Francisco Cerundolo vs. Dominic Thiem Prediction: Cerundolo Is Fairly Inconsistent

Former US Open winner Dominic Thiem will square off against World No. 29 Francisco Cerundolo in the Gijon Open quarterfinals on Friday.

Francisco Cerundolo, 24, has been one of the tour's emerging talents. Last year, in the Argentina Open, the Argentine reached his first ATP circuit final. This season, he has gone one step further, winning the crown for the first time in Bastad. En route to the title, he defeated top seed Casper Ruud for his first-ever top-10 triumph.

In addition to winning the Santa Cruz Challenger, the kid reached the semifinals in Rio de Janeiro, Miami, and Hamburg.

Cerundolo's form has been inconsistent in recent weeks. He ended his seven-match losing record in Gijon on Thursday with a 7-6(5), 6-2 victory over Manuel Guinard.

Thiem begins his return to the tennis circuit after a nine-month absence due to a wrist injury. In July, he reached the semifinals in Gstaad and the quarterfinals in both Bastad and Kitzbuhel.

After being knocked out in the first round of the US Open, the 29-year-old advanced to the final of the Rennes Challenger, where he faced Ugo Humbert.

Following early losses in Metz and Tel Aviv, the World No. 165 has found his form with two good wins this week to enter the last eight at Gijon. The Austrian defeated Joao Sousa 6-2, 6-0 before defeating Marcos Giron 3-6, 6-4, 6-0.

Cerundolo has been exceedingly unreliable in recent weeks and has not won two games in a succession since July. Cerundolo may not have many answers if Thiem continues to move and fire his groundstrokes like he did in the later stages of his match against Giron.

• Total Under 22.5 for 1.8
• Handiсap Dominic Thiem (-3.5) for 1.9
• Individual Total 1 Under 11.5 for 1.85