Stefanos Tsitsipas will kick off his 2019 clay season against Mikhail Kukushkin at the Monte-Carlo Masters on Wednesday, while Dominic Thiem takes on Martin Klizan. Surprisingly, Klizan leads his head-to-head series with Thiem 3-1.
(6) Stefanos Tsitsipas vs. Mikhail Kukushkin
Greek star Stefanos Tsitsipas burst onto the tennis scene in 2018 as a teenager. He started to climb the rankings through the spring, but then came from out of nowhere in a literal historic run at the Canadian Open. Tsitsipas defeated four top-10 players en route to the final, where he was finally dispatched by Rafael Nadal.
Tsitsipas continued his meteoric rise in 2019 with a semifinal showing at the Australian Open, where he once again lost to Nadal. He also made the final in Dubai and won the title in Marseille over none other than Wednesday opponent Mikhail Kukushkin.
Kukushkin is 8-6 on the season so far, though a full half of those wins came when he made the final in Marseille. He hasn’t had the best time of it against Tsitsipas. The two men have met twice in the past year–Tsitsipas won both encounters.
Tsitsipas had excellent results on clay last season, especially since his required that he qualify for Monte-Carlo and Rome. He even made the final in Barcelona, a run in which he took out French Open finalist Dominic Thiem before losing yet again to Nadal.
Cheryl pick: Tsitsipas in 2
Ricky pick: Tsitsipas in 2
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(4) Dominic Thiem vs. Martin Klizan
Dominic Thiem has been the second-best clay courter on the men’s tour behind Rafael Nadal. The Austrian can make a claim that few others can–he has beaten Nadal on clay three times. He, in fact, dispatched Nadal at the Spaniard’s home tournament in Madrid just last year. Unfortunately for Thiem, he was not up to the task at the French Open; Nadal captured his record-breaking 11th French Open title over the Austrian in straight sets.
Thiem had a miserable start to the 2019 season. He barely managed to string two match wins together, including a failed campaign on the South American clay-court swing. After that, however, he plowed through the draw at Indian Wells and defeated Roger Federer for the title. He followed that victory with an opening-round loss in Miami to Hubert Hurkacz. His 2019 campaign gives new meaning to the word “unpredictable.”
Martin Klizan holds a 3-1 record over Thiem and he has won both of their matches on clay, so it could well be a tricky opener for the No. 4 seed. It hasn’t been a good season for Klizan, but he clearly knows how to beat Thiem on the dirt.
Cheryl pick: Thiem in 3
Ricky pick: Thiem in 2
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Tpas in 2;….Thiem in 2.