The entertaining action at the ATP Rotterdam Open, the first 500-level event of the season, is set to continue on day four. There are five intriguing matches on the slate in the Netherlands and, as always, we here at LWOT are offering our predictions for every match on the schedule. But who will come out on top?
ATP Rotterdam Day 4 Predictions
Holger Rune vs Gijs Brouwer
Head-to-head: Rune 1-0 Brouwer
After an indoor hard run to finish 2022 that saw him ascend to the tennis elite, Holger Rune has a lot to prove this year. The 19-year-old has mostly lived up to the pressure, only losing to Andrey Rublev, Yoshihito Nishioka, and Maxime Cressy so far. Gils Brouwer, meanwhile, did well to take advantage of his wildcard, beating Marc-Andrea Huesler, as he has struggled in 2023 so far. When the two met for the first time, a 16-year-old Rune was playing just his second-ever Challenger Tour event at Amersfoort 2019. Rather unexpectedly, he won that match. Now, a member of the Top 10, the Dane is naturally a heavy favourite.
Prediction: Rune in 2
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Daniil Medvedev vs Botic van de Zandschulp
Head-to-head: Medvedev 3-0 van de Zandschulp
Dropping out of the top 10 is certainly not have Daniil Medvedev imagined starting the year, but after bowing out in the third round of the Australian Open to Sebastian Korda in straight sets that is the reality Medvedev must face. The Russian was a set down again in the first round here but came back to defeat Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. Botic Van de Zandschulp also came back from a set down in his opener, taking out Quentin Halys in a third-set tiebreaker. Medvedev has been the clearly better player in all of their previous meetings so expect him to win again.
Prediction: Medvedev in 2
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Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Gregoire Barrere
Head-to-head: first meeting
After a somewhat disappointing showing in Australia, Auger-Aliassime will try to get some form going while defending a title here in Rotterdam. The Canadian’s first-round performance was already encouraging, beating Lorenzo Sonego 6-2 6-3. Barrere, famous for having all six of his Challenger titles come on French indoor hard, looks to be expanding to the Netherlands.
The 29-year-old qualified past Jesper De Jong and Quentin Halys, now defeating David Goffin in the first round. If other results go his way, Barrere could make his Top 60 debut next week, playing some of the best tennis of his life over the past four months. It will be a good test for Auger-Aliassime but one he should be able to pass.
Prediction: Auger-Aliassime in 3
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Maxime Cressy vs Alex de Minaur
Head-to-head: first meeting
An interesting match-up of styles here with the surface likely to aid Maxime Cressy’s aggressive serve and volleying and challenging Alex de Minaur’s retrieving skills. Cressy had his best run in six months last week, beating Borna Coric and Holger Rune to reach the final in Montpellier. De Minaur really impressed in his first-round win over Andrey Rublev here though, dispatching the Russian in straight sets while Cressy dropped a set to Tim van Rijthoven in his opener. This looks like a pretty even match on paper, but de Minaur should have just about enough to get over the line.
Prediction: de Minaur in 3
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Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Jannik Sinner
Head-to-head: Tsitsipas 5-1 Sinner
The clear match of the day with Jannik Sinner’s unseeded status at the ATP Rotterdam Open a credit to the strength of the field, allowing him to meet Stefanos Tsitsipas so early in the draw. The Greek largely dominated their first five meetings, not dropping a set outside of his Rome 2020 loss. In their most recent match at the Australian Open though, Sinner showed that he can go toe toe toe with Tsitsipas, pushing the eventual finalist to five sets in the fourth round.
The Italian is undefeated since that match with his eighth title now under his belt, winning Montpellier. In the first round though, Benjamin Bonzi took a set off Sinner. Including his Davis Cup wins, Tsitsipas is 13-1 on the season with his only loss coming against Novak Djokovic. That makes it near impossible to pick against him at the moment, though Sinner will likely make him work hard for the win.
Prediction: Tsitsipas in 3
Main photo credit: Mike Frey-USA TODAY Sports
