Three of the four top seeds have advanced to the Shanghai semifinals, with Borna Coric being the lone outsider. Coric is going up against No. 1 seed Roger Federer on Saturday, while three-time champion Novak Djokovic faces Alexander Zverev.
(1) Roger Federer vs. (13) Borna Coric
Federer and Coric will be facing each other for the fourth time in their careers when they battle for a place in the Shanghai Masters title match on Saturday. The head-to-head series stands at 2-1 in favor of Federer, who is 2-0 against Coric in hard-court semifinals (Dubai in 2015 and Indian Wells earlier this season). Their recent grass-court showdown in the Halle final went the other way, with the 21-year-old Croat pulling off a 7-6(6), 3-6, 6-2 stunner.
While another upset would be much less surprising on this surface and with Federer not exactly at his best right now, it also is not likely. The 37-year-old Swiss raised his level following three-set victories over Daniil Medvedev and Roberto Bautista Agut to beat Kei Nishikori 6-4, 7-6(4) on Friday. Coric, meanwhile, has benefited from a favorable draw since ousting Stan Wawrinka 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 in a tough opener. The 19th-ranked Croat, who had been 0-2 on the Asian swing prior to this week, followed that up with wins over Bradley Klahn and Matthew Ebden plus a third-round retirement from Juan Martin Del Potro. On a surface that is not quite grass but still favors Federer, the top seed should continue to pick up his game and book a spot in the final.
Pick: Federer in 2 with no tiebreakers
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(4) Alexander Zverev vs. (2) Novak Djokovic
Is there any stopping Djokovic in Shanghai? Already a three-time champion in the relatively short history of this event, the world No. 3 has been the best player this week with a trio of mostly routine wins under his belt. Djokovic is an awesome 26-1 in his last 27 matches–including major titles at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open–following defeats of Jeremy Chardy, Marco Cecchinato, and Kevin Anderson.
Although Zverev is looking for his first triumph in Shanghai, he is quite accomplished at the Masters 1000 level in general. At just 21 years old, he already owns three of these titles; including in Madrid earlier this year. Zverev is through to another semifinal thanks to victories at the expense of Nikoloz Basilashvili, Alex de Minaur, and Kyle Edmund. Whereas offense should beat defense in Federer-Coric, the opposite is true in this matchup. And Djokovic can obviously mix in plenty of offense whenever he chooses, too.
Pick: Djokovic in 2
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