Dominic Thiem headlines quarterfinal day at Rio Open

Dominic Thiem loves playing on clay courts so it wasn't a surprise when he elected to play at the Rio Open as opposed to Dubai. However, his clay-court start wasn't as he hoped it would be. He had to fight in round 1 and he had to fight last night as well. Today he will face Gianluca Mager who is playing exceptionally well on clay this season. It won't be easy for Dominic but the chance to become world number 3 on Monday will motivate him additionally.

Before the Rio crowd gets to see Thiem play they will watch two matches. The 1st is between Coria and Garin. Garin is having a breakout year. He played well on hard courts and continued on clay courts. He will have a tough matchup against Coria but he should win it as he is the better player.

The 2nd match of the day will be between Coric and Sonego. The Croatian is coming back from a lengthy injury break so he is still not in the best shape. He started playing better lately. It will tough against Sonego as he is playing great as well but the Croatian found ways to overcome his opponents lately.

The programme will be closed by Balasz and Martinez. Balasz is a veteran who built his resume on the Challenger tour where he usually played on clay. At 31 year old he is playing the best tennis of his career. Recently he entered the top 100 and he is not done yet. His results keep getting better and against Martinez, he will have a shot. Whether he will take it remains to be seen.