After a thrilling week of tennis at the ATP Acapulco Open, just two men remain in contention for the title in Mexico. Both will surely be desperate to claim their first title of the season, but will it be Stefanos Tsitsipas or Alexander Zverev who lifts the trophy?
ATP Acapulco Final Predictions
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Alexander Zverev
Head-to-head: Tsitsipas 5-1 Zverev
Tsitsipas has made a fine start to his season. The world #5 opened his 2021 campaign at the ATP Cup, where he won both of his round-robin matches in singles but was unable to guide Greece into the semifinals. He followed that by reaching the last four at the Australian Open, coming back from two sets down to beat Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals. Tsitsipas also reached the semifinals at the Rotterdam Open, losing there to Andrey Rublev, but was beaten in the second round in Marseille.
The Greek began his week at the ATP Acapulco Open with a comprehensive 6-3 6-1 win over Benoit Paire and he followed that by thrashing John Isner in the second round. Tsitsipas was made to work hard in the last eight up against fellow young gun Felix Auger-Aliassime, but he hung tough to record a 7-5 4-6 6-3 win. That set up a semifinal clash with Lorenzo Musetti. The Italian had been enjoying one of the best weeks of his career but perhaps ran out of steam against Tsitsipas, losing 1-6 3-6.
Zverev, meanwhile, arrived at the ATP Acapulco Open looking to build on his run to the Australian Open quarterfinals, having failed to do so in Rotterdam where he lost in the first round. He started the tournament with a dominant win over Carlos Alcaraz, which he backed up by beating Laslo Djere 6-4 6-3. Casper Ruud then withdrew ahead of their quarterfinal clash, sending Zverev into the semifinals, where he beat his countryman Dominik Koepfer 6-4 7-6.
It is hard to see him getting the better of Tsitsipas, however. Zverev did win their first match, which came at the ATP Washington Open in 2018, and in convincing fashion. But he has not beaten the Greek since, losing five matches in a row to Tsitsipas, with their most recent clash coming at the ATP Cup. Zverev mustered just six games in that match. It would be a surprise if this final were to be that one-sided, but expect Tsitsipas to extend his head-to-head lead over the German.
Prediction: Tsitsipas in 3
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