Its the second day at the ATP 250 in Adelaide and the event has lived up to its billing with debutants and veterans slugging it out to remain in the contest of securing the valuable ranking points available as they head into the big one. Three Australians are on the cards on Day 2. Will they make it through?
ATP Adelaide Day 2 Predictions
Matteo Arnaldi vs Bernabe Zapata Miralles
Head–to–Head: First Meeting
Matteo Arnaldi has carried his remarkable 2023 season into the year with impressive wins over Marton Fucsovics and Lukas Klein on his way to the quarterfinals at Brisbane. The young Italian now squares up against an opponent who won exactly a lone match on outdoor hardcourts last season and just made it into the main draw here as a lucky loser.
Zapata Miralles is not entirely incapable on hard surfaces but Arnaldi possesses the firepower to thaw whatever he brings
Prediction: Arnaldi in 2
Christopher O’Connell vs Arthur Rinderknech
Head–to–Head: O’Connell 1 vs 2 Rinderknech
This is a match between two evenly matched and closely ranked players. The Australian’s debut here last year ended in a first-round loss and his compatriot sent him packing from Brisbane also in the first round. His French opponent, however, managed to bounce back from his first loss of this season by stopping two Aussies from participating in the main draw in the qualifiers.
Christopher O’Connell somehow has to win this match to regain his momentum and end Rinderknech’s blowout of Australian players.
Prediction: O’Connell in 3
Jiri Lehecka vs Adam Walton
Head–to–Head: First Meeting
Adam Walton defeated two more illustrious opponents to secure his place in the main draw and he looks quite confident that this could be his breakthrough season on the main tour. The decisive victories over two Top 100 players will give his confidence a boost as he enters even more uncharted territory – a match against a top 50 player.
Jiri Lehecka hasn’t won in five attempts but if you consider he has taken a set off his last three opponents–Novak Djokovic, Zhizhen Zang, and Alex De Minaur–then it’ll be just a matter of time he gets before he gets over the line.
The young Australian will probably nick a set, but the younger Czech should finally taste victory in his second match of 2024.
Prediction: Lehecka in 3
Jordan Thompson vs Facundo Diaz Acosta
Head–to–Head: First Meeting
Jordan Thompson demonstrated superb resilience to wear out the returning Rafael Nadal in the Brisbane quarterfinal. His gallant semifinal loss to eventual champion Grigor Dimitrov will certainly boost his confidence for the rest of the Aussie swing.
Despite not having played a half-century of matches on hardcourts, Facundo Acosta has played superbly with two comeback wins in the qualifiers. The Argentine won three Challenger titles (all on clay) last year to propel him into the Top 100 and he’s transmuted onto hardcourts easily.
Facundo Acosta will give Jordan Thompson a run for his money in this one but give me the Aussie to grind out a win in front of his home fans.
Prediction: Thompson in 3
Main Photo Credit: Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK
