Only one all-seeded showdown is on the quarterfinal schedule in Winston-Salem, and it’s Ignacio Buse vs. Juan Manuel Cerundolo. Botic van de Zandschulp is going up against Benjamin Bonzi on Thursday.
Benjamin Bonzi vs. (13) Botic van de Zandschulp
Van de Zandschulp is absolutely crushing opponents at the Winston-Salem Open. In fact, the 30-year-old dropped a grand total of three games en route to the quarterfinals. He earned a first-round bye as the No. 13 seed, destroyed Adolfo Daniel Vallejo 6-2, 6-0, and then clobbered Luciano Dardero 6-1, 6-0. Darderi was less than 100 percent because of an apparent knee issue, but it was still an impressive performance by Van de Zandschulp.
Up next for the world No. 71 on Thursday is fourth showdown against Bonzi. The head-to-head series stands at 2-1 in Van de Zandschulp’s favor, but Bonzi won their most recent encounter in three sets at the 2023 Pune tournament. In part due to injury, Bonzi was just 4-7 at the ATP level in 2026 prior to this week and is struggling down at 109th in the rankings. The 30-year-old Frenchman has advanced in Winston-Salem with victories over Kamil Majchrzak, Quentin Halys, and Rinky Hijikata. Those are decent results, but nobody is playing well as Van de Zandschulp this week — and the Dutchman’s fine form dates back to much earlier in the summer than Bonzi’s.
Pick: Van de Zandschulp in 2
(8) Juan Manuel Cerundolo vs. (3) Ignacio Buse
Buse and Cerundolo will be going head-to-head for the third time in their careers on Thursday. Unsurprisingly, both of their previous meetings have come on clay. Cerundolo prevailed in three sets at the 2024 Lima Challenger and in straight sets in the 2025 Gstaad semifinals.
Of course, Buse is now an entirely different player. Nineteen of the 22-year-old Peruvian’s 27 career main-tour match wins have come in 2026, including a 500-point title in Hamburg. He has advanced in Winston-Salem with victories over Adam Walton and Daniel Altmaier. Following a bye of his own, Cerundolo defeated D.K. Suresh 7-6(10), 6-3 and then got a second-set retirement from Sebastian Baez. Both guys are at their best on the red stuff, but the edge on a quicker court should go to Buse.
Pick: Buse in 2
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