The remaining four second round matches at the Swedish Open will be played on Thursday. Clay-court specialist Pablo Cuevas will be in action. The Uruguayan is one of two former champions of the event in the draw, alongside Albert Ramos Vinolas, who, as predicted, saw off countryman Fernando Verdasco.
Who will complete the Swedish Open quarterfinal lineup at the end of Day 4?
ATP Swedish Open Day 4 Predictions
Pablo Cuevas vs Federico Delbonis
Head-To-Head: Cuevas 2-1 Delbonis
Pablo Cuevas, as expected, continues to excel on the clay in 2019. His best results this year have been on the dirt, where he impressed during the South American clay swing in February. He made the semifinals in Cordoba and Rio, as well as the quarterfinal in Buenos Aires. The 33-year-old also reached the final in Estoril prior to French Open, where he lost to an in-form Stefanos Tsitsipas. Away from clay, he has been a huge disappointment as he has posted only two wins on tour. (He beat Dusan Lajovic at the Australian Open and Damir Dzumhur at Wimbledon.) That should not be cause for concern for the Uruguayan right now, though.
Delbonis is no slouch on clay, where he has collected his only two career titles. The left-hander will be buoyed from his success in the Challenger event in Perugia last weekend when he beat Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in the final.
This will be the fourth meeting between the pair and it is a coin toss. Both these players aren’t too dissimilar. They hit with top-spin and their styles are generally conducive for clay-court tennis. I fancy Delbonis to adjust to the conditions and the court as he has played an opening round match two days ago.
Prediction: Delbonis in 3
Joao Sousa vs Elias Ymer
Head-To-Head: Sousa 2-0 Ymer
Joao Sousa came to Bastad on the back of a fantastic run to the fourth round of Wimbledon. It was the first time he advanced that far at SW19 (a run which included a second round upset of former finalist Marin Cilic) and just the second time he made the fourth round of a Grand Slam (the other being the 2018 US Open). Sousa’s results on the faster surfaces in 2019 have caught many by surprise, particularly when you consider he is usually very comfortable on the clay. He went 2-3 during the South American swing and 3-7 during the European swing, losing in the first round at Roland Garros.
Sousa’s opponent will be local hopeful Elias Ymer who quite honestly has not made significant progress on tour in the last few years. The 23-year-old was long touted as Sweden’s next tennis superstar, but it is younger brother Mikael who is best placed to take that mantle. Elias will get the crowd behind him in this one, but Sousa should be too strong on court for the Swede.
Prediction: Sousa in 2
Richard Gasquet vs Dennis Novak
Head-To-Head: First meeting
Fourth seed Richard Gasquet is still struggling for form after undergoing hernia surgery in January. He played in his first tournament of the season at the Madrid Open and lost to Roger Federer in the second round. Despite his extended period of inactivity he is currently ranked at No.50 in the world.
25-year-old Austrian Dennis Novak is aiming to break into the Top 100 for the first time. Novak compiled a fine grass court campaign which included quarterfinal showing in Nottingham Challenger and a runner-up finish at the Ilkey Challenger. Despite losing in the first round at Wimbledon, it was still an impressive achievement for a man who played his first ever professional grass court match in Roehampton at last year’s Wimbledon qualifying.
Gasquet and Novak have not played before and it will be fascinating to see who comes out on top in this one. The Austrian recently talked about improving his serve and attitude on court and Gasquet’s game is unpredictable. This will be a long one, but I think the Frenchman has too many weapons in his game to see off Novak.
Prediction: Gasquet in 3
Juan Ignacio Londero vs Hugo Dellien
Head-To-Head: Londero 0-1 Dellien
Not many had heard about Juan Ignacio Londero before this season (myself included), but he bolted out of nowhere with a sensational run to the title in Cordoba in February. He had not won a tour-level match before 2019. However, all that changed in the span of one week as Londero knocked out Nicolas Jarry, Lorenzo Sonego, Pedro Cachin, and Federico Delbonis in straight sets to surge into the final, where he beat Gudio Pella from a set down to claim his maiden ATP title. Things have been quieter since that success in Cordoba, but he has only fallen two spots from his career-high ranking of No.69. The Argentine also reached the fourth round of this year’s French Open.
Londero will face a tough outing against fellow South American Hugo Dellien. The Bolivian’s love for clay is immense, to an extent where he played in a Challenger final less than 48 hours before he was slated to play his Wimbledon opener. Dellien, like Londero, is now garnering attention after breaking inside the Top 100.
Unsurprisingly this will be just the second meeting between the pair on tour, but they have played each other many times at Challenger level. Dellien served incredibly well against Gulbis, and that is where I think he could earn cheap points against Londero as this match will likely be decided by a few points.
Prediction: Dellien in 3
Disagree with our Swedish Open predictions? As always, feel free to let us know your thoughts in the comments.
