TENNIS FROM LONDON • ATP FINALS DAY 5 PREVIEWS AND PICKS: FEDERER VS. ANDERSON, THIEM VS. NISHIKORI

Written by: Staff on 14th November 2018

TENNIS FROM LONDON • ATP FINALS DAY 5 PREVIEWS AND PICKS: FEDERER VS. ANDERSON, THIEM VS. NISHIKORI

epa07162977 Kevin Anderson of South Africa in action during his round robin match against Japan's Kei Nishikori at the ATP Finals tennis tournment in London, Britain, 13 November 2018. EPA-EFE/ANDY RAIN |

Kevin Anderson of South Africa in action during his round robin match against Japan’s Kei Nishikori at the ATP Finals tennis tournament in London, Britain, 13 November 2018. EPA-EFE/ANDY RAIN

By Ricky Dimon

Round-robin competition in Group B at the Nitto ATP Finals will conclude on Thursday. Kevin Anderson is in pole position, but he has to go up against Roger Federer. Meanwhile, Dominic Thiem is probably out of the semifinal running but he can at least end his London stay on a high note if he manages to beat Kei Nishikori.

Ricky previews the action and makes his predictions:

(2) Roger Federer vs. (4) Kevin Anderson

Federer and Anderson are set for their first rematch since an epic Wimbledon quarterfinal contest this summer, and it will come in the same city. Anderson upset Federer 2-6, 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-4, 13-11 from match point down in the third set at the All-England Club, earning his first victory over the Swiss in his fifth try. A second win over Federer on Thursday night would send the South African through to the London semis with a perfect 3-0 record in Group B.

Just as he has been throughout almost the entire year, Anderson is playing stellar tennis so far at the O2 Arena. The Wimbledon finalist held off Thiem 6-3, 7-6(10) in his opener on Sunday before clobbering Nishikori 6-0, 6-1 on Tuesday. Anderson is now 48-17 for the season, which has him up to No. 6 in the world.

Federer was out of sorts throughout a 7-6(4), 6-3 loss to Nishikori, but he bounced back emphatically by thrashing Thiem 6-2, 6-3. The 37-year-old broke four times and dropped only six points in eight service games.

With that result, Federer remains very much alive for a semifinal berth–but he most likely needs to beat Anderson. As for Anderson, he may clinch a Saturday semifinal spot before he even takes the court–depending on the Thiem-Nishikori outcome. So the dynamics of this one could change before Thursday night.

Pick: Federer in 3

(6) Dominic Thiem vs. (7) Kei Nishikori

Japan’s Kei Nishikori in action during his round robin match against Kevin Anderson of South Africa at the ATP Finals tennis tournment in London, Britain, 13 November 2018. EPA-EFE/ANDY RAIN

Nishikori and Thiem will be facing each other for the fifth time in their careers and for the second time this fall. The head-to-head series stands at 3-1 in favor of Nishikori, who crushed Thiem 6-3, 6-1 on the indoor hard courts of Vienna in October. Thiem’s lone win over the world No. 9 has come on clay–via a 6-2, 6-0, 5-7, 6-4 scoreline at the French Open earlier this season. Nishikori has defeated the Austrian on all three surfaces: hard, clay (Rome 2016), and grass (Halle 2015).

Although players men are still mathematically alive for semifinals qualification in London, Thiem (0-2 in matches, 0-4 in sets) is all but out. The 25-year-old delivered a decent performance on Sunday but lost to a red-hot Anderson before spraying 34 unforced errors during his Tuesday loss to Federer.

Nishikori did not played well in either one of his first two outings–not even in the upset of Federer. The Japanese veteran proceeded to get blown off the court by Anderson 6-0, 6-1 on Tuesday afternoon.

It may be easier for Nishikori to step up his game because he remains in very realistic SF contention. He will likely advance with a win unless he goes three sets and Federer defeats Anderson in straights.

Pick: Nishikori in 3