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The fourth day of main draw action in men's singles at the Australian Open on Thursday will feature 16 matches. Fifteen seeds, three qualifiers and a lucky loser will be in action.
On the third day of action, the likes of second seed Carlos Alcaraz, eighth seed Holger Rune and 13th seed Grigor Dimitrov emerged victorious, respectively beating Richard Gasquet, Yoshihito Nishioka and Marton Fucsovics.
So, without further ado, here's a look at how the following four men's singles second-round matches at the Australian Open on Thursday could pan out:
#1 Lorenzo Musetti vs Luca Van Assche
Twenty-fifth seed Lorenzo Musetti takes on France's Luca Van Assche for a place in the Australian Open third round.
World No. 25 Musetti is coming off a four-set opening-round win over Frenchman Benzamin Bonzi and is 3-1 on the season. Meanwhile, the 79th-ranked Van Assche beat James Duckworth in five sets in his opener.
The two players haven't met before, but expect the more experienced Italian to take the win.
Pick: Musetti in four sets.
#2 Adrian Mannarino vs Jaume Munar
Twentieth seed Adrian Mannarino locks horns with Spain's Jaume Munar as he eyes a place in the Australian Open third round.
World No. 19 Mannarino is coming off a tough five-set win over 2014 champion Stan Wawrinka, recovering from two sets to one down, to improve to 2-3 on the season. Meanwhile, Munar saw off Alexander Shevchenko in straight sets to open his account in 2024.
This is yet another first-time meeting, but expect the more experienced Mannarino to prevail.
Pick: Mannarino in straight sets.
#3 Sebastian Baez vs Daniel Elahi Galan
Twenty-sixth seed Sebastian Baez takes on Daniel Elahi Galan of Colombia as a place in the Australian Open third round beckons.
World No. 29 Baez is coming off a four-set win over American J.J. Wolf in the first round for his first win in three matches in 2024. Meanwhile, the 87th-ranked Galan saw off Jason Kubler of Australia in a fifth set supertiebreak to also get off the mark for the season.
Baez took the pair's lone meeting in the Winston Salem first round and should emerge victorious again.
Pick: Baez in straight sets.
#4 Francisco Cerundolo vs Fabian Marozsan
Twenty-second seed Francisco Cerundolo will look to reach the Australian Open third round at the expense of Hungary's Fabian Marozsan.
The 21st-ranked Cerundolo is coming off a five-set win over Dane Sweeny to get off the mark in 2024 after three matches. Meanwhile, World No. 67 Marozsan saw off a four-set win over 2014 US Open champion Marin Cilic to improve to 2-2 on the season.
It's yet another first-time matchup, but the more experienced Cerundolo should take the win.
Pick: Cerundolo in four sets.
