Day 2 in Hamburg will see three of the Top 10 players in the world take center stage. The top seed and French Open finalist Dominic Thiem will face Uruguay’s Pablo Cuevas in a mouthwatering first round match. Former Hamburg champion Fabio Fognini is deemed fit to compete after retiring in Umag last week, while Alexander Zverev will hope to dampen the disappointment of losing in the first round at Wimbledon when he plays newly crowned Swedish Open champion Nicolas Jarry.
ATP Hamburg Day 2 Predictions
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina vs Juan Ignacio Londero
Head-To-Head: First meeting
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina scored his first main draw win on tour just three months ago in Estoril, where he went all the way to the semifinals. It was a run that included wins over Taylor Fritz, Jeremy Chardy, and Gael Monfils. The Spanish youngster has been on a steady rise in the last few seasons, and recently broke into the world’s Top 150 thanks to his exploits in Estoril.
Davidovich Fokina will surely fancy his chances of causing an upset when he plays Juan Ignacio Londero. The 25-year-old has been one of the ATP’s breakout stars in 2019 thanks largely to his success in Cordoba earlier this year. Londero reached his second career ATP final in Bastad last weekend, but ran out of steam as he lost out to Nicolas Jarry. The Argentine played two punishing three setters in his run to the final, and there could be signs of weariness in this one. I think Davidovich Fokina is on the rise and will have fresher legs here.
Prediction: Davidovich Fokina in 2
Dominic Thiem vs Pablo Cuevas
Head-To-Head: Thiem 4-2 Cuevas
Dominic Thiem must be like a kid in a candy store at the prospect of still playing clay-court tennis in 2019. The powerful Austrian would be delighted in seeing the back of the lawns of the All England Club as he dusts his socks off to start his Hamburg campaign. He will attempt to add to his growing resume on the surface when he renews his rivalry against Uruguayan veteran Pablo Cuevas.
The two have played out some epic battles in their series. The 25-year-old Austrian leads 4-2 in their head-to-head, winning their last two meetings (Buenos Aires and Roland Garros, both in 2019).
Thiem packs a heavier punch in a battle between two of the best one-handed backhands on tour, and when the Austrian is firing on all cylinders–especially on clay–he is a difficult man to stop.
Prediction: Thiem in 2
Fabio Fognini vs Julian Lenz
Head-To-Head: First meeting
Former Hamburg champion Fabio Fognini enters this year’s edition under a bit of injury cloud, having retired in his opening round match at the Croatian Open last week. Fognini trailed countryman Stefano Travaglia 6-2 2-1 before his body gave up.
The Italian will look to add to his 2013 triumph at the German Open when he beat Federico Delbonis in the final. He has already enjoyed significant clay-court success in 2019 when he sensationally won the Monte Carlo Masters in April. It was a result which culminated in Fognini’s rise as a top-10 player.
There will be tough hurdles for Fognini this week, but he could not have asked for a more straightforward opener against the relatively unknown German qualifier Julian Lenz, who is contesting his first main draw match in a long time. Expect the Italian to ease through in the second round.
Prediction: Fognini in 2
Alexander Zverev vs Nicolas Jarry
Head-To-Head: Zverev 1-1 Jarry
Matches between Alexander Zverev and Nicolas Jarry are certainly not short of drama. The pair are currently tied at 1-1 on head-to-head, with Jarry winning in Barcelona (saved a match-point in a final set tiebreak) and Zverev avenging that defeat in Geneva where he saved a couple of championship points in the final.
A lot has changed in such a short space of time since their meeting at the Swiss Open. Jarry ultimately managed to join his grandfather Jaime Fillol Sr. as an ATP title winner when he cruised past the field in Bastad without dropping a set.
Zverev, meanwhile, was able to string another decent run to the quarterfinal of the French Ope,n courtesy of that confidence-boosting title win in Geneva. However, the German’s 2019 season has sharply contrasted his form in the previous two years when he shot through the ranks to establish himself as one of the best players in world. The 22-year-old claimed nine titles in a remarkable spell between 2017 and 2018 seasons including Masters 1000 crowns in Rome, Montreal, and Madrid. But it hasn’t been plain sailing on court lately for the Hamburg-born star. He was beaten in the first round in two of his last three tournaments (lost in Stuttgart to Dustin Brown and Wimbledon to Jiri Vesely). Will he be able to get back to winning ways in a tournament he so famously announced himself as a 17-year-old in 2014?
A meeting against an in-form Jarry is not the ideal match-up to get a first win in more than a month for Zverev. The Chilean seems to have overcome the heartbreak of losing ATP finals, and the reassurance of his previous victory over Zverev in Barcelona puts him in good stead in this one. On paper Jarry is probably the favorite to win based on current form, but I am leaning towards Zverev to squeeze his way into the next round.
Prediction: Zverev in 3
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