There has been plenty of entertaining tennis so far at Wimbledon despite the weather signally failing to cooperate. The excitement should should continue on day four, with plenty of intriguing matches on the schedule and, as always, we here at LWOT will be offering our predictions for every match, including Carlos Alcaraz vs Alexandre Muller, Andy Murray vs Stefanos Tsitsipas and Taylor Fritz vs Mikael Ymer. But who will reach the third round?
Wimbledon Day 4 Predictions
Cameron Norrie vs Christopher Eubanks
Yesh: Cameron Norrie is great on grass and looks to be in solid form. Maybe he’s not at last year’s semifinal-achieving level, but he’s not that far off. Christopher Eubanks is playing the best tennis of his career after a title in Mallorca, but he looked nervous and uncomfortable in his opening match in SW19.
Prediction: Norrie in 4
Damian: Despite coming off a title at Mallorca, Eubanks’s baseline game and return can often look better on hard than on grass. Norrie might not be in amazing form right now, but he’s going to smell blood after Korda’s loss. It’s never easy to play a big server, but Norrie is well-equipped to do that and should force the American to bend his knees with the flat backhand.
Prediction: Norrie in 4
Jakub: Norrie took out the hard-hitting Czech qualifier Tomas Machac in four sets to open his Wimbledon semifinal defense, though Machac did struggle physically in the last two sets. After winning the title in Mallorca, Eubanks came back from a set down against Thiago Monteiro in his Wimbledon main draw debut. The American’s game is really well-suited to grass and now that he has seemingly unlocked the movement side of things, he will be a very tough out.
Prediction: Norrie in 5
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Marcos Giron vs Marton Fucsovics
Yesh: Marcos Giron has peaked for the Slams in recent years, but Marton Fucsovics is so good on grass and looks at his best right now. That’s a scary level for most of the field.
Prediction: Fucsovics in 3
Damian: Fucsovics can often fail to follow up a good win, but perhaps not on grass? No one expected him to clean up the in-form Griekspoor in just three sets. It’s in the 2021 quarterfinalist’s best interest not to screw this up. I’ll trust that he won’t with the help of his tennis IQ and the knifing backhand slice, which corresponds with the surface so well.
Prediction: Fucsovics in 4
Jakub: Fucsovics looked really impressive against Tallon Griekspoor, winning what seemed to be one of the most evenly-matched openers in the draw in a comfortable fashion. Giron beat Hugo Dellien in straight sets but Fucsovics will be a big step up for the American.
Prediction: Fucsovics in 3
Corentin Moutet vs Roman Safiullin
Yesh: Corentin Moutet was impressive in how he beat Richard Gasquet in the opening round. However, Roman Safiullin was even more impressive when he upset Roberto Bautista Agut.
Prediction: Safiullin in 5
Damian: Safiullin scored a massive win over Bautista Agut in the opening round, while Moutet continues to produce impressive results despite being unable to hit his backhand properly after the injury. Grass can often highlight the Frenchman’s creativity and maybe his wide repertoire can lead to Safiullin’s demise, despite the power difference.
Prediction: Moutet in 5
Jakub: Moutet beat his countryman Richard Gasquet in straight sets while Roman Safiullin managed to pull together a comeback from two sets to one down over former semifinalist Roberto Bautista Agut after an almost two-day break between sets three and four. Moutet only won their previous meeting 9-7 in a third-set tiebreak at the 2021 Orleans Challenger. Moutet’s backhand is still not back and with Safiullin’s hard-hitting style, I believe he will give the Frenchman fewer opportunities to run around it than Gasquet did. You can never count Moutet out though.
Prediction: Safiullin in 5
Daniil Medvedev vs Adrian Mannarino
Yesh: This should be a surprising match. Adrian Mannarino is really good on the grass, while it doesn’t suit Daniil Medvedev’s game much. The upset alert alarm should be blaring on this one.
Prediction: Mannarino in 5
Damian: Mannarino leads the head-to-head 4-2 and won one of these matches a few weeks ago in Hertogenbosch. He doesn’t have the serve of Medvedev, but can keep putting him in uncomfortable spots with his flat-hitting magic. It’s a terrible matchup for the Russian and he must hate playing against Mannarino. Whoever wins, it will be a tough workout for both.
Prediction: Medvedev in 5
Jakub: After settling into his opener against Arthur Fery and coming through in straight sets, Medvedev will face one of his least favorite opponents in Adrian Mannarino. The Frenchman leads the head-to-head 4-2, 3-1 on grass. Mannarino seemed to get injured in the Mallorca final but went on to finish the match and got a routine win over Alexander Shevchenko, setting up an unorthodox style match-up for the ages at Wimbledon. Mannarino’s track record against Medvedev is clear but this will be the biggest challenge for him yet.
Prediction: Mannarino in 5
Main photo credit: Peter van den Berg-USA TODAY Sports
