Top two seeds Alexander Zverev and Alex de Minaur will headline quarterfinal competition at the ATP 500 in Vienna on Friday. They are set for respective showdowns against Lorenzo Musetti and Jakub Mensik.
(1) Alexander Zverev vs. (6) Lorenzo Musetti
Zverev and Musetti will be facing each other for the third time in their careers when they battle for a semifinal spot at the Erste Bank Open on Friday. They have split their two previous encounters; Zverev prevailed via retirement at the 2022 Madrid Masters before Musetti scored a 7-5, 7-5 victory on the way to the bronze medal at the recent Paris Olympics.
Musetti was on fire this summer, but he has not done much since the Olympics aside from a runner-up performance in Chengdu. The 17th-ranked Italian is 2-3 in his last five matches after beating Quentin Halys 7-6(5), 6-3 in the Vienna first round (he then got a walkover from Gael Monfils). Zverev rolled through Joel Schwaerzler and Marcos Giron in straight sets, which is no surprise given how good he has been on indoor hard courts throughout his career. The third-ranked German has the edge in current form and with the surface, so he should advance.
Pick: Zverev in 2
(Q) Jakub Mensik vs. (2) Alex de Minaur
With several other Nitto ATP Finals contenders losing early this week, De Minaur has a big opportunity to make a move. The 10th-ranked Aussie could climb into top-eight position for Turin with a title in Vienna–depending on how Andrey Rublev fares in Basel. De Minaur’s bid for the trophy is off to a solid start, as he overcame Nicolas Jarry 2-6, 6-2, 6-2 before leading Flavio Cobolli 7-6(2), 6-3 when the Italian retired due to a shoulder injury.
It does not get any easier for the second seed on Friday, because Mensik is in awesome form. One of the breakout stars on the ATP Tour in 2024, the 19-year-old Czech is up to No. 3 in the live race to the NextGen ATP Finals. Mensik has earned his 24th and 25th ATP-level match wins this season by beating Mariano Navone and Miomir Kecmanovic in straight sets earlier this week. With De Minaur still not 100 percent physically on the heels of a Wimbledon hip injury, this is a great opportunity for Mensik to continue his surge.
Pick: Mensik in 3
