It’s time for the semifinals of the 2024 ATP Buenos Aires Open. World #2 Carlos Alcaraz has already claimed two wins in his campaign to defend the title but will now face third-seeded Nicolas Jarry, who was able to push him twice last year (Rio de Janeiro and Wimbledon). Who do you think will make the final?
ATP Buenos Aires Semifinal Predictions
Facundo Diaz Acosta vs Federico Coria
Head-to-head: Coria 2-1
Federico Coria was in big trouble going into the Golden Swing with the Cordoba final to defend, but these back-to-back semifinals have pretty much sorted things out for him. Now he’ll be looking to make it to Sunday at an ATP Tour event for the 3rd time and he leads the head-to-head against Facundo Diaz Acosta, but actually lost to him in the opening round of this very tournament last year.
The younger of the two Argentines is playing in his first semifinal at tour-level and has been looking really sharp this week, not dropping any sets thus far. It feels like a form-of-the-day matchup and whoever brings the most intensity to the court should manage to prevail. Coria has been at this stage many times before and generally performs well against lefties, so maybe that’s an edge he could explore here.
Prediction: Coria in 3
Carlos Alcaraz vs Nicolas Jarry
Head-to-head: Alcaraz 2-0
This matchup has been giving Alcaraz plenty of trouble. When Jarry pushed him very hard in Rio de Janeiro last year, it really kickstarted the Chilean’s resurgence for the rest of the season and was the first step towards that eventual top 20 debut. They also faced each other at Wimbledon with Jarry at one point serving to take the match to a decider.
The conditions are probably a bit less favorable to Jarry here than in Rio, but it’s not like the Chilean is ever an easy opponent and he has a very healthy 7-11 record against the top 10. Alcaraz hasn’t had to get out of second gear this week so far, this might be where he’s forced to. Playing against big servers is never easy either and he’ll need to be clean with the +1 forehand on his own delivery.
Prediction: Alcaraz in 3
Main photo credit: Mike Frey-USA TODAY Sports
