BNP Paribas Open: Kei Nishikori vs. Dan Evans 10/09/21 Tennis Prediction

British No.1, Dan Evans, meets Japanese No.1, Kei Nishikori here in the second round of the BNP Paribas Open on Saturday, October 9th, 2021.

Which of these two entertaining players will come out here and get the job done? Will it be the experienced Kei Nishikori, or will it be the flamboyant and passionate, Dan Evans, to get themselves into the third round here in Indian Wells?

Kei Nishikori had to fight his way through a tight opening round match against Joao Sousa, having to come back from a set down against the Portuguese 6-7/6-3/6-2. Kei Nishikori knows that he should have won that match in straight sets, but even though he didn’t, he was able to bounce back after losing that first set. Kei is great in these hard court conditions, as he is able to return the ball and play long rallies, but he is also able to come in and win points quickly.

Dan Evans will be hoping to get a good win under his belt and show us that he is a strong player and can go far in a big tournament like Indian Wells. Dan has a great all round game, having a great one-handed backhand. However, where he falters is that sometimes when things are not going his way, he lets his emotions get the better of him and his thought process before hitting shots is compromised and results in many unforced errors. Can he get some good matches here in Indian Wells before the indoor hard court season?

Both players have met before, 4 times in their career. Kei Nishikori has won 3 of their 4 prior encounters, and the only time Dan beat Kei was in 2013 at the US Open. They met last year at the French Open where Kei won in 5 tight sets. Although Dan Evans is higher ranked and has probably had the better last few seasons, Kei is still the better player and he has won more matches this year. Dan will give it his all as he usually does, but Kei is a great player and is able to wear down opponents and change the direction of the ball much more easily than Dan.