The final is set at the Winston-Salem Open. With no top-10 players in the draw, it presented a golden chance for many players to chase an ATP title and fine-tune their game ahead of the year’s final Grand Slam. Lorenzo Sonego and Alex Michelsen have seized this moment. Sonego has had a terrible year until now but improved a lot this week, and Alex Michelsen has shown incredible consistency recently. As always, LWOT offers predictions for the final. But who will lift the trophy?
ATP Winston-Salem Final Prediction
Alex Michelsen has played a lot of tennis recently, but it didn’t bother him this week. He is in his third tour-level final. Michelsen was down 5-2 in the first set against Pablo Carreno Busta in the semifinal but started swinging more and more freely from that point and got the upper hand in the rallies. He broke to love, kept his serve easily, broke again, and kept his cool to clinch the set in a tiebreak. Carreno Busta retired in the second set, but kudos to Michelsen for the fight back. He dug deep and kept a positive attitude throughout. This win ensured his top 50 debut next week, which is huge.
Lorenzo Sonego dispatched David Goffin, who looked in great touch this week, to reach his sixth tour-level final. Sonego has been brilliant behind his serve this week and did not face a break point in the semifinal. The Italian has won a tour-level title on every surface but hasn’t won an outdoor hard-court tournament. Winning the final will complete his set and place him among the rare company. Only 11 active players have won a title on each of outdoor hard, indoor hard, grass, and clay.
This is a big final for both players, and they will go all out to win. Michelsen is bidding to win his first ATP title and become the first American to win the Winston-Salem Open since John Isner did in 2012. Sonego is looking to win his first title in almost two years and his fourth overall. Sonego will look to keep dominating behind his serve, while Michelsen will try to remain solid from the baseline. This feels like a 50-50 matchup, but I am going with the local player to win his first ATP title.
Prediction: Michelsen in 3
Main Photo Credit: Andy Abeyta/The Desert Sun/USA TODAY NETWORK
