It’s Day 3 of the ATP ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam. We have five first-round matches and three second-round matches on the schedule. As always, we here at LWOT have every match covered in our daily predictions–including four in a separate article. So who do you think will come out on top?
ATP Rotterdam Day 3 Predictions
Maxime Cressy vs Tim van Rijthoven
Head-to-head: Cressy 1-0 Rijthoven
van Rijthoven stepped up when his country needed him at the Davis Cup, earning an important singles win as the Dutch produced a clean sweep in their tie against Slovakia. The 25-year-old dampened fears of a back injury which caused him to retire from the Australian Open qualifying rounds. Cressy, meanwhile, reached the final in Montpellier this past week, losing to Jannik Sinner. The last time Cressy and van Rijthoven squared off, it was tight as both players serve impeccably. We can almost bank on a tiebreak or two here and I think Cressy’s experience of winning these duels could come in handy.
Prediction: Cressy in 3
Holger Rune vs Constant Lestienne
Head-to-head: Lestienne 1-0 Rune
It is now five straight main draws for Constant Lestienne, which is a career-best streak for the 30-year-old Frenchman. Lestienne had spent most of his playing years on the Challenger circuit. That was until last autumn when he got his bit between his teeth and hasn’t looked like he will be going back that route anytime soon. Lestienne beat Basilashvili in the final round of qualifying, avenging his last loss to the Georgian in Montpellier. But it will be a tough matchup for him on Wednesday. Rune continues to elevate his game to greater heights and as Maxime Cressy can attest to this, it takes a perfect performance to keep out the young Dane. So it is highly unlikely we will see an upset in this one.
Prediction: Rune in 2
Botic van de Zandschulp vs Quentin Halys
Head-to-head: first meeting
Halys has reached two quarterfinals already in the first quarter of the year, which is new ground for him, having fallen in the Round of 16 stage seven times in his career. And it all stems from one memorable performance against Novak Djokovic in the opening week of the season in Adelaide. He took Djokovic to his absolute limits and his confidence has gone up a notch since.
van de Zandschulp is playing on home soil and naturally has the advantage, but the Dutch world #35 is a bit of an unknown quantity having not played since Melbourne. Halys, by contrast, has piled up a few wins in his back pocket, although he lost in the final round of qualifying to Gregoire Barrere. But his level looked excellent and could surprise the home favorite here.
Prediction: Halys in 3
Alexander Zverev vs Tallon Griekspoor
Head-to-head: Zverev 1-0 Griekspoor
Alexander Zverev played his best match of the season by a mile. He recorded a 6-4 7-6 win over Soonwoo Kwon – a stalwart on this surface. Zverev tallied 10 aces and zero double faults. He also saved all three break points he faced during the match. The South Korean had Zverev on the ropes at times in that second set, but the German held firm under pressure. He will be looking to reach his first quarterfinal of the season when he takes on home favorite Tallon Griekspoor. The Dutchman scored an entertaining straight-sets win over Mikael Ymer in front of a vibrant crowd on Court 1. You wouldn’t hang your hat on Zverev as he is still in the early stages of his comeback. But this should not be a physical match and Zverev might have a little more pop in his serve to bail him out of danger.
Prediction: Zverev in 3
Main Photo from Getty.
