Vienna R1 previews and predictions: Dimitrov vs. Khachanov, Wawrinka vs. Garin

Marquee matchups will be on hand in Vienna from start to finish this week. They continue on Tuesday, when Grigor Dimitrov goes up against Karen Khachanov and Stan Wawrinka faces Cristian Garin.

Grigor Dimitrov vs. Karen Khachanov

Dimitrov and Khachanov will surprisingly be going head-to-head for the first time in their careers when they clash in round one of the Erste Bank Open on Tuesday afternoon. This is Dimitrov’s 10th tournament of the season and he has not yet lost in an opening round; he has dropped his first match only once (in the Montpellier second round following a bye). The 20th-ranked Bulgarian is producing a solid stretch in which has has reached the Rome quarterfinals, the French Open fourth round, and last week’s Antwerp semis.

Khachanov also advanced to the last 16 at Roland Garros, but he has not defeated anyone in the top 90 through two events during this indoor swing. The 18th-ranked Russian is coming off a controversial quarterfinal loss to Dan Evans in Antwerp, where a minor emotional meltdown led to his demise. Khachanov has had time to recover from that, but Dimitrov is simply in better form right now and has always been strong indoors.

Pick: Dimitrov in 3

Cristian Garin vs. Stan Wawrinka

Wawrinka and Garin will be squaring off for the second time in their careers on Tuesday. Their only previous encounter came at the French Open last spring, when Wawrinka rolled 6-1, 6-4, 6-0. That lopsided scoreline is a bit surprising because Garin is the essence of a clay-court specialist. In fact, he was in 2020 Nitto ATP Finals contention thanks to an awesome run during the February Golden Swing until the tour rearranged the ranking system. The 22nd-ranked Chilean is a horrendous 2-7 on hard courts this year.

On the other hand, Wawrinka is the definition of an all-court player. He has won Grand Slams on two different surfaces and has enjoyed plenty of success on grass, as well. Although the Swiss may not be in his prime at 35 years old and a career full of injuries, he still registers at 19th in the rankings and has won multiple matches in five out of six ATP tournaments this season. All signs point to Wawrinka rolling in this one.

Pick: Wawrinka in 2