Quarterfinal competition at the ATP 500 event in Tokyo begins on Sunday, when Ben Shelton and Arthur Fils face off in what should be an entertaining affair. Let-handers Jack Draper and Ugo Humbert are also on the schedule.
Arthur Fils vs. (8) Ben Shelton
Shelton and Fils will be squaring off for the second time in their careers and for the first time in ATP tournament competition when they clash in the quarterfinals of the Japan Open on Sunday. Their only previous encounter came last year at the Laver Cup, where Shelton prevailed 7-6(4), 6-1.
The 17th-ranked American should like his chances again in this one, because he is playing well and obviously loves Tokyo. After all, Shelton is the defending champion. His bid to repeat and retain 500 ranking points is off to a strong start, with defeats of Reilly Opelka and Mariano Navone. It has already been an eventful week for Fils, who upset No. 1 seed Taylor Fritz 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 and then got a retirement from Matteo Berrettini a few points after Berrettini actually won the first set in a tiebreaker. The 24th-ranked Frenchman is rich with talent–just like Shelton–but Shelton is the superior hard-court player and is feeling right at home in Tokyo.
Pick: Shelton in 3
Ugo Humbert vs. Jack Draper
The depth of this Tokyo field is so impressive that neither Draper nor Humbert is seeded. However, one will be in the semifinals after they go head-to-head for the first time in their careers on Sunday. Draper just found himself in a much bigger semifinal, going all the way to championship weekend at the U.S. Open before succumbing to eventual title winner and world No. 1 Jannik Sinner. Draper, also a champion in Stuttgart and quarterfinalist in Cincinnati, has remained red hot with Tokyo victories over Mattia Bellucci and Hubert Hurkacz.
Humbert has also been crushing opponents this week–6-1, 6-2 at the expense of Shintaro Mochizuki and 6-3, 6-2 against an in-form Brandon Nakashima. This has come as a little bit more of a surprise for the 19th-ranked Frenchman, who had been 4-7 in his last 11 matches prior to arriving in Tokyo. Draper is the more consistent of the two right now and is a superior defensive player, which could be a factor because Humbert will likely be on defense more than he would like given the Brit’s firepower.
Pick: Draper in 2
WWW?