Americans Reilly Opelka and Jenson Brooksby have outlasted the competition and made it to the final of the first edition of the ATP 250 Dallas Open. Opelka, the second seed, and Brooksby, the fourth seed, are a part of a young American tennis core that has shown considerable promise early on in their careers. The 21-year-old Brooksby is looking for his maiden tour-level title while Opelka is looking to add trophy number three to his cabinet. But who will come out on top?
ATP Dallas Final Prediction
Reilly Opelka vs Jenson Brooksby
Head-to-head: Brooksby 1-0 Opelka
Opelka and Brooksby will be meeting for just the second time ever after Brooksby took the first meeting in straight sets last season. Because of their first round byes, it took both players just three wins to reach this final. Opelka defeated Cedrik Marcel Stebe, Adrian Mannarino, and John Isner all in straight sets to get to this point. He did, however, face four set tiebreaks. Brooksby took down Andreas Seppi, Jordan Thompson, and Marcos Giron to make his second tour-level final. He played eight of a possible nine sets along the way. Brooksby has spent six hours and nine minutes on court compared to Opelka’s four hours and 44 minutes.
Opelka is one of, if not the best, server on tour. Because of this, he always has the serving advantage against his opponent. That will be magnified against the young Brooksby who routinely hits second serves in the 80 mph range. With that being said, Brooksby has proven himself as someone who is very hard to ace. Opelka will get his far share, but Brooksby will block, chip, and do whatever he can to turn each point into a rally. Though Opelka has been labelled a “serve-bot”, he plays very well from the ground for someone who stands 6 feet 11 inches tall. He will not buckle easily in the longer rallies.
Look for Brooksby to try to keep Opelka off-balance with changes of pace, including his patent-pending two-handed backhand drop shot. That may prove crucial. Both Brooksby and Opelka are very poised players for their age, so nerves should not come into play between the two. But tiebreaks likely will. Opelka thrives in those situations, and it looks like he has too big of an advantage on serve not to have the edge here. Expect Opelka to raise his third tour-level title.
Prediction: Opelka in 2
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