Match Preview
Tokyo draw: Fritz meets Fils, Turin candidates study destiny
ATP 500 hardcourt occasion begins Wednesday
September 23, 2024
Corinne Dubreuil/ATP Tour
Taylor Fritz is the highest seeded participant in Tokyo.
By Sam Jacot
High-seeded Taylor Fritz takes on France’s #NextGenATP Arthur Fils in an exciting first-round match on the Kinoshita Group Japan Open Tennis Championships, the place a number of stars can be seeking to go deep to extend their possibilities of a spot within the Nitto ATP Finals.
The American is a former champion on the ATP 500 in Tokyo and can win the trophy in 2022. The 26-year-old, who reached the ultimate on the US Open earlier this month, arrives in Tokyo as fifth within the PIF ATP Reside Race To Turin.
If Fritz Fils wins, he may play former High 10 star Matteo Berrettini within the second spherical. The Italian, who has gained three tour titles this yr, will face a qualifier in his first match after Monday’s draw.
Watch the Tokyo draw
Second-seeded Hubert Hurkacz, third-seeded Casper Ruud, fourth-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas and fifth-seeded Tommy Paul will all compete for the Nitto ATP Finals and face one another in Tokyo.
Hurkacz can be seeking to win his first match in Tokyo on his third try when he meets Marcos Giron within the first spherical and will face US Open semi-finalist Jack Draper within the second spherical. The British left-hander, at the moment ranked a career-high No. 20 within the PIF ATP Rankings, will begin in opposition to a qualifier.
Casper Ruud, who’s ranked sixth within the PIF ATP Reside Race To Turin, will face Jordan Thompson, with sixth-seeded Holger Rune a possible opponent within the quarterfinals. Ruud is in the identical half as Fritz. Within the backside half of the draw, Stefanos Tsitsipas begins in opposition to a qualifier and is seeded to play Paul within the final eight. Paul will face Matteo Arnaldi within the first spherical.
Dwelling favorite Kei Nishikori is a two-time Tokyo champion. The Japanese wildcard will play former world quantity three Marin Cilic within the first spherical. Nishikori leads the Croatian 9-6 within the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head sequence, with their earlier assembly going down on the 2018 US Open.
Seventh seed Frances Tiafoe will play former Subsequent Gen ATP Finals offered by PIF champion Brandon Nakashima within the first spherical, whereas reigning champion Ben Shelton will face American Reilly Opelka. Japanese wildcard Yoshihito Nishioka will face Felix Auger-Aliassime, and final yr’s semifinalist Shintaro Mochizuki will play Ugo Humbert.
The hardcourt occasion begins on Wednesday.