Stefanos Tsitsipas to set to face the challenge of Lucas Pouille in the Round of 32 of the Madrid Open
Stefanos Tsitsipas is scheduled to make his maiden appearance at this year’s Madrid Open tomorrow. The Greek superstar is seeded 4th in the tournament and received a ‘bye’ in the earlier round due to his superior ranking. Tsitsipas however, didn’t have an ideal start to the Madrid Open after losing his first-round doubles match yesterday, patterning with his brother, Petros.
Lucas Pouille is coming off a confidence-boosting straight-set win against Karen Khachanov in the previous round. The Frenchman is currently ranked no. 156 but had no problem in getting the better of much superior ranked Khachanov (26). Pouille had broken into the top 10 of the ATP rankings in the past in 2018 and certainly has the potential to be a tricky opponent for the much-fancied Tsitsipas.
Tsitsipas and Pouille have faced each other twice on the ATP circuit. On both occasions, the Greek got the better of the Frenchman and leads 2-0 on the head. Their latest meeting came at the 2021 Marseille Open which Tsitsipas comfortably won 6-2, 6-3. On paper, Tsitsipas is the overwhelming favorite going into the match both in terms of form and rankings. We are predicting a comprehensive straight-set win for Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Details:
| Date | Thursday, 5th May |
| Court type | Outdoor clay court |
| Watch | Amazon Prime app |
| Start time | 12:45 am IST |
| Venue | Manolo Santana Stadium |
| Match details | Round of 32 match |
Can Tsitsipas challenge for the No.1 ATP ranking by end of this year?
Stefanos Tsitsipas is presently placed 5th in the world in men’s singles ATP rankings. He is in hot form and won the recently concluded Monte Carlo Masters, his first title of the year. The Greek star has the highest career ranking of No.3 in men’s singles but currently occupies the fifth spot. Tsitsipas has a long way to go if he has to end up in the top two by the end of the year. Can he do it? Well, it is tough but if he maintains his consistency, it’s certainly not impossible.
Novak Djokovic, Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Zverev, and Rafael Nadal are placed above Tsitsipas in the latest rankings. While Djokovic and Medvedev haven’t been at their best so far this year, Tsitsipas has always held an edge over Zverev at least when it comes to head-to-head clashes. Rafael Nadal had a fabulous year until he suffered a major setback due to his injury. Nadal isn’t getting any younger and it will be tough for him to maintain his hot streak of form. That leaves Tsitsipas with a realistic chance of finishing the year in the top 2 of the men’s singles rankings.
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