Expect an entertaining night of semifinals at the ATP Los Cabos Open with the top four seeds all in action. With the US Open Series now well underway and the final Major of the year looming large on the horizon, all four will doubtless be determined to reach the final in Mexico and, as always, we here at LWOT will be offering our previews and predictions for both semifinals. But who will reach Saturday’s final?
ATP Los Cabos Semifinal Predictions
Daniil Medvedev vs Miomir Kecmanovic
Head-to-head: Medvedev 1-0 Kecmanovic
When this pair met earlier this year in the third round at Roland Garros, the match was one-sided, with Daniil Medvedev running out a 6-2 6-4 6-2 winner. Miomir Kecmanovic will be out for revenge as a result and the Serbian has looked very sharp so far at the ATP Los Cabos Open, beating Australia’s Jordan 6-4 6-2 in his opener after a first-round bye before getting the better of sixth seed Brandon Nakashima 6-2 6-4 in the last eight.
The problem for the Serbian is that Medvedev has also impressed this week, scoring comfortable wins over Rinky Hijikata and Ricardas Berankis, and if both men are playing their best tennis, it is hard to see a route to victory for Kecmanovic. The Serbian is a fine player and there are not many who cover the court better than him. But Medvedev is one of those few. The Russian also packs considerably more punch than Kecmanovic, both on serve and off the ground.
Prediction: Medvedev in 2
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Cameron Norrie vs Felix Auger-Aliassime
Head-to-head: Auger-Aliassime 4-0 Norrie
This has the makings of a close match. It has, admittedly, not been a particularly close rivalry so far, with Felix Auger-Aliassime winning all four of their previous matches, dropping just one set in the process, but the last three matches they have played have been close. Cameron Norrie has also improved even since their most recent match, a 7-5 7-6 win for the Canadian en route to the title in Rotterdam, and is surely full of confidence after reaching the last four at Wimbledon.
He has certainly impressed so far at the ATP Los Cabos Open, beating Tseng Chun-hsin for the loss of only three games in the second round (after a first-round bye) and then Radu Albot, 6-3 7-6, to secure his spot in the last four. That said, Auger-Aliassime, after a thoroughly disappointing end to his grass-court campaign, has looked renewed back on North American hard courts, beating home hope Juan Alejandro Hernandez Serrano and the veteran Steve Johnson, both in straight sets.
Expect Auger-Aliassime to make the running in most of the rallies; the Canadian is rather more aggressively inclined than Norrie. He also has a bigger serve than the Briton, which should stand him in good stead. Still, Norrie has, just about, played the better tennis of the two and is also probably the fitter man. In hot and humid conditions, in a match with little in it on paper, that advantage might just prove decisive, as long as he does not play too passively.
Prediction: Norrie in 3
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