Jannik Sinner had to fight back from a set down against Nicolas Jarry in the opening round at the ATP 500 in Beijing, but started cruising from there. The top seed and defending champion remains the main favorite for the title. Next up for him is a rematch of the 2023 Wimbledon quarterfinal with Roman Safiullin. Who do you think will prevail?
ATP Beijing Day 3 Predictions
Flavio Cobolli vs Pavel Kotov
Head-to-head: Cobolli 3-1
Flavio Cobolli and Pavel Kotov have played some memorable matches already, especially the one in Forli three years ago stands out due to the incredible atmosphere from the Italian crowd that day. The Russian was recently able to get his first win in this head-to-head in Marrakech. Seems like ever since, it’s Cobolli who’s trending upwards while Kotov is stagnating. The Italian is a lot more complete as well and has a backup plan unlike his opponent.
Prediction: Cobolli in 2
Jiri Lehecka vs Roberto Bautista Agut
Head-to-head: Bautista Agut 3-0
Roberto Bautista Agut has been a painful opponent for Jiri Lehecka so far. Theoretically, the veteran shouldn’t have all that much to say in this matchup at this stage of his career. But his playstyle takes advantage of some of the issues with shot selection and low-margin attacking options that the Czech is still struggling with. In fact, it was only seventeen days ago that Bautista Agut beat Lehecka again. That first win has to come at some point though? The 22-year-old needs to play pretty solid like he did in the opening round.
Prediction: Lehecka in 3
Adrian Mannarino vs Daniil Medvedev
Head-to-head: Mannarino 4-3
Daniil Medvedev has horrible head-to-head records against other flat hitters and Adrian Mannarino is no exception. It’s just not that easy for the Russian to drive through a low ball like this, especially off his forehand. That doesn’t mean he hasn’t had solid performances against this opponent, in fact all of his wins have come in straights. This one might be a bit of a drag right now, but will Mannarino have the patience and discipline required in this matchup after all the losing he’s done of late?
Prediction: Medvedev in 3
Jannik Sinner vs Roman Safiullin
Head-to-head: Sinner 2-0
With the World No. 1 almost secured, there aren’t all that many goals left to chase for Jannik Sinner this year (at least not until the ATP Finals and Davis Cup Finals). But any concerns regarding his motivation were very quickly answered when he went down a set to Nicolas Jarry. The Italian didn’t fold and came back to win in dominant fashion. Looks like he’ll be just as dangerous here as most of this season and even a high-ceiling opponent like Roman Safiullin will have nothing to say in that case.
Prediction: Sinner in 2
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey-USA TODAY Sports
