Eight third-round matches will be played at the Winston-Salem Open on day 4. With the defending champion, Sebastian Baez, out, the remaining players will be eager to showcase their best tennis in pursuit of the title. As always, we at LWOT will offer predictions for every match on the slate. But who will advance to the quarterfinals?
ATP Winston-Salem Day 4 Predictions
Pavel Kotov vs Zachary Svajda
Head-to-Head: First meeting
Zachary Svajda saved seven out of eight break points to stun the No. 3 seed, Francisco Cerundolo, in straight sets. That was Svajda’s highest-ranked win on the ATP tour. He was solid from the baseline and hit some great winners on the run. Pavel Kotov was equally impressive in his second-round match against Alexandre Muller. Kotov was brilliant behind his first serve and hit 38 winners in total. He will look to get some much-needed form this week, and if he can play as he did against Muller, it will trouble the rest of the players. I will Kotov to overpower Svajda.
Prediction: Kotov in 3
David Goffin vs Arthur Rinderknech
Head-to-Head: Goffin 1-0 Rinderknech
David Goffin played one of his best matches of the year to beat Luciano Darderi dominantly. It was a vintage performance from the former top-10 player, as he hit just nine unforced errors in the entire match. Goffin has not made a quarterfinal this year at the tour level and will be keen to do so. Arthur Rinderknech faced no problems in beating Christopher O’Connell in his first match. The Frenchman has had a good North American hard courts swing with plenty of match wins. Goffin has already defeated Rinderknech earlier this year on clay. Rinderknech’s serve is more effective on hard courts, but I trust Goffin will reach his first quarterfinals of the year.
Prediction: Goffin in 3
Thiago Seyboth Wild vs Learner Tien
Head-to-Head: First meeting
Thiago Seyboth Wild has performed well on hard courts this year and did so again against Nuno Borges. Wild dropped his serve just once and minimized his error counts. The Brazilian has never reached a quarterfinals on hard courts before at the tour level. He would have to go through a highly talented young player for it to happen. Learner Tien has the potential to become a great player in the future as he keeps showing signs. He got his first top-50 win against Fabian Marozsan as he edges closer to entering the top 200. Wild will pose a difficult challenge, but Tien is on a high right now and looks good about reaching his first quarterfinals.
Prediction: Tien in 3
Borna Coric vs Rinky Hijikata
Head-to-Head: Coric 1-0 Hijikata
Borna Coric defeated Sebastian Baez, the defending champion and #1 seed, in straight sets, avenging a semifinal loss to him last year. It’s the first time that Coric has managed to string together back-to-back wins on the main tour since reaching the final of Montpellier in January. This is his fourth appearance at the Winston-Salem Open, and he has always reached either the quarterfinals or semifinals here. Coric has fallen to 98 in the live rankings, so he could do with more wins here. He faces Rinky Hijikata next, who he coincidentally beat here last year. This is the only time they have ever played each other. I expect a similar outcome this time, too.
Prediction: Coric in 2
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane – USA TODAY Sports
