Rematch!

Opelka beat Quinn at Indian Wells, so now what?

Indian Wells wasn’t that long ago and yet Quinn has exploded since then, he won a Challenger title in Phoenix before backing it up in Miami by beating Ruud in particular. He’s struggling to maintain that level on clay for the moment but he’s running into a good Comesana and Atmane, nothing dramatic at all given the level those two showed afterwards. This week he came through qualifying, saving 3 match points against Basilashvili and then very comfortably taking out Merida Aguilar, who was in great form. I still see in these wins a very confident Quinn who’s always capable of being clutch; he’s gone up a gear since his loss to Opelka, actually. I’m not forgetting that he had his chances and that the match could have gone either way.

Opelka hasn’t played since Miami, he pulled out of Houston and we don’t know why, he’s very often held back by injuries and can’t string matches together. He’s already had a few breakthroughs on clay but they’re still very rare; his level on clay isn’t good, I much prefer him on hard courts by far. Last year he lost 2 and 2 against Stefanos right here, the slowness of the courts doesn’t suit his serve. Quinn was already good on clay last year and seems more likely to improve on it; I like his profile on clay because the surface can calm him down when on hard he rushes things and does nonsense, that mix can help him.

In this new context, with all the confidence he’s built up and a better ability to adapt on clay…