The ATP Tour is finally back in China after four years and one of the returning events is the ATP Chengdu Open. The tournament was held between 2016-2019 and will now host its fifth edition. Main draw action kicks off with three singles matches on Wednesday.
ATP Chengdu Day 1 Predictions
Tao Mu vs Corentin Moutet
Head-to-head: first meeting
Tao Mu had a nice junior career, peaking at world #13 and making the semifinals at Wimbledon. A long period of inactivity between May 2019 and October 2021 certainly didn’t help his progress though. Corentin Moutet is still struggling with his backhand after the right wrist surgery and had to switch to a one-hander for the time being. Looking at Mu’s recent Challenger appearances in the Chinese swing, this should be relatively straightforward. It’s the first time the 23-year-old will face a top 200 opponent.
Prediction: Moutet in 2
[cta id=445 type=cta]
Roman Safiullin vs Brandon Nakashima
Head-to-head: first meeting
This is a key week coming up for Brandon Nakashima. He’s defending his 250 points for winning San Diego last year, but needs to do it here as that event is no longer held. If he doesn’t make the final, he will fall out of the top 100. This will add pressure, but also plenty of determination to his performance here. Expect him to step it up, especially as Roman Safiullin hasn’t really followed up his Wimbledon quarterfinal run.
Prediction: Nakashima in 3
Taro Daniel vs Aleksandar Vukic
Head-to-head: first meeting
The last time Aleksandar Vukic played in Asia, he brought back 207 points and a Challenger title. He earned that in just three weeks, which later proved instrumental in his top 100 debut. Taro Daniel is also enjoying one of the best seasons of his career, particularly in how he’s dealing with top 50 opposition (5-6 record). The Japanese should have his chances in this one and if he scheduled himself a bit more towards the Challenger Tour, he would probably be ranked a lot higher than where he is right now.
Prediction: Daniel in 3
Main photo credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
