St. Petersburg R2 previews and predictions: Khachanov vs. Wawrinka, Fognini vs. Klizan

A blockbuster second-round matchup in St. Petersburg is set for Wednesday, when Karen Khachanov and Stan Wawrinka will be going head-to-head. Fabio Fognini and Martin Klizan are also aiming for a place in the quarterfinals.

(WC) Stan Wawrinka vs. (4) Karen Khachanov

Continually unseeded in 2018 after missing much of last season with a knee injury, Wawrinka has been dealt a whole host of brutal early-round draws. The 88th-ranked Swiss has another one in St. Petersburg, where will face Khachanov on Wednesday with a quarterfinal spot at stake after beating Aljaz Bedene 7-5, 7-6(5) in his opener. Following a slow start to his comeback, Wawrinka picked up plenty of momentum this summer. He ousted Grigor Dimitrov at both Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, reached the third round in Toronto, and made a quarterfinal run in Cincinnati.

Khachanov is up to a career-high ranking of No. 24 in the world thanks in part to a 33-18 record in 2018. The 22-year-old Russian advanced to the semifinals in Toronto (lost to Rafael Nadal), the third round in Cincinnati, and the third round of the U.S. Open (lost to Nadal again in a four-set thriller). Khachanov just got two indoor hard-court matches under his belt during Davis Cup competition against Belarus and won both of them, so he should be well-prepared for this week. Armed with a ton of confidence and also with home-court advantage, the fourth seed may be able to take advantage of an opponent who remains inconsistent in his return to the tour.

Pick: Khachanov in 3

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Martin Klizan vs. (2) Fabio Fognini

It could be a wild one when Fognini and Klizan square off for the sixth time in their careers and for the first time since 2015. Both players are extremely talented but also combustible characters who can go off the rails in dramatic fashion on any occasion. For the most part, however, Fognini has managed to keep his head on straight in 2018. The 31-year-old Italian boasts an outstanding 37-17 record that has him up to a career-high ranking of 13th. He has captured three of his eight lifetime titles this season, triumphing Sao Paulo, Bastad, and Los Cabos. Since getting the job done in Los Cabos, however, Fognini is just 2-2 with losses to Denis Shapovalov (Toronto) and eventual U.S. Open quarterfinalist John Millman in round two of that tournament.

Fognini leads the head-to-head series with Klizan 4-2, including 2-1 on hard courts (1-1 indoors). Their first-ever meeting came back in 2012 in the title match of this same St. Petersburg event, won by Klizan 6-2, 6-3. Two of the Slovakian’s six career titles have come on indoor hard courts (also Rotterdam in 2016) and he is off to another strong start this week after beating Evgeny Donskoy 6-4, 6-4 during first-round action. It can always go either way when these two guys collide, but the fall swing has never been Fognini’s favorite time of year and Klizan is playing well enough to capitalize.

Pick: Klizan in 3

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