It’s time for the quarterfinal round of the 2023 ATP Open 13 Provence in Marseille, France. Perhaps the most interesting clash of the day will feature the three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka against one of the finest talents of the young generation, Arthur Fils. They’re at opposite ends of their professional careers with the Swiss being over nineteen years older. Who do you think will come out on top?
ATP Marseille Quarterfinal Predictions
Hubert Hurkacz vs Mikael Ymer
Head-to-head: 1-1
Hubert Hurkacz beat Mikael Ymer in Auckland three years ago, but the Swede was able to come out on top in a more important meeting at the Australian Open. Theoretically, indoors this matchup should be a little nicer for the Pole with his serve being even more of a threat. Ymer has not started the year poorly, but when he loses it’s mostly to players with big weapons, who simply have a lot more point-winning engines than he does.
Prediction: Hurkacz in 2
Benjamin Bonzi vs Alex de Minaur
Head-to-head: de Minaur 3-1
They’ve faced each other three times recently, all since September last year. Benjamin Bonzi’s sole win in the head-to-head comes from an ITF event in 2016 and especially in the last two meetings with Alex de Minaur he was taken down rather soundly. Does this one taking place in Marseille (where Bonzi made the semifinals in 2022) change that much? Probably not, although it also has to be said that the recent scorelines between them do seem a little harsh on the Frenchman in comparison to his tennis abilities.
Prediction: de Minaur in 2
Grigor Dimitrov vs Alexander Bublik
Head-to-head: 2-2
Alexander Bublik finally managed to grab his first win in 2023 this week (was 0-8) and is now looking a lot more comfortable on the court. The Kazakh has some good memories from Marseille too, having made a semifinal here in 2020. He should have a very decent chance at beating Grigor Dimitrov, but the Bulgarian is quietly enjoying a pretty amazing start to the year. All the players that managed to take him down so far (Novak Djokovic, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Daniil Medvedev) are in the Top 10 at the moment.
Prediction: Dimitrov in 3
Stan Wawrinka vs Arthur Fils
Head-to-head: First meeting
This is the most consistent Stan Wawrinka has been since his injury hiatus, but the question is how will his body hold up after two very physical matches in the last two rounds. The Swiss will be facing someone twice as young as him here. Arthur Fils is a future superstar and will be breaking the top 100 shortly. It could even be this week, but he still needs a couple of wins to get there. Jannik Sinner’s withdrawal opened up the door for him and the recent Montpellier semifinalist has everything he needs to walk through it.
Prediction: Fils in 3
Main Photo Credit: David Kirouac-USA TODAY Sports
