Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and Ethan Quinn will be making quick turnarounds after facing each other in the Mallorca final on Saturday. They are going up against Juan Manuel Cerundolo and Luciano Darderi, respectively, in the Wimbledon first round on Monday.
(22) Alejandro Davidovich Fokina vs. Juan Manuel Cerundolo
Davidovich Fokina finally found the winners’ circle on Saturday, becoming a first-time ATP champion by triumphing at the Mallorca Championships. The 27-year-old Spaniard defeated Ethan Quinn 7-6(4), 6-3 in the final, which was his sixth. Davidovich Fokina landed in the top half of the Wimbledon draw, so he will get only one day off before battling Cerundolo on Monday afternoon.
This marks the second meeting between these two players, with Davidovich Fokina dominating their first one 6-1, 6-4, 6-3 at the 2023 U.S. Open. The good news for Cerundolo, however, is that he is playing the best tennis of his career right now. His run to the French Open fourth round featured a shocking five-set upset of Jannik Sinner — albeit with plenty of help from Sinner’s physical problems. Although Cerundolo has almost no grass-court experience, he did well to beat Raphael Collignon and Arthur Fery en route to the Eastbourne quarterfinals. The 45th-ranked Argentine certainly won’t dictate the outcome of this match, but Davidovich Fokina may be mentally fried following his exploits in Mallorca.
Pick: Cerundolo in 4
Ethan Quinn vs. (14) Luciano Darderi
Quinn is in the same boat as Davidovich Fokina in terms of recovery time, but it should be much easier for the 22-year-old American to get right back in gear from an emotional standpoint. It’s also worth noting that Quinn’s last two matches in Mallorca lasted a combined two hours and 39 minutes, so it’s not like he was putting in a huge physical effort. The world No. 63 is now 11-7 lifetime on grass — a very solid record in the early stages of his career.
Up first for Quinn on Monday is Darderi, whom he has never faced. The 16th-ranked Argentine is the essence of a clay-court specialist. Of his 240 professional match wins, 199 have come on the slow stuff; all of his ATP titles have done the same. Darderi is 6-10 all time on grass after advancing one round in Mallorca, where he beat Yannick Hanfmann before losing to Nuno Borges in straight sets. Borges promptly got blown out by Quinn 6-1, 6-2 the very next day. Darderi can make this competitive since he isn’t completely hopeless on faster surfaces, but an in-form Quinn should ride his serve and forehand to a win.
Pick: Quinn in 5