The ATP’s Miami Open Masters tournament moves into the second round on Friday, as the tournament introduces the seeded players who got first-round byes. Looking back to our first day of tennis picks on the men’s side, we didn’t do too badly all in all. We ended the day with a complete push, even though we had three picks on tap. Alexandr Dolgopolov’s match with Malek Jaziri was pushed back to today, so they will be playing as we speak. We had Bernard Tomic in our tennis picks but he pulled out with a back injury and therefore his first-round match was completely cancelled. Lastly, the Thomaz Belluccii and Stephane Robert showdown will also be taking place today, so keep an eye out for that.
Looking ahead to Friday, this is the first ATP Masters event since 2005 in which a member of the Big Four (Djokovic, Nadal, Federer, Murray) is not the top seed. Here is a look at our tennis picks for the day.
Kei Nishikori vs. Kevin Anderson
Last week Kei Nishikori was upset by the highest ranked American, Jack Sock, in a three-set quarterfinal of the BNP Paribas Open at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. Nishikori is hitting the ball crisply and an odd loss shouldn’t bother him too much. Nishikori is the second seed in Miami, a tournament he came close to winning it last year (but lost to peak level Novak Djokovic in the final round). The 27-year-old is searching for his first Miami crown, which he’ll try to land during the next two weeks. In the absence of Djokovic and Andy Murray, he couldn’t have asked for a better opportunity. Can he make the most of it?
Nishikori enjoys a 3-1 head-to-head advantage over Kevin Anderson but they’ve had some tough battles in the past. Anderson set up the Nishikori clash by playing a smooth first round match against Dusan Lajovic, whom he toppled in straight sets. Anderson is still on the comeback trail, so the Japanese star will have the upper hand. It is still a tricky opener for Nishikori but he should come out unscathed.
Pick: Nishikori in three sets
Pablo Cuevas vs. Benoit Paire
Pablo Cuevas made tournament history in Sao Paulo with his win against Albert Ramos- Vinolas. The 31-year-old became the first player since the tournament began in 2001 to win three consecutive Brazil Open titles. All of the right-hander’s six titles have come on clay. However, it doesn’t imply that he can’t play on hard courts. In the recently concluded Indian Wells tournament, he made the biggest singles quarterfinal of his career, where he lost to Pablo Carreno Busta after squandering two match points. Cuevas is one of the in-form players on the tour and it doesn’t look like he’ll lose to Paire, who is having an ordinary season.
Paire surprisingly lost to Taylor Fritz in the first round of Indian Wells. However, he is off to a winning start in Miami. Paire defeated Martin Klizan in the first round but not before obliterating a couple of racquets. The short tempered Paire will have to keep his head down and focus hard if he dreams of moving further in the tournament. Even if he behaves well, there is no guarantee he’ll beat Cuevas, who is playing some fabulous tennis of late.
Pick: Cuevas in three sets
Rafael Nadal vs. Dudi Sela
Believe it or not but Rafael Nadal has never triumphed in Miami – not on championship Sunday. The four-time finalist started the year with a bang, surprising everybody by reaching the finals in Melbourne. Nadal followed it up with another hardcourt final in Acapulco, where he was upset by Sam Querrey. He looked in good form in Indian Wells. That was until he faced Roger Federer, who shellacked him in just 67 minutes. On the other hand, Dudi Sela is on an awful run. Last week in Indian Wells, he came up short against Stephane Robert in the first round. Sela is 0-4 in his last four tournaments. He knows he’s in trouble against Nadal. Take Nadal with your tennis picks.
Pick: Nadal in straight sets
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