I love watching tennis because of the sheer unpredictable nature of the sport. A player like Isner can have a great run of form and win a big tournament, and then fizzle back to mediocrity. This why I feel like predicting tennis is one of the hardest things to do. Which is why I plan to do it. So today, ladies and gentlemen, I will prepare my assessment of the Madrid draw, and predict who the four semi-finalists will be.

Section 1: Dominic Thiem

This might be the most controversial thing I’ve ever posted, and for good reason as well. Nadal is rightfully the King of Clay, and who in their right mind would bet against Nadal on any clay match? Well, Thiem is most definitely steaming after his prior beatdown to the hands of Rafa and is seeking his revenge. Thiem was, as you Rafans might remember, the one player to stop Nadal on clay last year, and I would not be surprised if he does it again.

Section 2: Juan Martin Del Potro

This was an obvious choice. With nobody else in his bracket, Del Potro can practically sleepwalk his way to the semis, lest Kevin Anderson has anything to say. Delpo is quite good on clay and has proved himself to be a great contender on the surface, as he moves and attacks well on it. Honorable mention to Jared Donaldson, as his racket throwing could injure his competition.

Section 3: David Goffin

Everyone knows that Goatffin is an incredible player on the dirt. His penetrating strokes are incredibly difficult to return, and his natural game style is perfectly suited for the slow clay. David is in no doubt the quarter with the most star power and has had a lot of trouble on the luck spectrum, injuring himself before huge tournaments. However, I trust my boy Goffin, and if his biggest competitors like Nishikori get eliminated, he has a great shot at getting through the draw. Djokovic on the other hand, well he needs to hope that Nishikori gets injured… it’s his only chance.

Section 4: John Isner

This might be a terrible pick, but I’m gonna stick with it, mainly because my friend will slit my throat if I don’t. Isner is in no doubt the easiest quarter of the draw, and the only opponent who will pose him trouble is Alexander Zverev, whom he demolished in the Miami Open final.

In conclusion, I feel like Delpo, Isner, Goffin, and Thiem are going to be the four semi-finalists. Obviously, I’m probably going to be wrong, because Nadal is most definitely going to dominate Thiem, but if I’m right I’ll be hailed as the next big tennis prophet. But let’s be honest, Nadal’s gonna win the whole damn thing again. Oh well, he is the clay GOAT after all.