After continuing his fabulous play in Shanghai, Ben Shelton will go further East to Japan for the 2023 Japan Open, where he'll play native player Taro Daniel in the opening round.
The Japan Open won't see Kei Nishikori defend the 'Hinomaru' flag, but it will see Taro Daniel do that as he's one of several Japanese players in the draw.
Daniel had to earn his place in the draw by playing in the qualifiers, and he did well, winning two solid matches. His reward is playing Ben Shelton, which isn't a reward at all.
Daniel is a respectable competitor, so he'll enjoy playing back at home; however, it's likely that his campaign will end against Shelton. The American has been on fire recently, demonstrating his qualities at the Shanghai Masters recently.
He's poised for a similar run here because the conditions should benefit a player with his skillsets. So how will it go? Let's break it down.
Head-to-head:
Shelton and Daniel actually played once before and it happened at this year's Wimbledon. It was a really cool battle that went to five sets and saw Shelton emerge victorious.
It was actually a match where he cruised but then allowed his opponent to battle back and forced the decider, which Shelton won.
Prediction:
Will it happen again? To be honest, I don't really see it because Shelton is playing like a man on a mission right now. He's amazing and everything in his game is working which wasn't the case at Wimbledon.
Grass took some getting used to, but that match showed that Daniel could certainly make it interesting. Don't expect him to roll over here, as he will attack.
I still don't think he can beat Shelton, whose serve should be enough to power him through, even if it takes two tiebreaks.
Prediction: Ben Shelton to win in two sets.
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