Rafael Nadal will continue his Indian Wells campaign on Wednesday against a red-hot Alexander Zverev. Richard Gasquet and Marin Cilic are also aiming for a place in the quarterfinals.
(4) Rafael Nadal vs. Alexander Zverev
Nadal and Zverev will be going head-to-head for the first time in their careers when they clash in round four of the BNP Paribas Open on Wednesday afternoon. It has already been a stellar tournament for Zverev, and even by Nadal’s recent standards it has been relatively productive. Zverev booked his spot in the last 16 by taking out Ivan Dodig, Grigor Dimitrov, and Gilles Simon. The 18-year-old German came back from a set and a break down against Dodig, recovered from a break deficit against Dimitrov in the third set, and then clobbered Simon 6-2, 6-2. Nadal battled past Gilles Muller 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 before avenging his Australian Open defeat at the hands of Fernando Verdasco with a 6-0, 7-6(9) victory.
The fifth-ranked Spaniard is coming off consecutive setbacks on the Golden Swing–to Dominic Thiem in the Buenos Aires semifinals and to Pablo Cuevas in the Rio de Janeiro semis. Although he is in fine form for the most part, Zverev also needed a strong performance in Indian Wells to erase the taste of defeat. He lost a pair of Davis Cup rubbers to the Czech Republic’s Tomas Berdych and Lukas Rosol, the latter in a decisive fifth showdown. Zverev has the exact kind of game that can seriously trouble Nadal, with a huge serve and forehand to go along with a solid two-handed backhand. He also moves extremely well for a man of his size (6’6”). If the world No. 58 can avoid long rallies and shorten the match, he may be able to hit Nadal off the court before stamina becomes an issue.
Pick: Zverev in 2
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(8) Richard Gasquet vs. (10) Marin Cilic
Gasquet’s season got off to a late start because of a back injury, but he is making up for lost time heading into a fourth-round contest against Cilic in Indian Wells. Gasquet, who missed the Australian summer, captured a title in the first tournament of his year (Montpellier) before getting stopped by an on-fire Nick Kyrgios in the Marseille quarterfinals. So far in the desert he he has taken out Nicolas Mahut in straight sets and Alexandr Dolgopolov via a 2-6, 6-2, 6-1 decision.
Up next for the 10th-ranked Frenchman is a third career meeting with Cilic. Gasquet has taken both of their previous encounters, each at the Masters 1000 level. He prevailed 7-5, 6-4 on the clay courts of Monte-Carlo in 2013 and 7-5, 6-3 last summer in Cincinnati. Cilic has endured physical problems of his own in recent times, but lackluster results in 2016 can only be attributed to poor play. The 10th-seeded Croat brought a disappointing 9-7 record with him into Indian Wells but it now stands at 11-7 following straight-set defeats of Ryan Harrison and Leonardo Mayer. Based on current form, Gasquet should have a relatively clear edge in this one.
Pick: Gasquet in 2
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who ya got?
Gasquet and Rafa in straights
Rafa in 3, Gasquet in 2
Rafa in 3 was my vote. But, I tend to vote 3 a lot.
Gasquet in 2.
Gasquet in 2… looking forward to watching this match, then Rafa in 2…
Getting better but Zverev can definitely hit him off the court, but to do so consistently might be an issue
Gasquet in 3 and Rafa in 2 !
Cilic may be in bad form but I think he can still snatch a set !
With Rafa , I think his experience will enable him to blow Zverev off the court even though clearly Zverev has been playing much better.
nope, Gasquet in 2!
Nadal in 2 is possible, of course
Nadal in 2, Gasquet in 2.
Nice to see the next generation taking over, but Nadal is very mad about the accusations of that French politician about taking dope and he will win motivated by anger.
he is always mad about stuff like that. Hasn’t helped him much this season.
Ricky (AT 3:05 PM),
What?! The former French minister of sport Roselyne Bachelot lied ONLY nine days ago (on March 7) that Rafa was kept off the court for seven months due to a positive test in 2012.
“They just don’t reveal positive tests or the sanctions given in tennis,” Bachelot said in French. “…like the famous injury of Rafael Nadal that kept him off the court for seven months — it’s very certainly due to a positive test.” [Source: The New York Times]
what?
Ricky (AT 6:31 PM)
I meant: what is the connection between R.Bachelot’s recent lie and your sentence “Hasn’t helped him much this season” AT 3:05PM.
I think that rafa’s experience will get him the win. I do think that Zverev can take a set off Rafa. Zverev is the kind of opponent who can give Rafa trouble. But I think Rafa will get it done. I am just not sure if it’s going to be 2 or 3 sets.
Gasquet should beat Cilic in 2 sets.
Zverev in 3
Cilic in 3
Keep your mind sharp and focused, remain confident and show your warrior spirit, Rafa!
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CdsD-14UEAA4MRk.jpg
Stan is not there but not there. He looks lost. Meanwhile, Goffin marches on; he got the first set 6-3. And Goffin is a break up in the 2nd set. 2-0. Thought this would be straightforward for Stan. But no.
Oops. wrong thread.
Where should we be?
There’s a Stan v Goffin thread somewhere.
Definitely a bad day at the office for WaWa. His serve has gone southwards and he his spraying errors galore.
Goffin has already broken his serve in the 2nd set.
Cilic has taken first set – so much for all those forecasts Gasquet in 2 sets.
Stan now 1-4 in 2nd set. He looks about to burst into tears.
he just broke back
Stan needs a hug, ed.
Stan heard what you said. He’s wiped out the deficit and hey’re back on serve now.
Goffin’s level has dropped.
Wrong. Goffin’s broken back again. Now serving for the match.
But fails to serve it out. Nerves. WaWa has been let off the hook methinks.
Maybe mangling that racquet helped? Or?… because he suddenly roars back. Looks like he’s in it now. Stan breaks again and will serve to even the set.
WaWa has remembered he’s called Stan the Man 🙂
ed (AT 7:10 PM),
There is a thread: “Indian Wells R4 previews and picks: Wawrinka vs. Goffin, Berdych vs. Raonic.” 🙂
I admit to feeling a tad anxious about this match. Just hoping his nerves don’t get the better of him, particularly if they get tnto TBs.
Look at the quality of Zverev’s second serve. He can crank aces on his second serves!
Really wish rafa’s second serve had improved 🙁 it is below average…
Anyway, two solid holds! keep going , rafa….
I reckon he will will step back in a few service games to return serves.
Zverev is out there with a strategy. Playing more aggressive than he usually does…
He has a Sampras-like second serve ! Very dangerous package this youngster.
Rafa winning free points on first serves…otherwise, his ground strokes have been misfiring
He is totally outplaying Rafa right now. Superior first serve, far superior second serve, better ROS, and more aggressive groundstrokes.
Rafa is the underdog here.