Diego Schwartzman and Fernando Verdasco have been the clear-cut cream of the crop this week in Rio de Janeiro, and they will battle for the title on Sunday. In Delray Beach, meanwhile, an all-unseeded affair pits Peter Gojowyczk against Frances Tiafoe.
Rio Open: (6) Diego Schwartzman vs. (8) Fernando Verdasco
Schwartzman and Verdasco will be going head-to-head for just the second time in their careers when they clash in the Rio de Janeiro final on Sunday. Their only previous encounter also come on clay at the 2016 Nice event, where Schwartzman prevailed 7-6(5), 6-1. If the Argentine was a slight underdog at that point in time, the script has flipped in 2018. Up to No. 23 in the world at 25 years old, Schwartzman made a run to the U.S. Open quarterfinals last summer and reached the Australian Open fourth round in January. So far this week he has gotten the best of Casper Ruud (via retirement), Federico Delbonis, Gael Monfils, and Nicolas Jarry without dropping a single set.
Verdasco needed three sets to scrape past Leonardo Mayer and Nicolas Kicker, but he raised his game when the competition level ratcheted up. The 40th-ranked Spaniard routed No. 2 seed and title favorite Dominic Thiem 6-4, 6-0 in the quarters before beating Fabio Fognini 6-1, 7-5 on Saturday. Verdasco is now 7-4 this season and one more victory in Rio would give him his eighth career ATP title. That may be too tough of a task against a red-hot opponent who will be hungrier than Thiem and Fognini.
Pick: Schwartzman in 3
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Delray Beach Open: Peter Gojowyczk vs. (WC) Frances Tiafoe
This is a whole different ballgame from the stages on which Gojowyczk and Tiafoe played their two previous matches. Gojowyczk got the job done 6-3, 6-2 in 2016 Australian Open qualifying before Tiafoe got revenge via a 6-4, 7-6(5) decision later that season at the Winnetka Challenge. Showdown No. 3 is suddenly coming in an ATP final, with this Delray Beach title marking the marking Gojowyczk’s second career final and Tiafoe’s first.
Although Tiafoe has been a staple of the top 100 over the past 12 months due to plenty of Challenger success, ATP-level wins were extremely tough to come by prior to this month. From just about out of nowhere, the 20-year-old American advanced to his first quarterfinal last week in New York and now finds himself in the Delray final as a wild card following victories over Matthew Ebden, Juan Martin Del Potro, Hyeon Chung, and Denis Shapovalov. Gojowyczk has not slowed down much since capturing the Metz title this past fall. The 64th-ranked German reached the second round of the Paris Masters as a qualifier (lost to Thiem in three sets) and already had two quarterfinal appearances in 2018 (Doha and Auckland). He has advanced this week with defeats of Lukas Lacko, John Isner (saved three match points), Reilly Opelka, and Steve Johnson. Although Tiafoe has been the most impressive player in Delray Beach, Gojowyczk owns he experience and knows how to get the job done in this pressure-packed situation.
Pick: Gojowyczk in 3
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Tiafoe in three
Schwartzman in three
Verdasco in 2 easy money
should i bet my rent?
no
😂, Sam U R funny 😂👍.
theim cost me a lot of money already
Don’t worry, one of the secrets to winning is patience.
You will get them.
Easy money for the bookies.. yes
The NextGen is officially here with Shapovalov as its best bet for multi slams. Only Roger Federer stands in its way .. http://www.138mph.com/tennis-dennis-shapovalov-loses-to-frances-tiafoe-but-is-still-our-pick-for-the-most-talented-and-promising-youngster/
I told you guys a few days ago to be ready for Verdasco…he’s taking his cue from the Fed book….OLD guys can play! Vco in 3, Tiafoe in 3.
Yeah, old guys can play especially R. Federer.
What happened to Thiem? Anyway, Shortman in 3 and I’ll say Tiafoe in 3. Haven’t seen Gojo lately but Francis looked impressive vs Shapo. Or maybe I should say that Shapo failed to impress….
E
Exactly
Haven’t seen the highlights yet,but that wouldn’t surprise me about Shapo
Thiem happened
I’ve not been surprised by Tiafoe, tbh. I’ve been impressed since I first saw him last year, and I thought he had a good chance against Shapovalov.
But I hadn’t seen much of Gojo before watching him in Auckland against Haase in January. For the first few games I found myself wondering why this guy isn’t in the top 10 if not number 1. He was just firing winners at will, and Haase finally broke his rhythm only by serving underhand -first time I have seen that in men’s professional tennis.
Gojowyyczk in 3.
P. Gojowczyk was amazing last year especially in Metz(france).
I like both player’s but I want F. Tiafoe to win, I don’t think he can win but will be happy for him if he does.
P. Gojowczyk has beaten 3 Americans in this tournament, if he defeats F. Tiafoe that will make it 4 😂.
My boy did it, well done.
Yes, congrats to Tiafoe! Gojo couldn’t bring it today, and Frances did. Well done.