Korea Open 2022 final: Denis Shapovalov vs Yoshihito Nishioka preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds and pick
Match Details
Fixture: (4) Denis Shapovalov vs Yoshihito Nishioka.
Date: October 2, 2022.
Tournament: Korea Open 2022.
Round: Final.
Venue: Seoul, South Korea.
Category: ATP 250.
Surface: Hard.
Prize money: $1,237,570.
Match timing: Not before 1:30 pm local time, 4:30 am GMT, 12:30 am ET and 10 am IST.
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | Canada - TSN | Australia - beIN Sports.
Denis Shapovalov vs Yoshihito Nishioka preview
Denis Shapovalov and Yoshihito Nishioka are set to battle it out for the 2022 Korea Open title on Sunday.
Shapovalov reached the semifinals with straight sets wins over Jaume Munar and Radu Albot, following which he took on Jenson Brooksby for a spot in the title round. He fell behind 3-1 in the opening set, but won four games in a row to lead 5-3.
Shapovalov failed to serve out the set on his first try as Brooksby managed to keep himself in contention. With the score tied at 5-5, the Canadian broke his opponent's serve yet again and managed to serve out the opener on his second attempt.
There wasn't this much back and forth in the second set, but the duo were evenly matched for most of it. Shapovalov raised his level towards the end as he went on a three-game run to win the match 7-5, 6-4. He has now reached his first final of the year.
Yoshihito Nishioka, meanwhile, defeated Dan Evans and Taro Daniel to reach the quarterfinals. There, he got the biggest win of his career so far by knocking out World No. 2 Casper Ruud. He was up against Aleksandar Kovacevic in the semifinals.
Nishioka hardly faced any trouble during his own service games during the first set. He broke his opponent's serve twice to bag the opener. Kovacevic played much better in the next set, and a solitary break of serve was enough for him to claim the set and take the match into a decider.
Nishioka snagged an early break in the third set to go 3-0 up, but wasn't able to hold on to the lead. Kovacevic managed to get back on serve at 4-3. The Japanese then secured yet another break at this point to lead 5-3. He closed out the proceedings in the next game to win the match 6-3, 4-6, 6-3.
Nishioka has now reached his second final of the season. He previously finished as the runner-up at the Citi Open in August, losing to Nick Kyrgios in straight sets.
Denis Shapovalov vs Yoshihito Nishioka head-to-head
Nishioka leads Shapovalov 1-0 in the head-to-head. He won their previous encounter at the 2018 Shenzhen Open in three sets.
Denis Shapovalov vs Yoshihito Nishioka odds
All odds are sourced from BetMGM.
Denis Shapovalov vs Yoshihito Nishioka prediction
Both players are gunning for their second career title. Shapovalov won his only title back in 2019 at the Stockholm Open. Nishioka won his at the 2018 Shenzhen Open, where their previous meeting took place.
Shapovalov hasn't dropped a set all week in Seoul and this is the best he has played in months. Nishioka was taken to three sets in his last couple of matches, but remained solid to come out on top. In the previous round against Kovacevic, he finished with 22 winners and just five unforced errors.
The Canadian, on the other hand, hit the same number of winners in the semifinals, but committed 26 unforced errors. Nishioka, however, is the type of player capable of drawing out more errors from him. The 27-year old has no problem hugging the baseline and just dictating play from there.
Shapovalov certainly has the edge when it comes to serving and if his ground game isn't clicking, he'll be relying on his serve more than ever. The Canadian looks to be on a mission this week and is likely to lift the trophy on Sunday.
Pick: Denis Shapovalov to win in three sets.