Familiar foes Kei Nishikori and Stan Wawrinka will add another chapter to their rivalry when they meet in the Madrid third round on Thursday. Alexander Zverev and Hubert Hurkacz are also aiming for a place in the quarterfinals.
(6) Kei Nishikori vs. Stan Wawrinka
Nishikori and Wawrinka will be facing each other for the 11th time in their careers and for the seventh time since the start of 2016 when they battle for a spot in the Mutua Madrid Open quarterfinals on Thursday. The head-to-head series stands at 6-4 in favor of Wawrinka, who has won two in a row against Nishikori (6-4, 6-4 last summer in Cincinnati and 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 earlier this year in Rotterdam).
At times this season, however, Nishikori has been on fire. The world No. 7 from Japan opened with a title in Brisbane and reached the Australian Open quarters (retired against Novak Djokovic). He cooled off in March and April but showed signs of his January self with a 7-5, 7-5 victory over in-form qualifier Hugo Dellien on Wednesday. Wawrinka has advanced with straight-set defeats of Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Guido Pella. This could either way, obviously, but in Nishikori’s last six Madrid appearances he has reached at least the quarterfinals on five occasions–including one runner-up performance. The only exception came last year when he ran into none other than Djokovic in the opening round.
Pick: Nishikori in 3
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(Q) Hubert Hurkacz vs. (3) Alexander Zverev
The Madrid faithful would have preferred to see David Ferrer play in this match, but Zverev sent the 37-year-old Spaniard into retirement with a 6-4, 6-1 victory on Wednesday night. Ferrer led 4-1 in the first set only to see Zverev reel off 11 of the next 12 games. It was a much-needed win for the third-ranked German, who has been off his game this entire year and is defending 1000 points from his 2018 Madrid triumph.
Up next for Zverev on Thursday is a first-ever showdown against Hurkacz, who is enjoying a meteoric rise at the moment. The 52nd-ranked Pole has already earned more than half of his lifetime ATP-level match wins this season (11 of 19), which includes two upsets of Nishikori en route to quarterfinal finishes in Dubai and Indian Wells. Hurkacz’s huge game is working well in the Madrid altitude, helping him to successful qualification followed by straight-set routs of Alex de Minaur and Lucas Pouille. Don’t be surprised if Hurkacz’s hot streak continues at the expense of a struggling opponent.
Pick: Hurkacz in 3
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