It’s time to wrap up the second round of the men’s singles event at the 2024 China Open. No. 2 seed Carlos Alcaraz will be looking to join top-seeded Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals but has to get through Tallon Griekspoor first. Who do you think will come out on top at ATP Beijing?
ATP Beijing Day 4 Predictions
Bu Yunchaokete vs Lorenzo Musetti
Head-to-head: First meeting
Bu Yunchaokete secured his Top 100 debut by making the Hangzhou semifinals last week and managed to grind down Chengdu champion Juncheng Shang in the opening round here. He’s shown he can hang with players like Lorenzo Musetti and has greatly improved his game this year. This looks pretty close with the Italian still at his most vulnerable on hard courts. But what the Chengdu winner wasn’t able to do, maybe the runner-up of that event can produce. He should be well-rested and has a much wider repertoire than the Chinese.
Prediction: Musetti in 3
Karen Khachanov vs Francisco Cerundolo
Head-to-head: Khachanov 6-0
It’s going to be their fifth meeting of 2024 and while some clashes have been close (Miami and Monte Carlo especially), the head-to-head record is pretty damning for Francisco Cerundolo. Especially their most recent match in Cincinnati was just a complete beatdown. And that’s with Karen Khachanov not even playing that well this year. Cerundolo should get his first win over the Russian at some point, but it seems like he’d need one of his best hard-court performances of the season to get it done.
Prediction: Khachanov in 3
Andrey Rublev vs Alejandro Davidovich Fokina
Head-to-head: Rublev 4-0
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina wasn’t a consistent player in previous years, but over the course of the season he had enough peaks to keep himself much higher in the rankings than he is right now. This time we’re entering the last months of 2024 and it’s tough to name one memorable result for the Spaniard this year. Maybe the small break he took after the US Open, he looked a bit better against Zhizhen Zhang on Friday. But he still has to prove that and especially against a top-quality opponent like Andrey Rublev.
Prediction: Rublev in 3
Carlos Alcaraz vs Tallon Griekspoor
Head-to-head: Alcaraz 4-1
The joy in his game that Carlos Alcaraz was missing at the US Open seems to be back in his game. While it could be argued that the Spaniard doesn’t have much to play for in the rest of the season before the ATP Finals and Davis Cup, his motivation has been restored alongside the fun. That makes him a scary proposition for anyone in the draw but Jannik Sinner (and maybe even the World No. 1). Tallon Griekspoor hasn’t taken a set off him since their first meeting in Montpellier qualifying in 2021.
Prediction: Alcaraz in 2
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey – USA TODAY Sports
