Frances Tiafoe vs Bernabe Zapata Miralles Prediction & Betting Tips - ATP Japan Open

Prediction published on 04/10/2022, 06:23  by Steve Ashfield | Modified on 04/10/2022 at 07:24 in Tennis Predictions

Fourth seeded Frances Tiafoe takes on Bernabe Zapata Miralles in the second round of the Rakuten Open. The winner goes into the quarter finals with eighth seeded Daniel Evans a possible opponent. Tiafoe has only played in the Laver Cup since reaching the US Open semi-finals. That tournament in London saw him lose to Novak Djokovic but get a win over Stefanos Tsitsipas. Tiafoe began this week ranked 19th which is a career high for the American. A win over Miralles will see him reach his sixth quarter final of the year. His best run has been making it to the final in Estoril. The first round of this tournament saw Tiafoe beat Yasutaka Uchiyama.

Bernabe Zapata Miralles was ranked 80th at the start of this Rakuten Open in Tokyo. He's up to a career high 74th in the live rankings after beating Taro Daniel 7-5 7-5 in the first round. A win over Tiafoe will see him rise to 69th. The win over Daniel took his 2022 record to 9-13 and ended a run of three successive losses on the tour. The Spaniard has had success on the Challenger Tour in recent months with a title win and a runners-up spot. Both of those tournaments were played on clay which is his strongest surface. Back Tiafoe to win this match in straight sets.