The quarterfinal lineup at the Mutua Madrid Open will be finalized on Wednesday, when fourth-round competition wraps up. Among those taking the court are Jack Draper, Tommy Paul, Frances Tiafoe, and Matteo Arnaldi.
Here are my picks for two of Wednesday’s best matchups.
(5) Jack Draper vs. (11) Tommy Paul
Draper and Paul will be squaring facing each other for the sixth time in their careers when they clash in the last 16 at the Madrid Masters. The head-to-head series stands at 3-2 Draper’s favor. The British lefty is 3-1 on hard courts and 0-1 on grass; they have never squared off on clay.
Both guys have been stellar this season, although it is Draper who is especially hot at the moment whereas Paul has cooled off somewhat since advancing to the quarterfinals at Melbourne Park and the semifinals in Dallas. It hasn’t been easy so far in Madrid for the American, who scraped past Joao Fonseca in a pair of tiebreakers and beat Karen Khachanov in three sets. Meanwhile, Draper eased past Tallon Griekspoor in straight sets and then got a retirement from Matteo Berrettini after winning the first set in a ‘breaker. Clay probably helps Paul a bit, but the high altitude of Madrid favors Draper.
Pick: Draper in 3
(16) Frances Tiafoe vs. Matteo Arnaldi
Tiafoe and Arnaldi will be meeting for just the second time in their careers. Their only previous encounter came in the Wimbledon opening round last summer and it did not disappoint, as Tiafoe stormed back from two sets down to score a 6-7(5), 2-6, 6-1, 6-3, 6-3 victory.
The rematch promises to also be a good one. Neither player has particularly impressed this year, but both seem to be heating up on clay. Tiafoe reached the Houston final (lost to Jenson Brooksby) and so far at the Caja Magica has knocked off Luciano Darderi and Alexandre Muller. Arnaldi ousted Novak Djokovic 6-3, 6-4 in addition to defeats of Borna Coric and Damir Dzumhur. Although both guys are all-court players, clay gives the Italian his best chance in this matchup.
Pick: Arnaldi in 3
Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on Twitter at @Dimonator.