standpoint.

Pick: Thiem in 4

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(20) Novak Djokovic vs. (30) Fernando Verdasco

Nishikori’s comeback has been more successful over a longer period of time, but Djokovic’s return to the tour is picking up sudden steam to the extent that he seems like more of a title contender than Japan’s top player. The Serb’s two head-to-head defeats of Nishikori were part of a stretch that saw him reach the semis of the Rome Masters before falling to Nadal. Building on what is his first semblance of momentum since last spring, Djokovic punched his ticket to the Roland Garros last 16 by beating Rogerio Dutra Silva, Jaume Munar, and Roberto Bautista Agut. The two Spaniards threw plenty at the world No. 22, but he still had enough to defeat Munar in straight sets before battling past Bautista Agut 6-4, 6-7(6), 7-6(4), 6-2 on Friday.

Up next for Djokovic on Sunday is a 15th career showdown against Verdasco, who trails the head-to-head series 10-4. They have not squared off on clay–a surface on which Verdasco has won three of five previous meetings–since 2010, when a red-hot Verdasco prevailed in the Monte-Carlo semifinals and the Rome quarters. The 35th-ranked Spaniard achieved no such success at those clay-court tournaments this time around, but a return to Roland Garros appears to be just what the doctor ordered. He has advanced out of the first round in 13 consecutive appearances and has now reached the fourth round on an impressive eight occasions. Never, though, has Verdasco made it all the way to the quarterfinals. With a reinvigorated Djokovic–who is 5-0 in their last five matchups dating back to 2013–on the other side of the net, the fourth-round hump may once again be too big for Verdasco.

Pick: Djokovic in 4

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