It’s a jam packed schedule on Day 3 of the ATP Sardinia Open 2020. Top seed Fabio Fognini makes his first appearance and so does second seed Dusan Lajovic. Four Round of 16 matches and two Round of 32 matches are scheduled for Day 3. We preview and predict all six matches over two articles. The second article includes the other three matches, featuring top seed Fabio Fognini.
ATP Sardinia Open Day 3 Predictions
Round of 32
Salvatore Caruso vs Yannick Hanfmann
Head to head – First Meeting
Salvatore Caruso seems to be over his first round exit at the French Open as he reached the finals in the Challenger Event in Parma, Italy. He takes on the German, Yannick Hanfmann who has gone cold after an unprecedented finals appearance in Kitzbuhel. These two have never played each other before and by the looks of it, Caruso should continue his decent form he gained in Parma.
Prediction: Hanfmann in 2
Round of 16
Lorenzo Sonego vs Jiri Vesely
Head to head – First Meeting
This should be an exciting Round of 16 clash. Lorenzo Sonego is certainly one of the more exciting young players on tour while Jiri Vesely has been around for some time. The Czech is vastly experienced but should be wary of the talent and power the Italian possesses. Sonego impressed in reaching the fourth round at the French Open and will enter this match knowing he can win this. Vesely put up a strong showing in his first round posting good numbers on his serve. It should be a highly entertaining match with little to choose between the two throughout the match. Expect Sonego to just eke out a win as he’s more likely to go for more late in the match and the Italian on his current form should make them.
Prediction: Sonego in 3
Dusan Lajovic vs Laslo Djere
Head to head – Lajovic 1-1 Djere
It’s a tough opening match for Dusan Lajovic. Lajovic almost pulled off a stunning comeback against Kevin Anderson in the second round of the French Open but it was not to be. Lajovic plays well on clay but so does his opponent, Laslo Djere. The last meeting went the way of Djere in Madrid 2019 and that should make Lajovic wary. This is an extremely tight one to call and with Djere winning his first round match against Sumit Nagal with exceptional ease, I’m slightly inclined towards the younger Serb. Expect Djere to be confident in the baseline exchanges and produce good tennis to nab the win.
Prediction: Djere in 3
Main Photo from Getty.
