Two of the Next Gen’s top stars will be in action on Wednesday in Melbourne as Stefanos Tsitsipas and Karen Khachanov take the court in the Australian Open second round. Khachanov is facing Yoshihito Nishioka.
(14) Stefanos Tsitsipas vs. Viktor Troicki
To say that Viktor Troicki had a miserable year in 2018 is understating the matter. The former world No. 12 was 6-13 on the season and found himself in Challenger events as his ranking plummeted. But 2019 is a new season. The Serb veteran came up through qualies, where he beat Nicolas Mahut and Lukas Rosol. He even managed to win his first main draw match against Roberto Carballes Baena. Unfortunately for him, his next opponent is the 2018 ATP Most Improved Player of the Year, Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Tsitsipas came somewhat out of nowhere in 2018. The young Greek started his season ranked at 91 in the world. By the time he hoisted the Next Gen ATP Finals trophy, he was the world No. 15, and with his first ATP tour title. Perhaps the most notable tournament in his young career was his historic run to the finals at the Toronto Masters. There, he defeated four top ten players in the world before running into eventual champion Rafael Nadal.
As he showed in Toronto, Tsitsipas plays a kind of fearless tennis. He is not intimidated looking over the net at Novak Djokovic nor Rafael Nadal. He lost to Nadal eventually, but it wasn’t because of nerves. And while Troicki is a tour veteran with three career titles and plenty of on-court experience, but this should be fairly routine for Tsitsipas.
Cheryl pick: Tsitsipas in 4
Ricky pick: Tsitsipas in 3
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(10) Karen Khachanov vs. Yoshihito Nishioka
This will be the first meeting between Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka and Russian Karen Khachanov. The Japanese man won his first tour title in Shenzhen at the tail-end of 2018, but his ranking is still a modest No. 69, owing to the fact that he still plays on the Challenger circuit part of the time.
Khachanov is knocking on the door of the top 10. He had a breakout season in 2018, with three tour titles – one of which came at the Paris Masters which he earned with a win over world No. 1 Novak Djokovic. The world No. 11 endured a slightly shaky start to 2019, with a first round loss at the hands of the resurgent Stanislas Wawrinka in Doha. Still, Wawrinka is a three-time Grand Slam champion, and his relatively low ranking is due entirely to injury, not a loss of form.
Khachanov is a big, strong player with enough game to go toe-to-toe with Rafael Nadal at the 2018 U.S. Open, though he eventually lost in 4 very tight sets. He has not quite yet proven himself at the Slams, with a second round, two round of 16 and one third round showing last year. Still, his potential at the big events is obvious and it’s only a matter of time before he makes a deep run.
Cheryl pick: Khachanov in 3
Ricky pick: Khachanov in 3
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Tpas in 3….Knov in 3…and how did Chardy last 5 sets in that kind of heat?…Allez!
nice one, Chardy
Tsitsi in 4, Khachanov in 3.
Tsitsi doesn’t have nerves – yet – he’ll get there as soon as he has something to lose. Right now it’s still all upside for him. Or maybe playing better will be how he copes with nerves. He’s been a come-from-behind when all looks hopeless guy.
Yes. I was going to make the observation that he just doesn’t know enough to be scared yet. I’m sure the moment will get the better of him eventually, as it does to all pros at some point. For the time being, he does a masterful job of playing in the moment.