The Indian Wells Masters delivered an entire bunch of leisure regardless that Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal performed a mixed two matches in Tennis Paradise (Djokovic two, Nadal zero). They received’t play any on the Miami Open, as Nadal by no means entered the event and Djokovic WDed following his early exit from IW (misplaced to Luca Nardi within the third spherical). Nonetheless, the second leg of the Sunshine Double will likely be in good fingers with the likes of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner. Right here is my preview of the Miami Masters and my picks.
Miami Open
The place: Miami, Florida Prize cash: $8,995,555 High seed: Carlos Alcaraz Defending champion: Daniil Medvedev
Sinner is hoping to go one step farther in Miami after shedding to Daniil Medvedev within the 2023 title match. He can even be hoping to bounce again from his first lack of the season. It received’t be a simple process, nevertheless, as a result of Sinner’s part of the draw is stacked. The Italian is more likely to meet Indian Wells semifinalist Tommy Paul within the final 16 and Andrey Rublev within the quarters. This quarter can be residence to Stefanos Tsitsipas, Frances Tiafoe, Matteo Berrettini, Andy Murray, Matteo Arnaldi, and Arthur Fils. One other Sinner-Medvedev showdown is feasible within the semis, however the latter’s street is equally tough. He might face Ugo Humbert within the fourth spherical and both Casper Ruud or Taylor Fritz within the QFs. In the meantime, Alcaraz will start his event towards both Aleksandar Vukic or Roberto Carballes Baena. Issues might get powerful for the 20-year-old Spaniard within the third spherical, the place Gael Monfils is a possible opponent. Ben Shelton is a doable fourth-round foe, whereas quarterfinal opposition might come within the type of Hubert Hurkacz, Grigor Dimitrov, or Sebastian Korda.
Alexander Zverev’s part is arguably the deepest — and actually essentially the most tough from prime to backside. It can be residence to Holger Rune, Alex de Minaur, Karen Khachanov, Jiri Lehecka, Francisco Cerundolo, and a crop of unseeded floaters that features Felix Auger-Aliassime and Kei Nishikori. First-round matchups to look at are Murray vs. Berrettini, Fils vs. Arnaldi, Miomir Kecmanovic vs. Juncheng Shang, and Lorenzo Sonego vs. Dan Evans.
Quarterfinal picks: Carlos Alcaraz over Grigor Dimitrov, Alex de Minaur over Francisco Cerundolo, Taylor Fritz over Ugo Humbert, and Jannik Sinner over Andrey Rublev
Semifinals: Alcaraz over De Minaur and Sinner over Fritz
Closing: Sinner over Alcaraz
Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and likewise maintains his personal tennis web site, The Grandstand. You may observe him on Twitter at @Dimonator.
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