The World Tennis League in Dubai reaches the halfway mark with three matches on Wednesday including Novak Djokovic’s clash with fan favorite Nick Kyrgios. Here is your look at those matches.
Grigor Dimitrov and Aryna Sabalenka vs Bianca Andreescu and Andreas Seppi
Dimitrov and Andreescu both won their first mixed doubles match at this exhibition, paired with different partners however. On paper, the Dimitrov and Sabalenka pairing has a clear advantage, as the accomplished Italian grinder Seppi has retired from professional tennis, doing so at a Challenger this year after the Italian federation denied him a wild card for one of the ATP World Tour Events held in Italy at the end of the season. A true servant of the game, Seppi was always entertaining to watch, while his partner, the 22 year old Andreescu from Canada has yet to reach the top 100 in doubles and only has modest experience in the format. Seppi finished well below .500 in doubles on the ATP Tour but did win one doubles title and reach two Grand Slam quarterfinals in doubles.
Sabalenka has the best doubles record in this matchup, a former WTA #1 in doubles with two career Grand Slam titles in the format (6 overall), she should prove a great compatriot for Dimitrov, and I would expect them to get the win. Dimitrov and Sabalenka in 2 sets
Paula Badosa vs Caroline Garcia
Badosa struggled to end the season while Garcia put together a great campaign at the WTA Finals, which she won. Garcia also won their only h2h meeting on grass in Mallorca. Both players are highly accomplished but Garcia on this surface packs more of a punch. I would expect a relatively straight forward win for Garcia. Garcia in 2 sets
Novak Djokovic vs Nick Kyrgios
A match most tennis fans would want to watch, the big hitter Kyrgios struggled in the Saudi Arabia exhibition, which was his first singles match since withdrawing from the quarterfinals in Tokyo. Djokovic won the World Tour Finals and despite not having the #1 ranking, many still consider him to be the world’s best male tennis player. Surprisingly, Kyrgios has won both their h2h meetings, with two straight set wins on hard courts in 2017. Though some time has passed since those matches, Kyrgios will be aiming to secure the same result in this Dubai exhibition. Djokovic is clearly in better form, but Kyrgios with his serve should at least be able to make this highly competitive. Djokovic in 3 sets
Main Photo from Getty Images
