Alexander Zverev and Felix Auger-Aliassime haven’t played each other in almost two years (quarterfinal at 2022 Madrid). The German leads the head-to-head 5-2 and will try to extend that record on Saturday. Who do you think is coming out on top?
ATP Miami Day 4 Predictions
Sebastian Korda vs Roberto Bautista Agut
Head-to-head: Korda 3-0 Bautista Agut
With some of his recent results even qualifying and winning a round here is already a solid run for Roberto Bautista Agut. The veteran has one of these games where even slight physical decline could potentially hamper you a great deal and we’ve been seeing that of late. A relatively speedy hard-court like this is probably where he’s at his strongest though and he’s done well to get here. Sebastian Korda has always had an easy time attacking him in this matchup though, so Bautista Agut might need an off-day from his opponent to keep going.
Prediction: Korda in 3
Lorenzo Musetti vs Roman Safiullin
Head-to-head: Safiullin 2-0 Musetti
Things had fallen apart for Roman Safiullin a bit after the Australian Open, so he really needed that round one win. Diego Schwartzman was a kind draw and he took that opportunity in style, now he faces a seed that most players would have liked in their section too. Lorenzo Musetti played at least one great set in Indian Wells that made us look forward to the clay season, but will the Miami courts get something similar out of him? Feels like this one will be first and foremost on Safiullin’s racket and level of execution.
Prediction: Safiullin in 2
Jiri Lehecka vs Alexei Popyrin
Head-to-head: first meeting
It was a fantastic run for Jiri Lehecka at Indian Wells and now is when we have to come back to the question of repeatability. The Czech’s back-to-back performances against Andrey Rublev and Stefanos Tsitsipas were just incredible, but can he start doing this week in, week out? Alexei Popyrin could be some indication already as he’s definitely no pushover. Let’s assume Lehecka brings at least 90% of his quality from last week and he should have his chances to prevail then.
Prediction: Lehecka in 3
Alexander Zverev vs Felix Auger-Aliassime
Head-to-head: Zverev 5-2 Auger-Aliassime
Both players were completely demolished by Carlos Alcaraz in Indian Wells last week and now they’ll take on each other in Miami. It kind of feels especially crucial for Felix Auger-Aliassime to be competitive here, seeing as he needs to show that he can trouble a slightly more manageable top player. He’s already had match points against Andrey Rublev this year and can take that as a silver lining. Zverev was on the front foot in this rivalry in the past, but they haven’t played in two years and things could be a bit more open now.
Prediction: Zverev in 3
Main photo credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
