Coming off the upset of the year so far against Novak Djokovic, Luca Nardi will be back on the court at the BNP Paribas Open on Wednesday. He faces Tommy Paul in the fourth round. A quarterfinal spot will also be at stake when Daniil Medvedev battles Grigor Dimitrov.
Here are my previews and picks for the two matchups.
(LL) Luca Nardi vs. 17) Tommy Paul
Nardi pulled off a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 shocker against Djokovic on Monday. Saying the result came out of nowhere would be a significant understatement. Nardi is ranked 123rd in the world and he needed a lucky-loser spot in the main draw after losing to David Goffin in the final round of qualifying. In his previous tournament (Bengaluru Challenger), the 20-year-old lost to world No. 462 Ramkumar Ramanathan.
Nardi accurately described his win over Djokovic a “miracle.” Beating Paul would be much less of a stunner, of course, but at the same time it will be a tough task. It’s never easy for any player to follow up such a monumental result, and Paul is playing incredible tennis these days. The world No. 17 has already played in two finals during this American swing, capturing the Dallas title to go along with a runner-up showing in Delray Beach. Paul has already taken out two red-hot opponents in Tennis Paradie: Alex Michelsen 6-2, 6-2 and Ugo Humbert 6-4, 6-4. The American should have the edge in this one.
Pick: Paul in 2
(4) Daniil Medvedev vs. (13) Grigor Dimitrov
Medvedev and Dimitrov will be facing each other for the 10th time. The head-to-head series stands at 6-3 in favor of Medvedev but Dimitrov won their most encounter (in a third-set tiebreaker at the 2023 Paris Masters) and their previous meeting at this event in 2021 (4-6, 6-4, 6-3, also in the third round).
Another win for Dimitrov would hardly be a surprise. The 32-year-old loves IW and is in generally stellar form. Dimitrov’s convincing victories over Alexandre Muller and Adrian Mannarino have his 2024 record at 14-3. Medvedev made it to the final in the desert last spring, but he was clear in his disdain for the conditions and was again after scraping past Sebastian Korda 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 on Monday. Dimitrov has a great chance here.
Pick: Dimitrov in 3
Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on Twitter at @Dimonator.