In a fairly rare occurrence in tennis, all of the top four seeds at the ATP Vienna are in the semifinal. Two massive matchups loom after a stacked draw still saw the best players break through to the final four. Medvedev and Tsitsipas are playing for just the second time this year for another chapter in their lengthy rivalry. Sinner and Rublev face off in the second match with five combined titles on the year and each of them trying to finish 2023 on a high note leading into Paris and the Tour Finals. There will be a lot of eyes on the elite players in Vienna with the eventual titlist earning a lot of confidence moving forward.
ATP Vienna Semifinal Predictions
Jannik Sinner vs Andrey Rublev
Head-to-head: 3-2
Sinner seems to be beginning to turn the corner on getting to the top level on hard courts. He won his first Masters 1000 title in Montreal and won another title earlier this month in Beijing. He has continued his strong form in Vienna winning all six of the sets he has played without spending much time on court. Rublev also scored his first Masters title this year though it was on clay courts. He is an excellent hard court player as well and reached the Shanghai final two weeks ago. However, he continues to struggle against the top players. He consistently beats the players he should but has not upset many of the players ranked above him. He did score a big win over Alexander Zverev in the quarterfinal, but Sinner is more complete and presents a more difficult challenge, especially on fast indoor hard courts. He spent more than an hour longer on court than Sinner did so the Italian will be fresher and already has the matchup advantage. Sinner cruised to a straight set victory in their one prior meeting this year in Miami and while this will be a little closer, it will go in Sinner’s favor as well.
Prediction: Sinner in 3
Daniil Medvedev vs Stefanos Tsitsipas
Head-to-head: 8-4 Medvedev
We have the 13th edition of probably the best rivalry in tennis today, at least as far as bad blood is concerned. The two have treated fans to plenty of great matches over the past few years and have made it clear that they do not particularly care for each other. Tsitsipas did beat Medvedev last year on an indoor hard court but their forms have gone in opposite directions since. Medvedev has finally returned to being an elite hard court player as he was back in 2021, while Tsitsipas has played quite poorly for his standards the last half of this season. While Tsitsipas should be encouraged by making the semifinal he has not been dominant nor faced a player anywhere near Medvedev’s abilities. Medvedev is great hard court tennis and can attack Tsitipas’ backhand to force errors and control the match.
Prediction: Medvedev in 2
Main Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
