Day 5 at the ATP event in Tokyo will feature the four quarterfinal matchups. The field might not be as stacked as in Astana, but there will still be some blockbuster matches this Friday, with former champion Nick Kyrgios taking on American #1 Taylor Fritz and Borna Coric and Denis Shapovalov facing each other. It will certainly be a very exciting day of tennis.
ATP Tokyo Day 5 Predictions
Soonwoo Kwon vs Pedro Martinez
Head-to-head: first meeting
You could argue this is the the least glamorous match of the day, but it should still be pretty interesting. Both players are only in their second QF at ATP 500 level and one of them will reach their maiden semifinal. Especially on this surface though, Kwon seems to have far greater upside and should be able to come through here.
Prediction: Kwon in 2
Frances Tiafoe vs Miomir Kecmanovic
Head-to-head: Tiafoe 2-1 Kecmanovic
Tiafoe is living arguably the best moment of his career, with a semifinal run at the US Open, where he got past Nadal and only lost to eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz in the 5th set, and clinching Laver Cup for Team World with a win over Stefanos Tsitsipas. Winning a second career title, and first ATP 500, here in Tokyo would be another important breakthrough for the American and he’s been playing well so far this week. Kecmanovic barely escaped defeat against both Yoshihito Nishioka and Daniel Evans (saved 6 match points), so he’ll be motivated and confident for sure, but Tiafoe is the favorite going into this one.
Prediction: Tiafoe in 3
Denis Shapovalov vs Borna Coric
Head-to-head: Coric 2-0 Shapovalov
Both players have had great highlights in otherwise poor seasons: Shapovalov reached the quarterfinals at the Australian Open, beating Zverev and taking Nadal to a deciding set, and beat Nadal in Rome, but after that he pretty much disappeared until last week, where he reached the final in Seoul. Coric struggled in his return from injury, barely winning matches, then he suddenly went on a great run to win the title in Cincinnati, before falling early at the US Open. Now both players face each other at the quarterfinal stage in Tokyo, with legitimate aspirations to win a very important title in their careers. It should be a very tight match, with Shapovalov’s power and aggression against Coric’s consistency. Coric does seem to have more form and momentum right now though.
Prediction: Coric in 3
Taylor Fritz vs Nick Kyrgios
Head-to-head: Fritz 1-0 Kyrgios
Both players are having career best seasons and had their career best results this year, Fritz with the title in Indian Wells and Kyrgios with the final at Wimbledon. Fritz is the highest ranked player left in the draw, but he hasn’t been convincing at all so far this week, while Kyrgios has looked far more impressive. The one time they faced was earlier this year in Cincinnati and Fritz won in very routine fashion, but this time around Kyrgios seems to have the edge going in.
Prediction: Kyrgios in 3
Main Photo from Getty.
