World No. 1 Novak Djokovic runs into the red-hot Tallon Griekspoor in the second round of the ATP 500 in Dubai, while Felix Auger-Aliassime battles Lorenzo Sonego. Quarterfinal berths are at stake on Wednesday.
(1) Novak Djokovic vs. Tallon Griekspoor
Novak Djokovic is in his first tournament since his Australian Open victory in January. The Serb, who just broke the all-time ATP/WTA singles record with 378 weeks at No. 1, didn’t have the greatest start to his Dubai campaign. He needed three sets–including a third-set tiebreaker–to dispatch world No. 130 Tomas Machac in the first round.
Djokovic’s second-round opponent is an in-form Tallon Griekspoor. The world No. 39 is an impressive 11-3 on the season. He snagged the title in Pune to start the year and made the semifinals in Rotterdam two weeks ago. The Dutchman, who is having the best season of his professional career, beat France’s Constant Lestienne in the first round.
Djokovic has a single match win over Griekspoor–a routine straight-set affair at the 2021 U.S. Open. This time, however, Griekspoor is in much better form and Djokovic is still shaking off some post-Australian Open rust. It’s hard to pick against Djokovic, as he has won 18 matches on the trot since the Nitto ATP Finals win last season. Still, Griekspoor is playing well enough to make a match of it.
Cheryl pick: Djokovic in 3
Ricky pick: Djokovic in 2
(4) Felix Auger-Aliassime vs. Lorenzo Sonego
Felix Auger-Aliassime has had a good–although not fantastic–start to the 2023 season. He is 7-4 on the year with no titles. He was unlucky to run into Daniil Medvedev at his last two events in Rotterdam and Doha–where he made the quarters and semis, respectively. Auger-Aliassime was a little off in his first round match this week. He defeated Maxime Cressy, but the American hit a whopping 25 double-faults and still managed to win a set.
Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego had a less impressive start to the season. The world No. 67 lost to none other than Auger-Aliassime in the first round in Rotterdam just a couple weeks ago. Sonego’s best result of the year so far came at Montpellier, where he made the quarterfinals.
The Canadian has won both of his previous matches against Sonego. While Auger-Aliassime wasn’t firing on all cylinders in his opener, expect the No. 4 seed to advance
Cheryl pick: Auger-Aliassime in 2
Ricky pick: Auger-Aliassime in 2
WWW?
Griekspoor has a fantastic chance of besting Djokovic! How can you expect any player, even Djokovic or Swiatek, to win all the time?