Tokyo Draw: Fritz meets Fils, Turin hopefuls learn fates
Top seed Taylor Fritz will face #NextGenATP Frenchman Arthur Fils in a blockbuster first-round round match at the Kinoshita Group Japan Open Tennis Championships, where several stars will aim for deep runs to boost their Nitto ATP Finals hopes.
The American is a former champion at the ATP 500 in Tokyo, lifting the trophy in 2022. The 26-year-old, who advanced to the final at the US Open earlier this month, arrives in Tokyo fifth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin.
If Fritz overcomes Fils, he could play former Top 10 star Matteo Berrettini in the second round. The Italian, who has won three tour-level titles this year, will face a qualifier in his first match following Monday’s draw.
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Second seed Hubert Hurkacz, third seed Casper Ruud, fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas and fifth seed Tommy Paul are all in Nitto ATP Finals contention and take to court in Tokyo.
Hurkacz will aim to record his first match win in Tokyo on his third attempt when he meets Marcos Giron in the first round and could play US Open semi-finalist Jack Draper in the second round. The British lefty, currently at a career-high No. 20 in the PIF ATP Rankings, starts against a qualifier.
[ATP APP]Casper Ruud, who is sixth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, faces Jordan Thompson, with sixth seed Holger Rune a potential quarter-final opponent. Ruud is in the same half as Fritz. In the bottom half of the draw, Stefanos Tsitsipas begins against a qualifier and is seeded to play Paul in the last eight. Paul takes on Matteo Arnaldi in the first round.
Home favourite Kei Nishikori is a two-time Tokyo champion. The Japanese wild card plays former World No. 3 Marin Cilic in the first round. Nishikori leads the Croatian 9-6 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series, with their previous meeting coming at the US Open in 2018.
Seventh seed Frances Tiafoe plays former Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF champion Brandon Nakashima in the first round, while defending champion Ben Shelton takes on American Reilly Opelka. Japanese wild card Yoshihito Nishioka faces Felix Auger-Aliassime, and last year’s semi-finalist Shintaro Mochizuki plays Ugo Humbert.
The hard-court event starts on Wednesday.
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