Third-round competition at the Mutua Madrid Open begins on Sunday, with Alexander Zverev and Ben Shelton among those in action. Zverev is going up against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, while Shelton is facing fellow rising star Jakub Mensik.
Here are my picks for two of Sunday’s most enticing matchups.
(1) Alexander Zverev vs. (28) Alejandro Davidovich Fokina
Sunday marks the sixth meetig between Zverev and Davidovich Fokina. Zverev leads the head-to-head series 4-1 and he won their only previous clay-court match 6-4, 6-1, 6-1 at Roland Garros in 2021. They have not faced each other since 2023, when Davidovich Fokina cruised 6-1, 6-2 at the Toronto Masters before Zverev prevailed 6-7(4), 6-2, 6-1 in Beijing.
It looks like the second-ranked German has found his form just in time for the second major of the year at the French Open, where he was runner-up in 2024. Zverev is coming off a title in Munich and he erased Roberto Bautista Agut 6-2, 6-2 on Friday at the Caja Magica. Davidovich Fokina, who beat Nuno Borges 6-2, 6-3 in his opener, has been outstanding this season (21-10 match record). However, ADF has rarely caused problems for Zverev and it cannot be overlooked that the German is 24-5 lifetime in Madrid with two titles.
Pick: Zverev in 2
(12) Ben Shelton vs. (22) Jakub Mensik
Shelton appeared to be on the next flight out of Madrid on Friday. Mariano Navone had not broken serve all afternoon, but that finally changed when he served for the match at 5-4 in the second set. Shelton broke from out of nowhere and eventually came back to win 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-3. Thus continues a strong run of form for the 13th-ranked American, whose clay-court swing features a runner-up showing in Munich.
Up next for Shelton is a third meeting with Mensik. The two rising stars have split their two previous showdowns, with Shelton getting the job done 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 last year in Indian Wells before Mensik won another thriller earlier this season in Auckland via a 7-6(2), 4-6, 7-5 decision. At just 19 years old, Mensik is already up to 23rd in the rankings thanks mostly to a recent Masters 1000 title in Miami. This could be the best match of the entire day, with a slight edge going to Mensik since he can serve just as big as Shelton and is the more solid player from the back of the court–which can be a significant factor on clay.
Pick: Mensik in 3
Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on Twitter at @Dimonator.