Miami Open 2024 Day 5: Men's singles predictions ft. Hubert Hurkacz vs Alexander Shevchenko
Day 5 of the 2024 Miami Open is going to go down as one of the busiest days in the tournament's history. With poor weather bringing a halt to the day's play on Friday, there are 26 men's singles matches lined up on Saturday.
Fifth seed Andrey Rublev was the highest-ranked player to be eliminated. He lost to Tomas Machac 6-4, 6-4 in the second round on Friday, in what was one of the day's few matches to be completed.
As players look to book their spots in the third round, here's a look at the predictions for some of the matches set for Day 5 of the Miami Open:
#1 - Hubert Hurkacz vs Alexander Shevchenko
Hurkacz had a good run during the first few weeks of the season. He, along with his Polish teammates, finished as the runners-up at the United Cup. He next made it to the quarterfinals of the Australian Open and the semifinals in Marseille.
After an early exit from Rotterdam, Hurkacz reached the last eight in Dubai. He was knocked out by Gael Monfils in the second round of the Indian Wells Masters. The Pole has fared well at the Miami Open in the past as he won the title here in 2021 and made it to the semifinals in 2022.
Shevchenko staged a comeback to defeat Daniel Elahi Galan 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4), 7-5 in the first round of the Miami Open. He has lost both of his prior matches against Hurkacz, with one of them being a 6-1, 6-4 defeat in Marseille a few weeks ago. Even if the Pole finds himself in a sticky situation here, he should be able to figure out a way to rise to the occasion and move on to the next round.
Predicted winner: Hubert Hurkacz
#2 - Grigor Dimitrov vs Alejandro Tabilo
Dimitrov started the year with a title-winning run at the Brisbane International. He laid his hands on a winner's trophy for the first time since the 2017 ATP Finals. It didn't translate to a deep run at the Australian Open as he bowed out in the third round.
Dimitrov has performed fairly well since then, with a runner-up finish in Marseille being his best result. He recently made it to the fourth round of the Indian Wells Masters.
Tabilo fought past Brandon Nakashima 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 to reach the second round of the Miami Open. It marked his maiden win at the venue. He's in pretty decent form himself as he won the title in Auckland and reached the final of the Chile Open too.
While Dimitrov's record at the Miami Open isn't as good compared to his results elsewhere, he'll still be favored to win against Tabilo. The latter has won just one match against top 20 players in his career and it seems unlikely that the Bulgarian will be his second scalp.
Predicted winner: Grigor Dimitrov
#3 - Gael Monfils vs Jordan Thompson
After back-to-back quarterfinal appearances in Dallas and Delray Beach, Thompson captured his maiden ATP title at the Los Cabos Open. He bested top 10 players Alexander Zverev and Casper Ruud to win the title.
Thompson's string of good results came to an abrupt end after that as he stumbled in the first round of the Mexican Open and the Indian Wells Masters. Monfils has played some great tennis in recent weeks as well, with a semifinal finish in Dubai and a fourth-round showing at Indian Wells.
He began his Miami Open campaign with a 7-6 (5), 6-4 win over Dusan Lajovic. Thompson won his prior and only encounter against Monfils in straight sets at Indian Wells a year ago. However, the Frenchman will be favored to even the rivalry this time around with a win.
Predicted winner: Gael Monfils
#4 - Karen Khachanov vs Laslo Djere
After a positive start to the year, Khachanov seems to have hit a roadblock. Since he claimed the Qatar Open title last month, he has lost in the second round of the Dubai Tennis Championships and the Indian Wells Masters.
Djere downed Coleman Wong in the first round of the Miami Open courtesy of a 7-5, 7-6 (3) win. It marked his third win of the year, as well as at the venue. It was also his first victory on hardcourts this season.
Khachanov has maintained a clean slate in his match-up against Djere. He has won all three of their prior encounters in straight sets. Even though the Russian is going through a lean phase, he should be able to snap out of it by getting the better of a familiar rival.
Predicted winner: Karen Khachanov