Indian Wells Quarterfinal Predictions: Ranking the Final Eight

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Indian Wells Quarterfinals: Ranking the Final Eight

Mar 18, 2015; Indian Wells, CA, USA; Feliciano Lopez (ESP) during his match against Kei Nishikori (JPN) in the BNP Paribas open at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

6. Feliciano Lopez

How he got here:

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R2: Edgar Roger-Vasselin

R3: Pablo Cuevas

R4: Nishikori

Possible path to title:

QF: (4) Murray

SF: (1) Djokovic

F: (2) Federer / (3) Nadal

Chance at Championship:

Lopez played one of the best matches of his career to beat Nishikori in the round of 16. His serve was spectacular, validating it as one of the best serves on tour. To come up with that sort of result against Nishikori, one of the games best returners, means that he has a chance against Murray. The lefty utilizes the big serve perfectly with a strong net game and a fairly devastating backhand, both the slice and the one hander.

The reason Lopez can be ranked higher than Tomic or Raonic is the unpredictability of his strategy. He would still have to face multiple members of the tennis elite, but they are not used to his style of play. Lopez can also adapt to a more baseline battle, but he will be best served is he uses his big serve and net game.

Next: Indian Wells Quarterfinal Ranks: Number 5

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