Adrian Mannarino and John Millman are both one win away from the Nur-Sultan title! Both have played incredible tennis this week and will look to bring their best tennis to the final. Who will win and who will fall short? I give my best prediction coming up!
ATP Nur-Sultan Final Prediction
Adrian Mannarino vs John Millman
Head to Head: 2-0 Millman
Adrian Mannarino has not dropped a set yet this tournament. In the semifinals, he comfortably took down Emil Ruusuvuori 7-5, 6-2 to reach the championship match. Mannarino’s game is so tough to handle on indoor hard courts. He forces opponents to get down so low to hit groundstrokes with his flat, awkward shots.
John Millman has showed incredible mental fortitude this tournament. Against Tommy Paul he had to come back from *2-5 down in the third, two match points down and *0-5 down in the third set tiebreak. Then, in the semifinals against Frances Tiafoe, he recovered from an *0-3 deficit in the third set to win the match 3-6 6-4 6-4.
Millman leads the head to head 2-0, with both matches on hard courts. However, the two matches went three sets and their recent match in Cincinnati came down to a third set tiebreak. So, I don’t put a ton of stock into the fact that Millman leads 2-0, just that it’s going to be a close match. The indoor conditions favor Mannarino. He makes things so awkward for his opponents and manipulates the ball around the court with such precision.
Millman has also been in a couple very close matches this tournament where he could have lost and also has the added pressure of attempting to win his first ATP Tour title. Mannarino’s been in dominant form, on the other hand.
Given the slight edge in court conditions and Mannarino’s form, expect Adrian Mannarino to lift the winner’s trophy in Nur-Sultan!
Prediction: Mannarino in 3
Main Photo from Getty.
