Alexander Zverev vs Thanasi Kokkinakis 3/29/22 Miami Open Tennis Picks, Predictions, Odds

Thanasi Kokkinakis and Alexander Zverev meet in the fourth round of the 2022 tennis Miami Open.

Thanasi Kokkinakis is coming off a three sets win over Denis Kudla that took 36 games to decide. In the victory, Kokkinakis won 86 percent of his first serve points and 47 percent of his second serve points. Kokkinakis won 75 percent of his total service points and converted on one of his seven break points. Kokkinakis is coming off back-to-back three set victories, and he’s won eight of his last 10 matches that have gone the distance. Kokkinakis looks to make his first Masters 1000 quarterfinal trip. Kokkinakis has two career wins over top-10 players, and the last one came in the 2018 Miami Open. Kokkinakis has won five straight matches on hard court.

Alexander Zverev is coming off a straight set win over Mackenzie McDonald that took 16 games to decide. In the victory, Zverev won 73 percent of his first serve points and 69 percent of his second serve points. Zverev won 72 percent of his total service points and converted on four of his eight break points. Zverev was dominant with his serve from the start and even produced 10 aces. Zverev has hit 22 aces in his first two matches this tournament. Zverev looks to make the quarterfinals of the Miami Open for the third time in his career and the first time since 2018. Zverev has won six of his last nine matches on hard court. 

These two have split the previous meetings with Kokkinakis winning in the 2018 Hopman Cup and Zverev winning in the 2017 Boodles Challenge. Both matches were decided in straight sets.

Kokkinakis should have some confidence considering he’s beaten Zverev once already, but he’s also had little success overall against top tier players, and he rarely makes deep runs in big tournaments. Zverev is fresh entering this match, and he’s coming off a service clinic. When Zverev is hitting his spots and piling up the free points, he’s tough to beat. I like Zverev to get the job done in straight sets here, advancing to his third Miami quarterfinal.