Two of the greatest players of all time, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, both former champions, play feature matches in the quarterfinals of the 2019 French Open. Federer has played well in his return to clay court tennis and Roland Garros, and now faces his countryman and former FO champion Stan Wawrinka who has battled hard to get to this point. Nadal faces Japanese #1 Kei Nishikori who is still hungry for his first Grand Slam title and will be sure to give his best against the king of clay. Jim Smith, Harsh Bhoot, Steen Kirby, and Yesh Ginsburg offer their predictions on these matchups.
Roger Federer vs Stan Wawrinka
Yesh: Stan Wawrinka gutted out a brutal match over Stefanos Tsitsipas in over five hours on Sunday. Federer, meanwhile, has breezed through every match so far. Wawrinka isn’t particularly young either, and his game can’t do much against Federer unless he’s clicking perfectly. Federer should breeze through against a fatigued opponent. Federer in 3
Jim: This should be some match. Federer has raced through to the quarterfinals, but none of his four opponents have presented anything like the test Wawrinka will. The barrel-chested former-champion has the power to hit through anyone on his day and though his legs may be a little heavy after his marathon win over sixth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas, he will surely be full of confidence. The conditions favour Wawrinka and he should be able to hit his countryman off the court and out of the tournament. Wawrinka in 4
Harsh: It’s an all-Swiss blockbuster of a quarter-final with both players finding their footing on the red dirt. We are down to the business end of the tournament, something both these players know about. Stan hasn’t beaten Federer since his straight-sets triumph in the quarters at this very venue in 2015. Federer has had it easy in all his first four matches except possibly in the tiebreak against Ruud but he’ll know the daunting task that awaits him. Wawrinka wouldn’t want this match to go long especially after the marathon against Tsitsipas at scorching temperatures and would want to dictate rallies from the baseline much alike to what Federer would be planning as well. Roger would hope to not get sucked into backhand to backhand rallies as Stan would more often than not overpower him from that wing. If the No.3 seed can use his slice backhands to good effect and keep Wawrinka honest with his net play he may very well edge out this match but with Wawrinka serving superbly and most importantly hitting more winners than unforced errors, it’s tough seeing Federer punching his way through. Wawrinka in 4
Steen: Wawrinka has surged to this point and he’s been excellent in his comeback from injury. Fatigue works against him though, especially at his age, he needed a tough five sets to beat Tsitsipas and Federer has been managing his matches well to keep his court time limited. There’s always a chance Wawrinka comes out firing and can get up two sets to love before he hits the wall, but Federer won’t allow him to do that and I expect the more accomplished Swiss to finish strong. Federer in 4
Kei Nishikori vs Rafael Nadal
Steen: Nadal is tough to go against on clay under any circumstances, and that includes this match. Nishikori is capable but fatigue should be a factor and his play this year has not been exemplary enough to suggest he can hit that final gear needed to beat Rafa rather than just compete with him. If Nadal is fit he’ll win this match. Nadal in 3
Yesh: Nadal could have met a challenge against Nishikori, who is playing well. But the Japanese man has always struggled with fitness, and he just had to gut out a five-setter over the course of two days to beat Benoit Paire. Nadal has been vulnerable (by his standards), so maybe Nishikori can grab a set, but he won’t have the gas to make it closer. Nadal in 4
Jim: Nadal hasn’t looked at his absolute best so far in Paris, but he has only dropped one set so far. He might have been in for a real test up against Nishikori, but the Japanese has played a lot of tennis to reach the last eight without much time to recover. That seems likely to leave him emotionally and physically drained when he takes to the court against Nadal. And the great Spaniard on a clay court is the last player anyone would want to face in such circumstances. Nadal in 3
Harsh: The Japanese star, Kei Nishikori won’t have a long time to celebrate his marathon win against Paire as he now faces Rafael Nadal in the quarters. A win for Kei would mean uncharted territory for the Japanese as he’s never been to the semi finals here. Kei’s serve was awfully below par at crucial junctures against Paire and if he wants to make this matchup competitive he’ll have to serve smartly and consistently. The Japanese knows what it takes to beat the Spaniard but on current form in this tournament, the King of Clay should cement his place in what would be his 12th semi-final here. Expect Nishikori to play flawless tennis to eke out one set. Nadal in 4
Main Photo:
