Semifinal previews and predictions: Fritz vs. Van de Zandschulp, Kecmanovic vs. Lajovic

All three ATP tournaments will be holding their semifinals on Saturday, including in Munich and Banja Luka. Among the competitors taking the court are Taylor Fritz, Botic van de Zandschulp, Miomir Kecmanovic, and Dusan Lajovic.

BMW Open: (4) Botic van de Zandschulp vs. (2) Taylor Fritz

Fritz and Van de Zandschulp will be going head-to-head for the second time in their careers when they clash in the Munich semifinals on Saturday. Their only previous meeting came last fall in the Davis Cup Finals, where Van de Zandschulp prevailed for the Netherlands via a 6-4, 7-6(3) decision. However, Fritz was wearing out down the stretch of a long season and now all systems are go for the red-hot American. He is 25-7 in 2023 and up to No. 10 in the rankings. So far this week he has defeated Marton Fucsovics and Dominic Thiem, dropping one set to Fucsovics along the way.

Van de Zandschulp booked his spot in another Munich semifinal by beating Aslan Karatsev and Marcos Giron in straight sets. The world No. 29 finished runner-up at this tournament last spring, so he clearly enjoys playing in Munich. Nonetheless, Fritz is the far superior player at the moment and only seems to be improving on clay with every match.

Pick: Fritz in 2

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Srpska Open: Dusan Lajovic vs. (4) Miomir Kecmanovic

Lajovic is coming off the biggest win of his career on Friday, having upset world No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the Banja Luka quarterfinals. The 32-year-old Serb saved 15 of 16 break points and came back from 6-3 down in the second-set tiebreaker to triumph 6-4, 7-6(6) after two hours and 29 minutes.

Up next for Lajovic is another all-Serb showdown, this one against Kecmanovic in what will be their first-ever encounter. It’s never easy to follow up such a big moment only 24 hours later, and Kecmanovic won’t make things any easier. The world No. 33 has won 14 ATP-level matches this season, has always played especially well at 250s, and turned in an awesome performance to defeat Jiri Lehecka 7-5, 6-0 on Friday. It has been a great week for Lajovic, but this is likely where it comes to an end.

Pick: Kecmanovic in 2

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