Day 2 action at the Citi Open ATP Washington 500 tournament features Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime and Vasek Pospisil on the match card. We also have predictions for matches featuring Nick Kyrgios and Cameron Norrie.
Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Andreas Seppi
Seppi just beat Auger-Aliassime at the French Open, Seppi just beat Yasutaka Uchiyama in three sets, Auger-Aliassime went on quite the run after losing to Seppi in Paris, he made the finals in Stuttgart, the semifinals in Halle, and the quarterfinals at Wimbledon before a surprise loss in his first Tokyo 2020 Olympics match. Auger-Aliassime is the better player and should be hungry to get revenge over Seppi, the hard courts should favor his game in this matchup. Auger-Aliassime in 3
Frances Tiafoe vs Jenson Brooksby
Tiafoe had a good grass court season (ATP Challenger title, quarterfinals at London Queens and two wins at Wimbledon), then exited in the second round of the Olympics. Brooksby has had a fantastic season, reaching his first ever ATP final in Newport, and winning three ATP Challenger titles (and one more final). Brooksby is playing well above his ranking, Tiafoe has a big game but still struggles for consistency. This matchup looks great, Brooksby’s win over Kevin Anderson in the first round was impressive and I’ll give him an edge in this matchup. Brooksby in 2
Brandon Nakashima vs Alexei Popyrin
Popyrin is struggling, with three straight losses on his record, since reaching the ATP final in Singapore his match record has been inconsistent and substandard. Nakashima is playing the best tennis of his career, with back to back finals in Los Cabos and Atlanta, after qualifying for Wimbledon. Nakashima also won a challenger title this year and is rising onto the ATP Tour quickly. Fatigue could be a major factor hampering Nakashima but he’s consistently reeled off wins on hard courts against quality opposition. I’ll still back the American to get a win here. Nakashima in 2
Vasek Pospisil vs Sebastian Korda
Korda has had the best season of his career with a maiden ATP title (Parma), and his first ever ATP final (Delray Beach). He also made the quarters in Miami and Halle, and the second week at Wimbledon. Pospisil just beat Emilio Gomez in three sets in the opening round, Pospisil won their only h2h meeting but Korda has risen a lot since that 2019 ATP Challenger Tour matchup. Pospisil can cause trouble with his serve, but Korda should still have the upper hand. Korda in 2
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