A blockbuster second-round matchup in Winston-Salem on Tuesday pits top seed Grigor Dimitrov against 2020 U.S. Open champion Dominic Thiem. Botic van de Zandschulp is beginning his week against fellow Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor.
(1) Grigor Dimitrov vs. Dominic Thiem
Thiem’s comeback from a year-long absence due to a wrist injury has been slow going. The 28-year-old Austrian has a losing record on the main tour (8-9) and even in Challengers (1-2) this season. However, he is coming off semifinal (Gstaad) and quarterfinal (Kitzbuhel) performances on clay as he begins his hard-court swing right before the U.S. Open. Thiem scored his first hard-court win since Doha in March of 2021 when he saved two match points and outlasted J.J. Wolf 6-7(5), 7-5, 7-6(6) at the Winston-Salem Open on Monday night.
Up next for the former world No. 3 on Tuesday is Dimitrov, who leads the head-to-head series 2-0. Dimitrov has won three in a row against Thiem, including most recently via a 6-4, 6-4, 6-0 beatdown at the 2021 Australian Open. The 19th-ranked Bulgarian will be well rested after earning a first-round bye as Winston-Salem’s No. 1 seed, whereas Thiem needed three hours and nine minutes to beat Wolf. Thiem is gaining confidence and should be able to make Dimitrov work for it, but fatigue could be a factor.
Pick: Dimitrov in 3
(LL) Tallon Griekspoor vs. (2) Botic van de Zandschulp
It will be an all-Dutch showdown when Van de Zandschulp and Griekspoor square off for the third time in their careers. They have split their two previous encounters, both at the Challenger level; Van de Zandschulp prevailed three years ago in Hamburg before Griekspoor got the job done 6-1, 3-6, 6-1 last spring on the red clay of Amersfoort.
Van de Zandschulp should be extremely motivated for this one, and when he is motivated he is especially dangerous. One, the world No. 23 will be eager for revenge. Two, at a small 250 tournament he has a good chance to capture his first-ever ATP title. Griekspoor did well to beat Taro Daniel on Monday, but he needed a lucky-loser spot to get into the main draw after falling to Christopher O’Connell in qualifying. Griekspoor has cooled off a bit since a red-hot 2021 campaign, so Van de Zandschulp should be able to capitalize.
Pick: Van de Zandschulp in 2
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