There are four superb quarterfinals scheduled at the ATP Monte Carlo Masters. World No. 1 Novak Djokovic seeks to continue his positive start to the tournament against Alex de Minaur, while Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner is looking for a 25th win of the season against Holger Rune. As always, we at LWOT give our predictions and analysis for all the matches. But which players do you think will reach the semifinals?
ATP Monte Carlo Quarterfinal Predictions
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Karen Khachanov
Head-to-head: Tsitsipas 7-1 Khachanov
Tsitsipas has dominated the previous meetings between these two, although only one of their previous matches was on clay. However, that makes this more ominous for Khachanov. Tsitsipas is more comfortable in Monte Carlo than any other tournament, meaning stemming the Greek’s previous supremacy will be difficult. Khachanov did play very well to beat Daniil Medvedev in the previous round but at his best, Tsitsipas is a much tougher proposition on clay. If the 2021 French Open runner-up plays like he did for most of his last match against Alexander Zverev, he will be very difficult to beat.
Prediction: Tsitsipas in 2
Casper Ruud vs Ugo Humbert
Head-to-head: Humbert 3-1 Ruud
Humbert will take some confidence from his previous wins against the Norwegian, but Ruud triumphed in their only previous meeting on clay. The Frenchman is very dangerous at his best and will get strong crowd support in Monte Carlo. Nonetheless, overcoming Ruud for the first time on clay will be a big ask. The two-time French Open runner-up started the year very strongly on hard courts and is unsurprisingly looking very sharp on his favorite surface. He should be able to soak up Humbert’s powerful hitting and pick the right moments to get his opponent on the move to claim victory.
Prediction: Ruud in 2
Jannik Sinner vs Holger Rune
Head-to-head: Rune 2-1 Sinner
Rune’s victory in the last round against last year’s Paris Masters runner-up Grigor Dimitrov was the most dramatic of the tournament so far. He saved two match points, before prevailing in a final-set tiebreak. That contest was over three hours long and Rune also had to finish his second-round match on the same day due to a rain disruption on Wednesday. It feels like beating Sinner is going to be too big of an ask. Rune has nothing to lose but he is unlikely to seriously test the most in-form player in the world when when fatigued.
Prediction: Sinner in 2
Novak Djokovic vs Alex de Minaur
Head-to-head: Djokovic 1-1 de Minaur
De Minaur defeated Djokovic in his opening event of the season at the United Cup. However, that hard court victory will have no bearing on the result here. The Australian played very well in his previous three matches to get to this stage. That does not change the reality that clay is the surface that de Minaur is least comfortable on. Djokovic has surprised some with his high level so far after struggling in the last few years in Monte Carlo. Expect the 24-time Grand Slam champion to expose de Minaur’s weaknesses on the high-bouncing clay courts to reach the semifinal.
Prediction: Djokovic in 2
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
