Who will win on Day 1 of the ATP 250 event in Pune, India? Tennis is ready to move on from the Australian Open, so let’s get right to it.
ATP Pune Day 1 Predictions
Salvatore Caruso vs Ramkumar Ramanathan
Head to head: 2-0 Caruso
Both the meetings between the two were before 2018, and recently Ramanathan has showed some promise. He hasn’t always played his best on hard court, but has had a decent start to 2020 and made the semifinal at the 2019 Pune Challenger. Caruso has struggled recently and the extra comfort of a home tournament will help Ramanathan to win.
Prediction: Ramanathan in 3
Cedrik-Marcel Stebe vs Ivo Karlovic
Head to head: first meeting
“Dr. Ivo: is still going strong at 40 and made the final at the Houston challenger just a couple months ago. Stebe has played decent tennis of late, but he has always been best on clay courts. The Karlovic serve will make it a tight match that he will win in a close third set.
Prediction: Karlovic in 3
Sumit Nagal vs Viktor Troicki
Head to head: first meeting
These two players had very different ends to 2019, with Nagal winning a decent number of matches and taking a set off Roger Federer at the US Open. Troicki struggled mightily to finish the year and it seemed his career was nearing its end. However, he played great on the way to Serbia’s ATP Cup title, and though he only played doubles, it seemed good for his confidence. He qualified for this tournament losing just 11 games in 2 matches. Nagal is not an easy opponent, and will hope to impress in his home country. Troicki will look to capture some more points early this year and his experience will help him win.
Prediction: Troicki in 2
Yuichi Sugita vs Thomas Fabbiano
Head to head: 1-0 Sugita
If form is indicative of this match, it will not be close. Fabbiano struggled mightily since the US Open, winning just two of twelve matches played. Sugita has been the opposite, this year winning a match at the Australian Open for just the first time. He has also made the final in both of the last two challengers he played, both of which were on hard court. Sugita has a good game and may spend most of 2020 in the top 100, starting with a good result in Pune.
Prediction: Sugita in 2
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