Tomas Macraque ?

Between an Italian who's on the rise and a Czech guy who keeps giving off totally jaded vibes, who are we going for?

Well, of course it's a deliberately provocative title, but where there’s smoke, there’s fire. I was happy to see Machac serious, diligent, and focused throughout the Adelaide tournament. But this guy has his limits. We know his temperament, and at some point, he's going to lose it. Is it going to be in this match? I have no idea. I found him dejected for an entire set against, it has to be said, a very good Stefanos. But even if the Czech got back into the match, and with the sometimes baffling level we know he can produce, you just can’t blow hot and cold in a Grand Slam against a top 10 player. Over a set, or even more, I keep thinking that at any moment, just because he’s completely fed up, the guy might just throw away the set and then reset afterwards. And in his good phases? I find him monstrous. He plays at a rare tempo. You have to manage to gauge to what extent Loré’s game can counter his. Because at the US Open, against Fritz, Machac was stuck. When his aggressive game runs into a wall, who on top of that gets more free points than him on serve, all he can do is try to overplay. The Czech’s game is perfect against Loré: he holds his baseline, deprives the Italian of time, closes off the angles, and comes to the net with a certain skill (Tomas is a very good doubles player). Now, as everyone keeps saying, Loré has hit another level on hard courts. He’s no longer just the talented defender. He also knows how to step closer to the baseline, serve well, and dictate with his forehand. And above all, mentally, he’s more solid than Tomas... The John Cain Arena isn’t in full sun like the Kia where Khachanov and Mensik played today, but the heat will still be there. This match starts at 10:30 a.m. local time, at which point it’ll be 28°C. After that it’s simple: it goes up 3 degrees per hour...