There should be plenty of entertaining action on day four at the ATP Miami Open, with 16 second-round matches on the slate. As always, we here at LWOT will be offering our predictions for every match on the slate. But who will advance?
ATP Miami Open Day Four Predictions
Bjorn Fratangelo vs Lorenzo Sonego
Head-to-head: first meeting
Is Bjorn Fratangelo a huge underdog here? Probably not. The American is coming off a title at Cleveland Challenger, where he produced a really high level of tennis throughout losing just a single set along the way. Fratangelo has also advanced to the main draw from qualifying here without any issues. He was able to back it up with a straight-set win over Fernando Verdasco in the opening round.
Playing a ton of matches recently can be both an advantage and a disadvantage. Fratangelo will be in much better rhythm than Lorenzo Sonego, who only played five matches in the past month. He should still have enough left in the tank to give a good fight here and with the Italian’s shaky form of late, there’s a decent chance for an upset.
Prediction: Fratangelo in 3
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Joao Sousa vs Ugo Humbert
Head-to-head: Sousa 1-0 Humbert
Joao Sousa is still trying to recover after a dreadful 2020 campaign and well, still not doing too hot. In five events thus far, the Portuguese only managed one win over Mischa Zverev in Acapulco qualifying. The bright side is that he’s already scored his second victory of the season here, taking out Christopher O’Connell in an absolute thriller that is bound to give him a lot of confidence.
However, the standard of play is still far from desirable and probably too low to realistically trouble Ugo Humbert here. The Frenchman has been one of the best professionals in lower-tier ATP Tour events for the past two years or so but still lacks a trademark deep run at a huge tournament like Miami. Maybe this can be his year?
Prediction: Humbert in 2
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Damir Dzumhur vs Stefanos Tsitsipas
Head-to-head: Dzumhur 3-1 Tsitsipas
One shouldn’t pay too much attention to the head-to-head here. The pair’s last meeting came over two years ago and in terms of up-and-coming players like Stefanos Tsitsipas, that makes a huge difference. The Greek has developed into a fantastic competitor and recently, he seems to have eliminated most of the inconsistencies that had troubled him in the past.
He is now a threat to win almost any event he plays and the slow hard court conditions in Miami won’t allow Damir Dzumhur to expose his weaker backhand wing. The number of free points on serve he’ll get compared to the Bosnian could also prove pivotal.
Prediction: Tsitsipas in 2
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Sebastian Korda vs Fabio Fognini
Head-to-head: First meeting
This could be a cracker. There’s no point going on again about how erratic and mentally unstable Fabio Fognini can be, but there’s also no denying that he’s an absolutely awesome tennis player when on. Sebastian Korda is looking like the real deal lately though, reaching the fourth round at Roland Garros last year, a runner-up finish at Delray Beach in February, and winning the Quimper Challenger in great style two months ago.
The young American can surely give Fognini a run for his money here, even if the Italian stays focused. Particularly after Korda played some impressively in his first-round dismissal of Radu Albot, with the Moldovan winning just three games.
Prediction: Korda in 3
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