Miami R1 previews and predictions: Donaldson vs. Baghdatis, Paire vs. Zverev

The second of two consecutive Masters 1000 events will get underway when the Miami Open takes center stage from Indian Wells on Wednesday. Jared Donaldson is going up against Marcos Baghdatis, while Benoit Paire is facing Mischa Zverev.

Jared Donaldson vs. (WC) Marcos Baghdatis

Donaldson and Baghdatis will be going head-to-head for the first time in their careers when they clash in round one of the Miami Open on Wednesday night. Baghdatis’ recent Indian Wells campaign ended in disappointing fashion (an illness forced him to withdraw prior to the fourth round) but not before he reeled off five victories. The 82nd-ranked Cypriot qualified for the main draw and then defeated Yoshihito Nishioka, Diego Schwartzman, and Dudi Sela only to give Milos Raonic a walkover. Baghdatis has now advanced at least one round in each of his four tournaments this season.

With a ranking of No. 49 in the world, Donaldson is almost exclusively on the main tour and off the challenge circuit. The 21-old played the prestigious Irving Challenger last week, but that was only because he lost during the first few days of the Indian Wells Masters (fell to Roberto Bautista Agut after beating Evan King). Donaldson is 7-7 at the ATP level in 2018 and 4-2 in his last six matches–a stretch highlighted by a semifinal showing in Acapulco. The American has home-court advantage, generally plays his best tennis in the United States, and is more reliable from a physical standpoint especially with Baghdatis having just played five matches in the desert.

Pick: Donaldson in 3

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Mischa Zverev vs. Benoit Paire

Once again hampered by injuries that have plagued him throughout his career but left him alone in 2017, Zverev is just 3-8 this season heading into Miami. The 55th-ranked German, who reached the Australian Open quarterfinals, the U.S. Open fourth round, and the Geneva final in 2017, started this year 1-5 but has at least managed to win one match in two of his past three events (the exception is an opening-round Acapulco loss to eventual champion Juan Martin Del Potro).

Up first for Zverev in Miami is a third career ATP-level encounter with Paire–and second of the season. The head-to-head series is tied up at one win apiece, as the 30-year-old prevailed 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-7(3), 7-5 at the 2017 U.S. Open before Paire got the job done 6-4, 6-4 last month in Montpellier. The 46th-ranked Frenchman is 8-6 this year with semifinal performances in Pune and Sydney plus a quarterfinal finish in Montpellier. Zverev is not serving as well as he was during a healthy 2017 campaign, so Paire should be able to play plenty of baseline rallies and dictate with his backhand.

Pick: Paire in 2

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