Day 2 at the ATP 500 in Rotterdam sees #1 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas begin his tournament against talented young Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. Elsewhere, Aslan Karatsev will be hoping to bounce back from a shock opening round defeat in Pune last week. The Russian faces wildcard and home favourite Tallon Griekspoor. Here are my predictions for four of the matches taking place on Tuesday, with the remaining three covered in a separate article.
ATP Rotterdam Day 2 Predictions
Lorenzo Musetti vs Mikael Ymer
Head to Head: First Meeting
Mikael Ymer has made a promising start to the 2022 season. The Swede was a quarter-finalist at the first ATP 250 event in Adelaide, and last week reached the semifinals in Montpellier, recording impressive wins over Corentin Moutet, Gael Monfils, and Richard Gasquet. Ymer reached his first ATP Tour final last season in Winston Salem , and this has undoubtedly given the Swede more confidence in his game. Despite not possessing a major weapon in his game, the 23 year old is solid from the back of the court, and is a confident mover on all surfaces. Currently ranked at #75 in the world, it will be interesting to see if the Swede can break the Top 50 this season.
Lorenzo Musetti recorded his first win of the season last week in Pune. It is fair to say that the Italian has struggled for form since his run to the fourth round of Roland Garros. Musetti has predominantly produced his best tennis on clay, and has struggled with consistency on hard and grass courts. When he is at his best, the Italian is one of the most elegant shot-makers in the sport, and he definitely has a promising future ahead of him. However, the Italian has areas to work on, such as controlling his emotions on court.
I think this will be a close match. However, I believe that Ymer is the favorite, despite being the lower ranked player. I think the Swede will get the win in a tight three set match.
Prediction: Ymer in 3
Tallon Griekspoor vs Aslan Karatsev
Head to Head: First Meeting
Aslan Karatsev enjoyed a great start to the 2022 season. The Russian won the ATP 250 event in Sydney, defeating Andy Murray in the final. At the Australian Open, Karatsev reached the third round, however he struggled to produce his best tennis. The Russian made 107 unforced errors in his first round match against Juame Munar. It tends to be the case that players struggle after their first season on the ATP Tour, and it will be intriguing to see if the Russian can reach the heights of his 2021 season. The Russian has massive firepower on the forehand side, and combined with his first serve, this makes for a lethal combination.
Tallon Griekspoor had a sensational 2021 season on the ATP Challenger Tour. The Dutch player won eight ATP Challenger titles, and has already made a good start to the 2022 season on the ATP Tour. Griekspoor reached the quarterfinals of the ATP 250 event in Melbourne, where he defeated Dominic Koepfer and Alexei Popyrin, before withdrawing from his match against Rafael Nadal due to injury. At the Australian Open, Griekspoor defeated Fabio Fognini in the first round, before losing to Pablo Carreno Busta. Despite an early exit in the opening round of Montpellier, Griekspoor is playing the best tennis of his career, and he has good history in Rotterdam, where he defeated Stan Wawrinka in 2018.
I think the Dutchman will record the upset and defeat Karatsev in three sets
Prediction: Griekspoor in 3
Bernabe Zapatta Miralles vs Botic Van De Zandschulp
Head to Head: First Meeting
Bernabe Zapatta Miralles came through qualifying to reach the main draw. The Spaniard recorded a notable victory over Hugo Gaston in his final qualifying match. The 25 year old recorded his first main tour victory of the season last week in Pune, winning in straight sets against Denis Novak. However, his most impressive win this season came at the Brest Challenger, where he defeated Fernando Verdasco. The Spaniard does not have much main tour experience, especially at ATP 500 level and he faces a tough opponent in the the Dutch number 1.
Botic van de Zandschulp enjoyed the best season of his career in 2021. The Dutchman produced consistent results on the ATP Challenger Tour, with his best result being a run to the final in Amersfoort, where he lost to his Dutch compatriot Tallon Griekspoor. At the US Open, Van De Zandschulp reached the quarterfinals, defeating the likes of Casper Ruud and Diego Schwartzman, before falling to Danill Medvedev in four sets. This impressive performance was followed by run to the semifinals in St Petersburg and the quarterfinals in Stockholm. This season, the Dutchman has continued to impress on the ATP Tour, reaching the quarterfinals of the ATP 250 Event in Melbourne, and the third round of the Australian Open. Currently residing at 51 in the ATP Rankings, the Dutchman possesses a powerful serve and forehand, which allows him to dictate rallies from the back of the court.
I think Van De Zandschulp will have to much firepower for Zapata Miralles, and I think he will record a straight sets victory.
Prediction: Van De Zandschulp in 2
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina vs Stefanos Tsitsipas
Head to Head: 1-0 Tsitsipas
Stefanos Tsitsipas had a good run to the semifinals of the Australian Open, especially considering that the Greek’s recent elbow surgery. Tsitsipas was a semifinalist at this event last year, and the slow pace of the courts should give him more time on the return of serve, a shot that has undoubtedly been one of his main weaknesses so far in his career. The Greek is the top seed here this week, and he will prove difficult to overcome given the court conditions.
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina has struggled since reaching his first Major quarterfinal, at Roland Garros last season. The Spaniard is yet to produce consistent results on hard and grass courts, and has areas of his game to improve on, especially the serve. Davidovich Fokina has only recorded one singles win so far this season, and was beaten comfortably beaten by Adrian Mannarinho in the opening round of Montpellier last week.
Tsitsipas comes into this match as a strong favourite, and despite the Spaniard being a skilled player from the back of the court, the Greek has more variety in his game. Tsitsipas is also the more accomplished net player of the two, and I think he will record a straight sets victory.
Prediction: Tsitsipas in 2
Main Photo from Getty.
