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Match details
Fixture: Diego Schwartzman vs Alejandro Davidovich Fokina
Date: 23 October 2020
Tournament: Bett1Hulks Championship 2020
Round: Quarterfinals
Venue: Cologne, Germany
Category: ATP 250
Surface: Indoor hardcourt
Prize money: €325,610
Match timing: Not before 3:30 pm CEST, 7.00 pm IST
Live telecast: USA - ESPN / Tennis Channel
Diego Schwartzman vs Alejandro Davidovich Fokina preview
Second seed Diego Schwartzman will take on the unseeded Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the quarterfinals of the 2020 bett1Hulks Championship on Friday.
Davidovich Fokina comes into this match on the back of some scintillating form on the indoor hardcourts of Germany. The Spaniard made the semis at the Cologne 1 event last week, before losing a closely fought battle against eventual winner Alexander Zverev.
At the Cologne 2 event Davidovich Fokina picked up where he had left off, defeating Damir Dzumhur and Steve Johnson in straight sets. The 21-year-old has shown considerable improvement in his game lately, especially on quicker surfaces, and will be looking to continue his fine run as long as he can.
Davidovich Fokina will now be pitted against Diego Schwartzman, one of the most in-form players on tour at the moment. The Argentine is playing in his first tournament since the French Open but seems to have adapted well to the conditions, registering a comprehensive win over Oscar Otte in his first match.
Schwartzman's favorite surface is clay, but he has the game and experience to do well on indoor hardcourts too.
Diego Schwartzman vs Alejandro Davidovich Fokina head-to-head
Diego Schwartzman leads Alejandro Davidovich Fokina by a margin of 1-0 in the head-to-head. The pair had met in the second round of the Australian Open earlier this year, with the Argentine winning 6-1, 6-4, 6-2.
Diego Schwartzman vs Alejandro Davidovich Fokina prediction
Both players have been playing their best tennis since the resumption of the tour, but it is Alejandro Davidovich Fokina who has had more match practice on hardcourts lately. That will no doubt give him a boost in the match against Diego Schwartzman, especially if the Argentine has a slow start.
We can expect a lot of long baseline rallies on Friday given that both players excel at hitting solid groundstrokes from the back of the court. That, coupled with their similarly strong movement, could make the contest a closely fought one.
The key for Schwartzman would be to find the extra bit of power and accuracy on his serve to avoid giving the Spaniard the chance to free his arms on the return. The Argentine is likely to have his hands full with Davidovich Fokina's consistent shot-making, but his experience might be enough to take him past the finish line.
Prediction: Diego Schwartzman to win in three sets.
