Day 4 of ATP Nur-Sultan is here! It’s been an exciting week of tennis in Kazakhstan and the action continues with four more exciting singles matches on Day 4! Who will rise to the occasion and who will fall short? We share our thoughts on all four matches.
ATP Nur-Sultan Day 4 Predictions
Emil Ruusuvuori vs Jordan Thompson
Head to Head: never played
Emil Ruusuvuori qualified for this tournament, which included a good win over Viktor Troicki in the final qualifying round. In the first round of the main, Ruusuvuori comfortably took out Timofey Skatov to set up a duel with Thompson. Jordan Thompson had a much tougher first round match. Thompson had to save a match point in the second set and come back back from a set down to beat Cameron Norrie.
These two have never played before. This matchup with come down to Ruusuvuori’s power versus Thompson’s consistency from the baseline. Thompson played a great third set against Norrie and if he can keep up that form, it’s hard to see Ruusuvuori having the rally tolerance to come through this match. Thompson moves on in three sets.
Prediction: Thompson in 3
Adrian Mannarino vs Yuichi Sugita
Head to Head: 3-2 Mannarino
Adrian Mannarino had a bye to start the tournament, but that shouldn’t be a problem for the Frenchman. Mannarino’s flat lefty game should work very well on the indoor hard courts of Nur-Sultan. Yuichi Sugita qualified for this tournament and then took out Damir Dzumhur in three sets. Sugita has been playing strong baseline tennis during his run.
Mannarino leads the head to head 3-2, including 1-0 on hard. This will be a tight match. Sugita is a confident player who is playing a good baseline game, but ultimately, Mannarino’s flat groundstrokes and court craft will be effective enough to get the win in this one.
Prediction: Mannarino in 3
Andreas Seppi vs Mackenzie McDonald
Head to Head: 1-0 McDonald
Andreas Seppi pulled off a surprise victory, taking out Aslan Karatsev in the first round of Nur-Sultan. It was a desperately needed victory for the faltering Italian. Mackenzie McDonald had a very strong start to the tournament. The American had a comfortable victory over Alexander Bublik in straight sets.
McDonald leads the head to head 1-0, but they’ve never played on a hard court. McDonald has a bigger serve and more powerful groundstrokes than Seppi and I just don’t trust the Italian’s rally tolerance at this point in his career. McDonald advances to the quarterfinals.
Prediction: McDonald in 2
Benoit Paire vs Mikhail Kukushkin
Head to Head: never played
Benoit Paire has had a very rough time since the hiatus. Aside from contracting coronavirus himself, he’s only won one match since the restart. Paire, the No. 1 seed, did have a bye in the first round here. Mikhail Kukushkin’s flat groundstrokes work very well on indoor hard courts. Kukushkin came back from a set down to beat Federico Delbonis to advance to the matchup with Paire.
These two have never played before. Given Kukushkin’s flat groundstrokes and Paire’s awful form, it’s hard to see the Frenchman winning here. Paire has been playing very sloppy tennis, spraying unforced errors, and that won’t get the job done here. Kukushkin moves on.
Prediction: Kukushkin in 2
Main photo from Getty.
