Day 2 of the ATP Rome Masters brings a second set of first round matches with some marquee match ups, and a fun set of matches, as all four predictions in this article are the first meeting between the two opponents.
The compressed schedule created many question marks about players, such as Alex de Minaur, who are talented but after deep runs at the US Open have had limited time to transition to the clay courts. It also features clay court specialists including Guido Pella, Pedro Martinez, and Federico Coria. Denis Shapovalov, Sam Querrey, and Jan-Lennard Struff are some of the top players in action who are highly ranked but do not necessarily favor the clay courts. The early rounds are a bit difficult to predict due to the uncertainty after the switch to clay, but here are the previews to four of the matches below. We also have predictions for the other eight matches on Tuesday, in two separate articles.
ATP Rome Masters Day 2 Predictions
Dominik Koepfer vs Alex De Minaur
Head-to-head: first meeting
De Minaur has had little time to prepare for the clay after reaching the US Open quarterfinals. He plays Koepfer, who is a talented young German who has gotten comfortable with the clay by playing three qualifying matches. Those matches surely put some miles on his legs, and de Minaur will wear down any player with his speed and groundstrokes. De Minaur has not played a tour-level match on clay this season, but he played several exhibitions in Spain, and spending some of his childhood in Spain, the Australian is very comfortable on the clay. De Minaur will wear Koepfer down and win comfortably.
Prediction: De Minaur in 2
Jan-Lennard Struff vs Federico Coria
Head-to-head: first meeting
Struff has had one of the better seasons of any player on the ATP Tour, that has unfortunately flown under the radar with the long break and his lack of a title. He has been incredibly consistent with results this year and has lost to just one player outside of the top-30. Coria had an impressive run to get through qualifying, and is looking to grind out a win and make the most of a rare main draw appearance on his favorite surface. Struff has simply been too good this season, and he has taken care of business against lesser players and will do it again in the first round in Rome.
Prediction: Struff in 2
Sam Querrey vs Pedro Martinez
Head-to-head: first meeting
In one of the more interesting battles of the day, veteran Sam Querrey playing on his worst surface takes on the young, unproven Spaniard Martinez playing on his best surface. Querrey has continually produced strong results and has had some success on clay though it is his worst surface. He has been in a rut recently riding a three match losing streak and has lost his last eight sets. Martinez is a fighter, and has won at least one match in seven of the last eight tournaments he has entered. Martinez is looking to build on his first ATP quarterfinal in Rio earlier this year, and is more comfortable on the surface after playing last week and going through qualifying, so he will have the edge in this match.
Prediction: Martinez in 2
Guido Pella vs Denis Shapovalov
Head-to-head: first meeting
Pella is a veteran player who has always excelled on clay courts and has earned a high ranking with a large majority of his points coming from the clay. He has not found those same results this season, with just a 2-4 record on the surface. Shapovalov did not have much time to transition to the clay after his run to the quarterfinals at the US Open and is playing his first match on the surface of the season. However, he has been productive on the surface in the past while it is not his best. At the end of the day, Shapovalov is the better player and his game is strong enough to pull him through in a battle.
Prediction: Shapovalov in 3
Main Photo from Getty.
