BNP Paribas Open: Denis Shapovalov vs. Vasek Pospisil 10/09/21 Tennis Prediction

We have the battle of Canada as Denis Shapovalov meets Vasek Pospisil here in the second round of the BNP Paribas Open on Saturday, October 9th, 2021.

Will we see Denis Shapovalov get a strong start here in Indian Wells as he aims to get his final few months of the season going well, or will his more experienced in terms of age fellow-Canadian, Vasek Pospisil, be able to cause the upset?

Vasek Pospisil had to fight through a tight match against the local wild card, J.J. Wolf, beating the American 6-4/4-6/6-4. Vasek should have won that match more easily in my opinion, but he showed the necessary composure to ensure that he got the job done in the end. Vasek is a good player on his day, with a huge serve and forehand. However, he is not the type of player who likes to play long matches because his stamina is not where it needs to be to compete in long and draining rallies, with him mainly focusing on winners.

Denis Shapovalov will come into Indian Wells knowing that he is coming into this match as the favourite and he needs to get himself going. However, often times we see that with Denis, he comes into a match he should win and he loses. Denis knows how good he is, and the tennis world also knows this, but he needs to prove to us that he can compete at his best week in and week out. Denis has a huge serve, an amazing one-handed backhand, and the fact that he is a lefty is a plus. Denis is capable of great things, but he needs to show us that he can do this consistently.

Both players know each other quite well, with them having met 4 times before and Denis having won 3 out of their 4 matches. Although Vasek has played some good matches in the last few weeks, Denis is still the better player and he is able to get himself going when he needs to in big tournaments. I expect a big match here for his confidence as he gets a win against his fellow friend and doubles partner for Canada as he gets himself into the third round of Indian Wells.