It’s a good docket in Dubai on Wednesday, as Sebastian Korda takes on Botic van de Zandschulp and Jakub Mensik battles Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. Spots in the quarterfinals of this ATP 500 are at stake.
Sebastian Korda vs. Botic van de Zandschulp
American Sebastian Korda’s start to the 2024 season has been a mixed bag. The world No. 33 performed well in Adelaide, but bowed out of the Australian Open after running into Andrey Rublev in the third round. He’s currently 7-5 (including his first round win this week over Pavel Kotov). He crashed out of Rotterdam last week in the first round to Alex de Minaur.
Korda has had some difficulty with his Wednesday opponent Botic van de Zandschulp in the past. The two men last met back in 2022. The Dutch player gave Korda a shellacking at the 2022 Rome Masters, but since then, van de Zandschulp has seen his ranking slip considerably. The world No. 75 sat at a career high 22 in the world in August of 2022, but he’s won just 4 total matches so far in 2024.
Korda should be playing well enough to find his way into the quarterfinals in Dubai. Van de Zandschulp beat the No. 6 seed Adrian Mannarino in the first round, and upset win for certain, but there is little to suggest that he will do it twice in a row.
Cheryl pick: Korda in 2
Ricky pick: Korda in 2
WWW: Korda vs. Van de Zandschulp?
(SE) Jakub Mensik vs. (8) Alejandro Davidovich Fokina
If this matchup seems familiar to you, it’s because you just saw it a week ago in Doha, where Jakup Mensik had his ATP tour breakthrough and made a run all the way to the final. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina ran into an inspired Mensik in the first round last week. The player from Czechia stunned Davidovich Fokina in straight sets.
While it’s tempting to give Mensik the nod again given how well the 18 year-old has been playing, the teenager must be getting tired. He rushed to Dubai from the Doha final. He did manage a 3-set win over Borna Coric in the first round, but fatigue is bound to push it’s way into Mensik’s week. Davidovich Fokina has been a bit off form so far in 2024, but it feels like a revenge victory is in the cards.
Cheryl pick: Davidovich Fokina in 3
Ricky pick: Mensik in 2
WWW: Davidovich Fokina vs. Mensik?
The post Dubai R2 previews and predictions: Korda vs. Van de Zandschulp, Davidovich Fokina vs. Mensik appeared first on The Grandstand.