The ATP Tour season might be coming to a close, but it’s far from actually getting there yet–and this week we see play in Vienna and Basel. The 2022 Erste Bank Open in Vienna has an extremely strong entry list, resulting in exciting matchups even in the opening round. One of them is Andrey Rublev taking on Diego Schwartzman. Who do you think will advance?
ATP Vienna Day 1 Predictions
Karen Khachanov vs J.J. Wolf
Head-to-head: First meeting
J.J. Wolf didn’t have an easy time qualifying, but the American is showing recently that he’s trying to find some regulation in his inconsistent, but extremely dangerous game. He’s gonna need a lot of that against Karen Khachanov, whose physical style won’t be easy to hit through on the slower indoor courts in Vienna. Over the course of three sets, Wolf will probably end up spraying a bit too much.
Prediction: Khachanov in 3
Quentin Halys vs Borna Coric
Head-to-head: First meeting
Quentin Halys bounced off the ATP level this summer, but if he’s going to do anything on the main tour, it will be indoors. Borna Coric has been playing a rather light schedule recently and if the Frenchman serves well, he can put a lot of pressure on him early in this match. Halys would probably like the surface to be a little faster though and Coric has also improved his delivery of late.
Prediction: Coric in 3
Yoshihito Nishioka vs Taylor Fritz
Head-to-head: Nishioka 3-0
Yoshihito Nishioka has a pretty surprising lead in this head-to-head, including one meeting this year in Acapulco. The Japanese plays a very unpleasant ball and can test Taylor Fritz’s movement a bit more than most of his other opponents. Nishioka’s definitely not drawing dead here, although the American has been excellent enough this year that he should finally score a win in this rivalry.
Prediction: Fritz in 3
Filip Misolic vs Francisco Cerundolo
Head-to-head: First meeting
Francisco Cerundolo is certainly vulnerable indoors, but most of his recent losses came to excellent opposition and his forehand is a weapon that easily transcends surfaces. In fact, Filip Misolic is the one who might struggle more here. The Austrian has barely played off-clay in his professional career and it’s tough to predict how he’ll be looking in this match. He might develop his indoor game in the future but for now, it’s actually Cerundolo who seems like more of a lock to perform.
Prediction: Cerundolo in 3
Andrey Rublev vs Diego Schwartzman
Head-to-head: Rublev 2-1
The 2020 champion takes on the 2019 runner-up in this clash of two big names, which actually seems fairly straightforward in terms of who’ll win it. Diego Schwartzman is in a dire need of a good run of late, but it’s going to be harder for him to find confidence indoors. Andrey Rublev keeps going deep in almost every tournament he played and won Gijon two weeks ago, where the conditions were seemingly pretty similar to the ones in Vienna.
Prediction: Rublev in 2
Main Photo from Getty.
