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It's a busy day at the 2024 Adelaide International as the first round matches will come to a close on Day 2 of the tournament.
There were a couple of upsets on the very first day. Fifth seed Sebastian Baez was knocked out by Jack Draper quite comfortably as the Brit scored a 6-3, 6-1 win.
Meanwhile, sixth seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry put up a fight, but Alexander Shevchenko dug deep to eke out a 7-6 (6), 4-6, 7-5 win over him. Miomir Kecmanovic and Dusan Lajovic were among the other victors.
Now the rest of the field will be looking to join today's winners in the second round. With that in mind, here's a look at the predictions for some of the key matches taking place on Day 2 of the Adelaide International:
#1 - Yannick Hanfmann vs Lorenzo Sonego
Sonego's still seeking his first win of the new season. He started the year by representing his country at the United Cup. He lost both of his singles matches as he slumped to defeats against Alexander Zverev and Adrian Mannarino.
Hanfmann participated in last week's Brisbane International, where he stunned fifth seed Sebastian Korda in the first round. He then went down to James Duckworth in the second round.
Sonego won their previous and so far only encounter at the 2021 Sardegna Open in three sets and went on to win the title as well. But Hanfmann has won just seven matches on hardcourts in his career so far. Thus, the Italian will be the favorite to win this contest despite his poor start to the season.
Predicted winner: Lorenzo Sonego
#2 - Jiri Lehecka vs Adam Walton
Lehecka's was part of the Czech Republic's United Cup squad. He fought well in both of his singles ties, but lost to Zhizhen Zhang and Novak Djokovic in three sets.
Walton defeated Pedro Cachin and Bernabe Zapata Miralles in straight sets to make it through the qualifying rounds. The 24-year old is currently ranked No. 176, but punched way above his weight to score back-to-back wins over players ranked in the top 100.
However, Lehecka will prove to be stern test for Walton to pass. After losing some close matches during his United Cup campaign, the Czech will be keen to resume his winning ways at the Adelaide International.
Predicted winner: Jiri Lehecka
#3 - Alexander Bublik vs James Mccabe
The Adelaide International will mark Bublik's first tournament of the new year. The end of the last season was a mixed bag for him. He won the European Open, but then crashed out in the first round of the Swiss Indoors. A third round showing at the Paris Masters was followed by a first round defeat at the Moselle Open.
Mccabe fell in the final round of qualifying to Arthur Rinderknech, but still made it to the main draw as a lucky loser. But the 20-year old, ranked 278th at present, could find it tough to go toe-to-toe with Bublik. Despite the Kazakh's inconsistency, he should be able to handle his younger opponent with ease.
Predicted winner: Alexander Bublik
#4 - Dan Evans vs Rinky Hijikata
Evans will also be starting his season by participating at the Adelaide International. His 2023 campaign ended on a rather poor note as he went 1-5 in his last five tournaments of the season.
As for Hijikata, he made it to the quarterfinals in Brisbane last week. He scored wins over Thanasi Kokkinakis and Tomas Machac before being bested by eventual champion Grigor Dimitrov.
Evans will be eyeing a fresh start after a disappointing end to the previous season. Hijikata, on the other hand, will look to build upon his run from Brisbane. The latter has momentum and match play on his side, so that tips the scale in his favor.
However, Evans is the more experienced player in this match-up. He has bounced back from a slump a few times in the past, and has the potential to do so again. If the Brit finds a way to channel his best once again, he could make a winning start to his new season.
Predicted winner: Dan Evans
