Houston 2024 Day 5: Men's singles predictions ft. Ben Shelton vs Brandon Nakashima | U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships
Day 5 of the 2024 U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships will see the players battling it out in the quarterfinals.
All four singles matches feature at least one player from the host country, so an all-American semifinal line-up is quite possible. Top seed Ben Shelton will be keen to improve his record on clay while defending champion Frances Tiafoe will aim to overturn a rather underwhelming year so far.
Luciano Darderi is the latest Italian making waves on the men's tour. The 22-year-old has impressed with his results so far, especially on clay. He'll be eager to continue his upward ascent with another good showing.
Here's a look at the predictions for all the singles ties lined up for Day 5 of the U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships:
#1 - Ben Shelton vs Brandon Nakashima
Shelton staged a comeback to beat Zizou Bergs 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 in the second round here and score his third career win on clay. Nakashima ousted Duje Adjukovic and Rinky Hijikata with identical scorelines of 6-1, 6-4 to reach his first quarterfinal since May 2023.
While the two are just a year apart in age, Shelton has eclipsed Nakashima with his achievements despite a late start. The latter has spent more time on the Challenger circuit this year than the ATP Tour.
Nakashima's 4-12 record against top 20 players isn't too promising. However, he has won his last two matches against them. He also has a bit more experience on clay compared to Shelton, who's still finding his bearings on the surface.
Shelton hasn't won back-to-back matches on clay in his career. While recent results back him as the favorite, he's still vulnerable on the red dirt. Nakashima could manage to pull off an upset here if he plays his cards right.
Predicted winner: Ben Shelton
#2 - Tomas Martin Etcheverry vs Michael Mmoh
Etcheverry downed Daniel Elahi Galan 6-4, 6-4 to reach the quarterfinals of the U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships. He was slightly under the weather during the match and even threw up before serving for the match.
Mmoh defeated Juan Pablo Varillas 6-2, 7-6 (4) in his opener and then eliminated eighth seed Max Purcell as he beat him 6-2, 7-5. He has now made it to the last eight here for the second time in his career.
This is Etcheverry's third quarterfinal on clay this year, having reached this stage in Cordoba and Buenos Aires back in February. He was the runner-up in Houston last year as well. Unless he's still feeling the effects of whatever bothered him in the previous round, he should be able to move past Mmoh with ease.
Predicted winner: Tomas Martin Etcheverry
#3 - Marcos Giron vs Luciano Darderi
Giron scored straight-set wins over Denis Shapovalov and J.J. Wolf to advance to the quarterfinals. Darderi, on the other hand, has been pushed to the limit in both of his matches at the U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships.
Darderi fought back from a set down to defeat Denis Kudla 3-6, 7-6 (2), 6-2 in the first round. He then survived another three-set tussle to knock out second seed Francisco Cerundolo.
Darderi earlier nabbed his maiden ATP title at the Cordoba Open and reached the quarterfinals of the Chile Open, both claycourt tournaments. Giron, despite competing on the tour for years now, has never reached a semifinal on clay. The young Italian will be expected to continue his breakout season with a win over the American.
Predicted winner: Luciano Darderi
#4 - Frances Tiafoe vs Jordan Thompson
Tiafoe commenced his title defense with a 6-2, 6-7 (4), 7-5 win over James Duckworth to move into the quarterfinals. Thompson overcame Aleksander Kovacevic 4-6, 7-6 (1), 7-6 (7) to move into the last eight.
The Australian saved three match points in a contest that lasted for more than three hours and finished after midnight. Tiafoe and Thompson have faced off twice before but both of those matches took place in 2019.
Tiafoe won their first duel at the Mexican Open in three sets and Thompson avenged that loss at the Libema Open with a straight sets victory. This will be their first encounter on clay.
After his second-round exit from the U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships in 2022, Thompson lost all of his matches on clay until this week. Houston has proven to be a special place for him in that regard.
However, Thompson's late-night marathon match could put him at a disadvantage against Tiafoe. The American has also performed relatively better on clay, so the contest tilts in his favor.
Predicted winner: Frances Tiafoe