The entertaining action is set to continue on day two at the Australian Open with 28 first-round matches on the slate. As always, we here at LWOT will be offering our predictions for every match on the schedule, including Andy Murray vs Tomas Martin Etcheverry, Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Zizou Bergs, Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Dominic Thiem, Ben Shelton vs Roberto Bautista Agut, Daniil Medvedev vs Terence Atmane, and Hubert Hurkacz vs Omar Jasika. But who will reach the second round?
Australian Open Day 2 Predictions
Alex de Minaur vs Milos Raonic
Jim: It will be interesting to see the level Milos Raonic is at here. But it’s not a great matchup for the Canadian with de Minaur one of the best returners and quickest movers in the men’s game. Raonic’s power might be enough to earn him a set, but expect de Minaur to grind him down in the end.
Prediction: de Minaur in 4
Yesh: How far will Raonic go in his last hurrah? His game isn’t what it once was, but the serve still means he’s in every match. And this is a rough draw for him–and not just because de Minaur is an Aussie.
Prediction: de Minaur in 4
Damian: It’s pretty much impossible to predict what sort of form Raonic is in and he hasn’t been able to play a full schedule again after returning last year. De Minaur loves playing in Australia and generally goes deep here, but of course that is a potentially tricky draw. Can you actually see Raonic winning in the longer format though? It’s somewhat unlikely.
Prediction: de Minaur in 4
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Jan-Lennard Struff vs Rinky Hijikata
Jim: Jan-Lennard Struff was back to his best last season and comes into the Australian Open seeded 24th. He’s still not exactly a model of consistency, but the conditions should suit him well enough and with his power, he can hit Rinky Hijikata off the court.
Prediction: Struff in 4
Yesh: Hijikata is fun to watch, and he has real potential, but he’s stuck at journeyman levels for now. Struff, meanwhile, is a consistent and solid Tour-level player.
Prediction: Struff in 4
Damian: Struff does seem a bit overranked at the moment and this actually projects to be pretty close. Hijikata can draw from the energy of the crowd to get into that turbo mode that he sometimes turns on and should have his chances then. This might even be one of the more unexpected matches of the round.
Prediction: Hijikata in 5
Ugo Humbert vs David Goffin
Jim: It’s hard to pinpoint exactly where it’s gone wrong for David Goffin over the last couple of seasons thoug hhe may have lost half a step. The quality of his ball-striking should be enough to account for that, but seemingly hasn’t. Against the unpredictable talents of Ugo Humbert, it might be another disappointing day for the Belgian.
Prediction: Humbert in 4
Yesh: We have a rising solid potential player vs a falling one. Both of these guys can be Top 20ish on their days, but neither has those days consistently anymore. Goffin has been less consistent in recent years, though, so I’ll go with the Frenchman.
Prediction: Humbert in 4
Damian: Humbert was sick a couple of weeks ago and had his warm-up swing a bit ruined. At the tail end of last year he was in absolute peak mode though and that’s probably not going to be all gone just like that. But Goffin is going to force his way back into the top 100 soon and seems to be problem-solving extremely well at the moment. Should be fun.
Prediction: Humbert in 5
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Miomir Kecmanovic vs Yosuke Watanuki
Jim: Miomir Kecmanovic is another player whose struggles don’t have a particularly obvious cause. But this is a good draw for the Serbian with Yosuke Watanuki having started the season in indifferent form. The question now is whether the Serbian can take advantage.
Prediction: Kecmanovic in 4
Yesh: Kecmanovic is no longer a young future star, but he’s still pretty young and has a ton of potential. He’s not reaching a consistent peak yet, but I expect him to win more often than not over the next few years.
Prediction: Kecmanovic in 4
Damian: Kecmanovic seems to be in a very good spot at the moment and while we don’t know if it will last, he’s had extended peak patches like this before. Watanuki lost to Diaz Acosta last week and while he’s not a player that needs all that much rhythm in general, he’s definitely not as tuned in as Kecmanovic this season yet.
Prediction: Kecmanovic in 4
Main photo credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
