Two full-fledged showdowns are planned for the quarterfinals Friday in Basel, where Nitto ATP Finals hopefuls Andrey Rublev and Stefanos Tsitsipas are scheduled to compete. They will face Ben Shelton and Arthur Fils respectively.

(1) Andrei Rublev vs. (6) Ben Shelton

Rublev and Shelton will face each other for the first time in their careers when they clash in the quarterfinals of the Swiss Indoors Basel on Friday afternoon. It’s been an up-and-down season for Rublev, but a title in Madrid and a second-place finish in Montreal are enough to leave him in the Nitto ATP Finals rankings (currently No. 8). The Russian is off to a solid start in Basel, dismissing Nuno Borges and Alejandro Tabilo in straight sets.

Shelton also didn’t drop a set this week, as he ousted Tomas Martin Etcheverry and Stan Wawrinka without too much trouble. The 23rd-ranked American has now won multiple matches in five consecutive tournaments. However, truly big wins have largely eluded Shelton in 2024, which is why he’s only managed more than two wins once in this span (reaching the Cincinnati quarterfinals). This is a toss-up match and should be high quality, but Rublev is more consistent from the back of the court and will likely force Shelton to play just enough defense for the top seed to cross the finish line.

Choice: Rublev in 3

(3) Stefanos Tsitsipas vs. (7) Arthur Fils

While Rublev is currently in good form to punch a ticket to Turin, Tsitsipas still needs at least one big result and possibly even deep runs. both Basel and Paris. The 11th-ranked Greek gave himself a chance this week by beating Francisco Cerundolo in a third-set tiebreak before seeing off Botic van de Zandschulp 7-6(3), 7-5.

Next up for Tsitsipas is a second meeting with Fils, who won their only previous match 7-6(5), 7-6(4) on Antwerp’s indoor hard courts last fall. The 20-year-old Frenchman has soared this season, rising to 20th in the rankings thanks to a 34-14 record on the main tour. Amazingly, Fils is 12-0 in his last twelve matches on the ATP 500s, with titles in Hamburg and Tokyo, followed by Basel defeats of Daniel Altmaier and Pedro Martinez. Fils is in superior form, so expect him to extend his winning streak to 13.

Choice: Fils in 3