The ATP Marseille Open 2020 has seen some quality over the past two days, but the tennis is bound to scale higher levels as the top seeds open up their respective campaigns. Day 3 will certainly be action-packed with a mix of Round of 32 and Round of 16 matches.
We preview and predict all six matches scheduled for Day 3 split over two articles. These predictions are for the second-round clashes, and we have predictions for the first-round matches as well.
ATP Marseille Open Day 3 Predictions
Hubert Hurkacz vs Vasek Pospisil
Head to head – First Meeting
An interesting matchup in the round of 16 with both players looking good in their respective openers. The Canadian’s serve was on fire in the first round and a repeat performance would definitely be welcome. Hubert Hurkacz breezed through against Antoine Hoang but won’t have it easy against Vasek Pospisil.
Pospisil seems to have found his range since Montpellier and even knocked the top seed in Rotterdam. His baseline game looks steady and even though Hurkacz is an extremely solid baseliner, the confidence with which Pospisil is playing is tough to beat. Expect a tight match with the Candian’s serve garnering a lot of free points which will prove to be crucial.
Prediction: Pospisil in 3
Benoit Paire vs Alexander Bublik
Head to head – First Meeting
Another exciting clash in the round of 16 sees the home favorite take on Alexander Bublik, a player who’s slowly climbing and doing it in his own unorthodox way. But when we venture into the unorthodox game style, Benoit Paire certainly knows a thing or two which makes this match a must-watch.
Bublik certainly impressed in dispatching Marton Fucsovics but Paire won’t be going away as easily. With the crowd behind him and years of experience to count on, Paire is capable of handling Bublik’s gameplay. The Frenchman has been known to have a moderate serve but he served well against Gregoire Barrere and that’s a huge positive for Paire. Expect a highly entertaining battle with Paire clinching it.
Prediction: Paire in 3
Mikael Ymer vs Stefanos Tsitsipas
Head to head – First Meeting
It’s a tricky opening encounter for the defending champ as Mikael Ymer is a great young prospect and has tons of potential. Stefanos Tsitsipas would be mightily disappointed with his 2020 season so far and has to be locked in to beat the young Swede.
As exciting as the Swede is, his first-round match was a struggle till the very end. His serve was broken three times and has to be better than that if he’s to pull off the upset. Tsitsipas looks a bit out of sorts at the moment but still has a huge game and if he’s motivated to defend his title, not many can stop him. Expecting a fighting performance from the Greek and just nabbing the victory.
Prediction: Tsitsipas in 3
Main Photo from Getty.
