Tokyo SF previews and predictions: Shapovalov vs. Medvedev, Nishikori vs. Gasquet

Canada’s Denis Shapovalov is one win away from earning a spot in his first-ever ATP-level final, but he will have to get past fellow NextGener Daniil Medvedev in the Tokyo semis. Meanwhile, hometown hero Kei Nishikori will battle French veteran Richard Gasquet.

Denis Shapovalov vs (Q) Daniil Medvedev

These two youngsters have already met this year on the hard (and rainy) courts of Washington, D.C. Shapovalov won that match along with their only other encounter, at the 2017 U.S. Open.

Both men had some tricky matches on their path to the semis in Tokyo. The Canadian faced Stan Wawrinka in the second round, while Medvedev dispatched both Diego Schwartzman and Milos Raonic. Shapovalov might come into the match slightly more fatigued than his opponent owing to a tricky three-set win over Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff in the quarters on Friday. However, Medvedev was forced to qualify for the tournament–so he has played two more matches than has Shapovalov.

This has the makings of a highly entertaining match. Both players are good on hard courts; Medvedev even won a title in Winston-Salem this summer. Expect a hard-hitting classic hard-court match.

Cheryl pick: Shapovalov in 3

Ricky pick: Shapovalov in 3

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(3) Kei Nishikori vs. (8) Richard Gasquet

Japan’s own Kei Nishikori has faced Richard Gasquet on nine other occasions; their encounters have been surprisingly lopsided, with Gasquet snagging seven wins. Still, they have not met since 2016, when Nishikori took his only two victories during the clay season.

Nishikori has never beaten Gasquet on hard courts, but he has a distinct advantage in that they will be playing in front of a highly partisan Japanese crowd. Gasquet has everything he needs to continue his dominance over Nishikori (starting with his lovely backhand), but with the crowd behind Nishikori and the No. 3 seed’s exceptional run to the semis at the U.S. Open bolstering his confidence, Gasquet is going to have his hands full on Saturday.

Cheryl pick: Nishikori in 3

Ricky pick: Nishikori in 2

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