It promises to be another entertaining day of tennis at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Saudi Arabia with the competition for a place in the semifinals heating up. As always, we here at LWOT will be offering our predictions for all four matches on the slate in Jeddah, but who will secure a vital win and who will see their semifinal hopes dashed?
Next Gen ATP Finals Day 3 Predictions
Nishesh Basavareddy vs Justin Engel
Head-to-head: first meeting
Nishesh Basavareddy made a sharp start at the Next Gen ATP Finals, winning his opening match in fine style but followed that up with a straight-sets defeat at the hands of Alexander Blockx, albeit the first two sets went to tiebreaks. Justin Engel, in contrast, is yet to win a match this week with the conditions not seeming to suit the young German. Up against more experienced opposition in Basavareddy (even if it is all relative at this early stage of their careers) it could be another tough day for Engel.
Prediction: Basavareddy in 3
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Alexander Blockx vs Dino Prizmic
Head-to-head: Prizmic 1-0 Blockx
This is arguably the best match on day three, albeit in their only previous encounter Dino Prizmic won at a canter – losing just four games in a round of 16 clash in Lugano earlier this year. The Croatian also bounced back from his opening day defeat at the hands of Basavareddy to beat Engel in his second match in four-sets, a performance he will surely have taken confidence from. But Blockx has looked even sharper, winning both of his matches so far and six sets on the bounce. If he can maintain that level, he might just have the beating of Prizmic.
Prediction: Blockx in 4
Martin Landaluce vs Rafael Jodar
Head-to-head: first meeting
Rafael Jodar made a superb start at the Next Gen ATP Finals, winning his first tour-level match by beating top seed Learner Tien in a five-set thriller. But he was unable to back that up against fifth seed Nicolai Budkov Kjaer and was beaten in four. But this should represent a good opportunity to get back to winning ways against an opponent he should know well despite their not having met competitively. Martin Landaluce has plenty of talent, but it has been an off-week so far for 19-year-old and Jodar might just condemn him to further disappointment.
Prediction: Jodar in 5
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Learner Tien vs Nicolai Budkov Kjaer
Head-to-head: first meeting
On paper, Learner Tien should win this match comfortably. But as the old saying goes (more or less), tennis matches aren’t played on paper. The American is a by distance the highest-ranked player in the field, but he also arrived in Saudi after a long and taxing season, and that looks like it might be weighing on him slightly. He has also very much been the man to beat, with players raising their games against him as a result. After an opening day defeat to Jodar, he did look sharper against Landaluce in his second match, but it still wouldn’t be entirely surprising if Budkov Kjaer – who has gone 2-0 so far this week – pulled off the upset.
Prediction: Budkov Kjaer in 5
Main photo credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
