Alexander Zverev and Taylor Fritz will begin their Rome bids on Saturday they may have difficult openers on their hands. Zverev is going up against David Goffin, while Fritz’s second-round match comes against Yannick Hanfmann.
David Goffin vs. (19) Alexander Zverev
It will be a tale of two players making their way back from injury when Zverev and Goffin collide for the fifth time in their careers on the main tour, this time in the Internazionali BNL d’Italia second round on Saturday. The head-to-head series is all tied up at two wins apiece, with Zverev holding a 2-1 advantage on clay.
Zverev’s ranking never dipped as low as Goffin’s and the German appears to be much closer to recapturing the old version of himself. Results are still inconsistent at best, but a fourth-round performance in Madrid was encouraging and if not for a couple of very close losses to Daniil Medvedev his season could be much better. Goffin is just 6-8 this year and he had to work extremely hard to get past Italian wild card Luca Nardi 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 on Thursday. You never really know what you are going to get from the 32-year-old Belgian these days, so Zverev is the safer choice.
Pick: Zverev in 2
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(Q) Yannick Hanfmann vs. (9) Taylor Fritz
Fritz has cemented himself as a top-10 player (currently No. 9 in the world) and he is certainly in early contention for another Nitto ATP Finals berth. The 25-year-old American is 27-9 this season with a title in Delray Beach, a semifinal showing in Monte-Carlo, and back-to-back quarterfinal performances in Indian Wells and Miami. Fritz is coming off a fourth-round effort in Madrid, which by his old standards would be a good clay-court result but at this point in his career is nothing more than mediocre.
Up first for the ninth seed on Saturday is Hanfmann, who is also playing the best tennis of his life right now. The 31-year-old registers at No. 101 in the world, but he looks poised to surpass his career high of 92nd sooner rather than later. Hanfmann picked up his ninth ATP-level win of 2023 when he beat Nicolas Jarry 6-4, 6-4 on Thursday. The German can make this competitive because clay is his favorite surface, but it can’t be overlooked that he is 1-5 lifetime against top-10 opponents (d. Gael Monfils at the 2020 Umag event).
Pick: Fritz in 2
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WWW?
It’s all in the eyes. Take a good look in the mirror.
My eyes say Zv in 2; Fritz in 2.
Almost comically awful performance from Fritz. Fh a disaster. Ros dreadful. Had one bp all match. First serve only at 45%. Moved like a cart horse.
Hard to describe how terrible he was.
😃
God, thanks for making me laugh, amy 😀
“moved like a cart-horse” I was not awake to see it, but you know how much I like Fritz (not)—his new name, cart horse.
Dimitrov moves so beautifully; it’s too bad he doesn’t win more, but his head has been where the sun doesn’t shine in the crucial years of his career.
In the past, at some point, I think I have picked Goffin over Zverev and got it right. It feels like Goffin in 3 sets. No question about which one I like more.
Yes cart horse is an excellent name for him!
Was fun to watch I have to say..😀!
He really was terrible. I only saw the second set mind.
We could start a club in appreciation of : The Terrible Tennis Troglodytes!
And we could be: The Three Terrible Tennis Trolls….
Haha Margot!! 😀
Yes we could! I am definitely on board as some laughs are necessary..