Tuesday at the 2020 ATP ABN Amro World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam will feature most of the remaining first round matches. Benoit Paire will revisit a very heated matchup with Aljaz Bedene as Karen Khachanov takes on Fabio Fognini. We also have predictions for the remaining four clashes, including Stefanos Tsitsipas’ seventh meeting with Hubert Hurkacz.
ATP Rotterdam Day 2 Predictions
Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Jan-Lennard Struff
Head-to-head: Struff 1-0
One of only two players to take a set off Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open, Jan-Lennard Struff is playing the best tennis of his career at the moment. Last two years have been brilliant for the German, who really took his game to the next level. Brilliant spot-serving and constantly improving net game have been the keys to his success.
Felix Auger-Aliassime is a very tricky case. The Canadian has a huge amount of raw talent but is massively struggling with consistency. Struff took down the 19-year-old very easily at the ATP Cup and while you shouldn’t expect it to be as comfortable this time around, the German has a great indoor game and is the most reliable pick.
Prediction: Struff in 3
Aljaz Bedene vs Benoit Paire
Head-to-head: 4-4
This is slowly becoming a legendary match-up. Benoit Paire had a big mental breakdown in their US Open match last year, failing to convert three consecutive match points on serve. He later demanded that Bedene be fired for his behaviour in the match but it remains unknown what exactly was the Slovenian’s crime. They most recently met indoors in Metz, where Bedene prevailed in three sets.
The Slovenian has evolved into a very solid indoor hard court player recently, massively improving his serve and trying to keep the points shorter. This will prove very useful against Paire, giving him reliable ways to win points. The Frenchman is as unstable as it gets and unless he’s suddenly extremely composed and motivated, consistency might turn out to be the key here.
Prediction: Bedene in 3
Karen Khachanov vs Fabio Fognini
Head-to-head: 1-1
Karen Khachanov usually does very well on the European indoor circuit. The Russian’s big game is a great fit with these courts and the Russian has been in quite good form for most of January. Fabio Fognini is always tough to predict with the Italian’s talent only rarely being able to overcome his crazy mentality.
Fognini hasn’t historically done that well indoors and don’t expect this to change here in Rotterdam. Khachanov has a big arsenal of weapons and should be able to set Fognini on the back-foot from the get-go. Even if Fognini is as composed as ever, Khachanov has the power to dominate here.
Prediction: Khachanov in 3
Main Photo from Getty.
