Most of the top seeds come into play on Wednesday at the ATP 250 in Washington, including World No. 8 Andrey Rublev. He’s the highest-ranked player in the draw, but could use a run right now with some early losses of late. Facing him will be 20-year-old NextGen player Luca Van Assche, who do you think will prevail?
ATP Washington Day 3 Predictions
Roberto Carballes Baena vs Aleksandar Kovacevic
Head-to-head: First meeting
Aleksandar Kovacevic once again didn’t perform too well on the natural surfaces and he’ll be hoping for a quick restart on hard courts. After losing to Reilly Opelka last week, the American picked up a fine win over the Atlanta champion Yoshihito Nishioka on Tuesday. Next up for him is Roberto Carballes Baena, whose hard-court game is pretty pedestrian. While the Spaniard has developed his flat first serve over the years and some attacking options, it’s a great opportunity for Kovacevic to grab some much-needed points.
Prediction: Kovacevic in 3
Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard vs Emil Ruusuvuori
Head-to-head: Mpetshi Perricard 1-0
We haven’t seen Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard on the court since his breakout Wimbledon run, which included a third-round win over Emil Ruusuvuori. The big-serving Frenchman has made some massive progress this season with his ground game and athleticism improving to a point where he holds up against most players off the baseline. Emil Ruusuvuori was already flustered by Mpetshi Perricard’s weapons in London and with his current form (or lack thereof), it might just happen again.
Prediction: Mpetshi Perricard in 3
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina vs Mitchell Krueger
Head-to-head: First meeting
The resurgence of Mitchell Krueger this year has been fun to follow with the American picking up Challenger titles in Indian Wells and Little Rock, both on home soil. Now he’s also earned himself this chance to compete against one of the best players in the world and we’ll see if he can step up. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina has been rather disappointing in 2024 so far, but that month of break seems to have done him some good. If he plays as well as in Atlanta, he’ll likely prevail.
Prediction: Davidovich Fokina in 2
Andrey Rublev vs Luca Van Assche
Head-to-head: First meeting
Andrey Rublev playing almost every week is what we’re used to, and the Russian is back to the grind, traveling over to the States after appearing in Bastad and Umag on clay. He’s visibly more negative on the court this year and lost a bit of that clinical edge. But he should still be handling players like Luca Van Assche. The Frenchman isn’t particularly strong on hard courts and doesn’t produce much variety that could possibly throw off Rublev’s power-hitting.
Prediction: Rublev in 2
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey-USA TODAY Sports
