Shanghai Masters 2024: Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Kei Nishikori preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds, and pick
Match Details
Fixture: (10) Stefanos Tsitsipas vs (WC) Kei Nishikori
Date: October 4, 2024
Tournament: Shanghai Masters 2024
Round: Second Round (Round of 64)
Venue: Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena, Shanghai, China
Category: ATP Masters 1000
Surface: Hard
Prize Money: $8,995,555
Live Telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Sky Sports | Canada - TSN
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Kei Nishikori preview
After a first-round bye, 10th seed Stefanos Tsitsipas will face Kei Nishikori in the second round of the Shanghai Masters 2024.
The clay swing has been the highlight of Tsitsipas' year so far. He won the Monte-Carlo Masters for the third time in four years and was the runner-up at the Barcelona Open. He also made the last eight at the French Open, the Paris Olympics, and the Italian Open.
The North American swing was a disaster for Tsitsipas as he won only one match across three tournaments. His only win came at the Cincinnati Open and fell at the first hurdle at the Canadian Open and the US Open.
Tsitsipas avenged his US Open loss to Thanasi Kokkinakis by beating him in the Laver Cup, his only singles match at the event. He commenced the Asian swing at the Japan Open and was shown the door by Alex Michelsen in the first round.
Nishikori received a wildcard into the Shanghai Masters and was up against Mariano Navone in the first round. The former US Open finalist went down a break in the first set, a deficit he failed to recoup, and thus lost the set.
Nishikori landed the first blow in the second set to go 5-3 up, only for Navone to break back. However, the former broke the latter's serve again to take the set. The Japanese pushed himself ahead in the third set thanks to a break in the fourth game and held on to the lead to register a 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 win.
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Kei Nishikori head-to-head
Nishikori leads Tsitsipas 2-1 in the head-to-head. The Japanese won their most recent encounter at this year's Canadian Open in straight sets.
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Kei Nishikori odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Kei Nishikori prediction
Tsitsipas' results have taken a turn for the worse since the switch to hardcourts following the Olympics. He has a 2-4 record on the surface since then, and an overall record of 13-10 since the start of the year.
Nishikori dug deep to edge past Navone in his opener here, though it wasn't a clean performance by any means. He struck 26 winners and topped it off with 48 unforced errors.
Nishikori gave Tsitsipas the boot when they crossed paths at the Canadian Open a few weeks ago. He also won their other encounter in Tokyo six years ago in straight sets and pushed the Greek to three sets in his loss to him in Miami three years ago.
Tsitsipas has never left the Shanghai Masters without winning at least one match, though he's at risk of doing so now given his current form. Unless he comes out of his slump, it's tough to see him winning this encounter.
Pick: Kei Nishikori to win in straight sets.