All it's all happening on day four of the Fort Lauderdale Major...

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Germans Bieneck and Scheinder will have familiar opponents in Behrens and Ittlinger

It’s only the best of the best now. The tournament of the 2018 Fort Lauderdale enters its final stage this Friday with only the 16 women's best teams still in contention for medals in the first Beach Major Series event of the year. The men's knockout phase also gets underway on the Red Bull Beach Arena.

The daily schedule comprises both the Round of 16 and the quarter-finals (with these matches happening in the night session) and here some very interesting matchups:

Who? Claes/Hughes v Sweat/Ross

Where? Red Bull Beach Arena

When? 1pm EST

Why? An American duel will open the Red Bull Beach Arena. Claes and Hughes have impressed with wins over a couple of tough European teams, but Ross and Sweat showed what they’re about in Round of 24 by prevailing against a strong Brazilian tandem. Ross and Sweat were the winners in three of the five times the teams have met, all last year, but Claes and Hughes dominated the last two meetings. Who will have the upper hand here?

Who? Bieneck/Schneider v Behrens/Ittlinger

Where? Court 5

When? 2pm EST

Why? An all-German affair will decide which of the teams will represent their county in the quarterfinals of the #FTLMajor. There will be more in play here though as both teams are separated by less than 50 entry points and a win could be the difference between starting the next tournament in the main draw and having to play the always excruciating country-quota. Who will survive?

Who? Fendrick/Branagh v Agatha/Duda

Where? Red Bull Beach Arena

When? 2pm EST

Why? The Americans are only a temporary team, but they started strong in Fort Lauderdale winning their first two matches and dominating their pool. The Brazilians, who won silver in last year’s #FTLMajor, had an unexpected setback on their debut, but bounced back with victories over two top-10 teams. Will Branagh’s and Fendrick’s experience be enough to stop them?

World Champions Evandro/Andre are in action early on day four of the Fort Lauderdale Major

The first elimination round of the men's tournament also gets underway, and here's two games you shouldn't miss in the morning...

Who? Evandro/Andre v Ranghieri/Caminati

Where? Court 2

When? 10am EST

Why? It’s not often you get to see the World Champions in action in the first elimination round but after a defeat against American on Thursday, the Brazilians face a battle to stay in the competition. They face Italians wildcards Ranghieri/Caminati who be going all out to cause an upset.

Who? Liamin/Krasilnikov v Guto/Vitor Felipe

Where? Court 4

When? 11am EST

Why? In arguably the pick of the men’s first elimination round matches, last season’s World Championship bronze medalists of Russia face a new Brazilian partnership. The Europeans have looked strong in their first two games while the South Americans are slowly finding their feet. This has all the makings of a classic.

Beach Volleyball Major Series on Twitter

If you can't be here at #FTLMajor - you can watch all games live at our #BeachStream 📺🏐🇺🇸 https://t.co/WluNq81fW1 #hellosunny #GivesYouWings #wawa