Taking down world no. 1 Andy Murray, 7-5, 5-7, 6-2, 6-4, in the fourth round sure sounds like a very good springboard for Mischa Zverev heading into a quarterfinal showdown with arguably the greatest tennis player in history. Of course, we’re talking about Roger Federer, who showed flashes of his old brilliance in a gutsy 6-7 (4-7), 6-4, 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 victory over no. 5 Kei Nishikori in the fourth round.
Zverev, who said he has no idea “how he pulled it off” [the win over Murray], is partly being carried by his solid service game, converting at least 60 percent of his first serves in three of four matches thus far in the tournament. Federer, on the other hand, must be ecstatic to learn that he’ll be facing Zverev instead of Murray. Zverev is supposedly the easier opponent of the two, meaning Federer will have shorter odds to win in the quarters. Federer has beaten Zverev in two career meetings, the last one being a 6-0, 6-0 demolition of the German in Halle way back in 2013.
Prediction: Federer (-900) wins in four sets.
Stan Wawrinka (-155) vs. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (+125)
Wawrinka’s quest for a second Australian Open title remains alive following a 7-6 (7-2), 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-4) win over Andreas Seppi in the fourth round of the tournament. Wawrinka, the defending US Open titlist, unleashed 53 winners as against Seppi’s 37 and won 80% of his first serve points.
Wawrinka will need to polish on his return game, though, versus the hard-serving Tsonga. The Frenchman is second thus far in the tournament with 75 aces, including the 17 he unleashed in his 6-7 (4-7), 6-2, 6-4, 6-4 fourth round triumph over Daniel Evans. Wawrinka has won the last three meetings with Tsonga, though all those matches happened on clay courts. Tsonga won the only hardcourt match with Wawrinka, a 6-7(6) 6-4 6-4 victory in Metz in 2007.
*The other fourth round matches are still being played as of this writing. Don’t forget to come back to our site for fresh previews of upcoming matches.*
