Alejandro Tabilo vs Tommy Paul Prediction & Picks - ATP Japan Open

Prediction published on 9/29/26, 8:58 AM  by Tyler Doty | Modified on 9/29/26 at 9:00 AM in Tennis Picks

It’s time to head to Japan for the latest edition of the ATP 500 tournament in Tokyo! In the first round, Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo and Tommy Paul will face off in a bid to advance to the round of 16.

Alejandro Tabilo is facing an uphill battle in this first-round match. In fact, the 29-year-old is currently on a three-match losing streak: since his loss in the round of 16 at the US Open (to A. Zverev), he has lost his only Davis Cup match (to D. Merida Aguilar) and his first-round match at the Chengdu tournament last week against A. Mannarino (ranked 81st in the world). However, the Chilean had caused a sensation at the Washington tournament in early August by defeating top-5 player Ben Shelton in the quarterfinals, before pushing top-15 player R. Jodar to three sets in the semifinals.

Tommy Paul, the No. 7 seed, is familiar with the Tokyo tournament, having reached the quarterfinals there in 2023. More recently, the player who cemented his place in the top 20 this year defeated Alexander Zverev in the round of 16 at the Cincinnati Masters 1000 to reach the quarterfinals there, and advanced to the round of 16 at the US Open Grand Slam for the third time in his career. These performances make him the clear favorite in this matchup.