Seeds Casper Ruud and Flavio Cobolli are safely through to the Delray Beach quarterfinals and will continue their title bids on Friday. They are going up against Sebastian Korda and Coleman Wong, respectively.
Sebastian Korda vs. (2) Casper Ruud
Ruud and Korda will be facing each other for the third time in their careers when the two sons of former pros battle for a semifinal spot at the Delray Beach Open on Friday. The head-to-head series stands at 2-0 in favor of the Norwegian, giving the Ruud family an overall 3-0 advantage (Christian beat Petr in their lone meeting at the 1999 Miami Open). Korda at least managed to be competitive this past fall on the indoor hard courts of Stockholm, where he fell 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-4.
Delray Beach gives Korda a perfect opportunity to get over the hump. This is a home tournament for the Florida resident and he is 8-2 lifetime in Delray Beach with a runner-up performance in 2021. So far this week the world No. 50 has dismissed Mackenzie McDonald and Alex Michelsen in straight sets. He is 8-2 in his last 10 matches with a runner-up showing at the San Diego Challenger and a Dallas quarterfinal loss to Taylor Fritz in a third-set tiebreaker. Ruud was decent but unspectacular during a 4-6, 7-6(6), 6-4 victory over Marcos Giron on Wednesday night, so don’t be surprised if the unseeded Korda advances.
Pick: Korda in 3
Coleman Wong vs. (3) Flavio Cobolli
Cobolli earned a much-needed win on Wednesday, when he ended a four-match skid with a 7-5, 6-4 defeat of Terence Atmane. The 20th-ranked Italian had been showing signs of going on another seven-match losing streak that he incurred at this exact same time last year, extending from the United Cup through the Indian Wells Masters. Cobolli was not even competitive in matches against lower-ranked players in Melbourne, Montpellier, and Dallas, but he managed to turn things around against Atmane.
Up next for the third seed is a first-ever showdown against Wong, for whom it has already been an outstanding week. The 21-year-old from Hong Kong successfully qualified for the main draw and then upset both Nuno Borges (7-6(5), 4-6, 6-3) and Brandon Nakashima (straight sets). Success in Florida is nothing new for Wong, who beat Ben Shelton en route to the Miami Masters third round last year. Sound another upset alert.
Pick: Wong in 3