In the last match of the day at the ATP Antwerp European Open, Alex De Minaur will take on Feliciano Lopez. The eighth seed will be trying to stop the veteran, who played really well in his opening round. We also have predictions for the rest of the 2020 European Open’s Wednesday matches, including the 4th seed Grigor Dimitrov starting his campaign against Pablo Andujar. Who do you think will make it to the next round?
ATP Antwerp Day 3 Predictions
Taylor Fritz vs Reilly Opelka
Head-to-head: Fritz 4-1
Reilly Opelka scored a huge upset win over Daniil Medvedev in St. Petersburg, but his level was very up and down in all three matches. The American’s serve can keep him in the game even if the other aspects aren’t quite working. But it’s not like his compatriot, Taylor Fritz, doesn’t have big weapons himself. Especially indoors, this matchup is very likely to feature tie-breaks, although only three of the 11 sets they played against each other had to be finished this way. Fritz is the more reliable pick, who has a lot more ways to finish the point and is far less one-dimensional than Opelka.
Prediction: Fritz in 3
Frances Tiafoe vs Dan Evans
Head-to-head: Evans 2-1
Dan Evans had to go out of his comfort zone against Salvatore Caruso but was able to shorten the rallies a bit more than he usually does. Frances Tiafoe should suit him a bit more, but the American comfortably won their only match indoors at Basel last year. However, it’s Evans who’s been in much better shape pretty much all season long. The Brit has the tools to disrupt a power-hitter with his knifing backhand slice.
Prediction: Evans in 3
Feliciano Lopez vs Alex De Minaur
Head-t0-head: 1-1
Feliciano Lopez was extremely solid in his first-round dismissal of Tommy Paul. The veteran Spaniard has made a sort of a tradition of randomly peaking in a couple of tournaments per year lately. The indoor surface also suits him well and he’s beaten his second-round opponent the only time they played in conditions like these. Can he turn this good win into a deep run? Doubtful, since he’ll be facing an opponent also very well versed indoors. Alex De Minaur’s footspeed will shine if Lopez decides to rush the net and play aggressively. A better tactic for Lopez could be to force the Australian to generate pace by himself. But I also don’t think it’s going to work, since De Minaur made a lot of improvements to his aggressive game lately and he’s now a completely different player than when he lost to Lopez two years ago in Paris. What casts some doubt though is De Minaur’s lackluster performance against Richard Gasquet (the Frenchman led 6-3 5-3). Still, the Australian is known for his fitness and recovery ability. He might make it harder for himself than he should though.
Prediction: De Minaur in 3
Main Photo from Getty.
