After an entertaining week so far at the ATP Lyon Open, just four men remain in contention at the ATP Lyon Open. Semifinals day should be an entertaining one and, as ever, we here at LWOT will be offering our predictions for both matches. But who will book their place in Saturday’s final?
ATP Lyon Semifinal Predictions
Alex de Minaur vs Alex Molcan
Head-to-head: first meeting
Alex de Minaur had an incredible comeback win over Ugo Humbert in the opening round. The Australian struggled to cope with the firepower of the Frenchman in the opening set, and was break point down multiple times in the second set. However, de Minaur showed impressive grit and skill to consistently deal with high pressure situations in the match, and came through a brutal encounter. De Minaur has played the best clay court tennis of his career this season.
He will be a tough opponent for any player at Roland Garros. The Australian rarely defeats himself with unforced errors and is one of the best movers on the ATP Tour. Alex Molcan recently began working with Novak Djokovic’s long-time coach Marian Vajda. The Slovak currently resides at 47th in the ATP Rankings and has played some great tennis this week. Molcan defeated Karen Khachanov in straight sets in the round of 16. However, his quarterfinal win over Federico Coria was arguably where he produced his best performance this week.
Molcan was able to cope with the windy conditions, and found a consistent depth and rally tempo on his ground-strokes. The heavy topspin on his forehand meant the Slovak gave himself a good margin for error. Molcan is definitely a player to keep an eye on for the rest of the 2022 season. This will be a tight match. Both players have similar strengths in their movement and consistency. However, de Minaur has performed better over the entire clay court season, and should have enough to record a tight three-set win.
Prediction: De Minaur in 3
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Cameron Norrie vs Holger Rune
Head-to-head: first meeting
Cameron Norrie has been made to work hard this week in Lyon. The Brit won a tight straight sets opening match against Francisco Cerundolo. This was followed by an epic quarterfinal with Sebastian Baez. Despite being broken when serving for the match deep in the third set, Norrie showed impressive mental resilience to break the Argentinian in the following service game. Norrie is a former finalist in Lyon, and despite being a fine clay court player, he is yet to win a title on this surface. Norrie has lived up to his top-seed status so far this week and will be tough to beat.
Holger Rune had a dramatic quarterfinal win over Manuel Guinard. The Dane battled with his game and the crowd during the first set, dropping it 2-6. However. Rune upped his level for the rest of the match and managed to get the win. The Dane won his first clay court title in Munich, and he currently resides at 40 in the ATP Rankings. Rune has incredible talent, however, his fiery temperament can let him down during matches.
If he is able to keep a cool head and compose himself in the big moments, then he will be able to fulfil his potential Rune has plenty of firepower in his game. This looks to have the makings of another tight three-set match. Both players are comfortable on this surface and will be brimming with confidence. It’s a tough one to call, but expect Norrie, who has a higher margin for error off the ground, to have the edge.
Prediction: Norrie in 3
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