TennisSection previews the 2021 Monte-Carlo Masters as Matteo Berrettini (8) meets Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the Second Round on Tuesday April 13th, 2021.
A very interesting match awaits us in the Second Round of the 2021 Monte-Carlo Masters event in Monaco. Eighth seeded Italian Matteo Berrettini will face unseeded Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in a battle of two of the most exciting young players on the ATP Tour. Both players play a very flamboyant brand of tennis and there will be lots of spectacular shot-making. Will Berrettini get the win in his return to the tour, or can the Spaniard cause the upset?
Matteo Berrettini is currently ranked #10 in the ATP world rankings and is considered one of the top young players on the ATP Tour. More known for his hard court prowess, he has had decent results on clay throughout his career and will be considered the favorite to advance here at the 2021 Monte-Carlo Open. The winner of two career clay court ATP titles, it remains to be seen how his fitness is after not playing any events since getting injured at the Australian Open. His attacking baseline game is very effective even on this surface, and his forehand is one of the biggest weapons in world tennis. If he has fully recovered from his abdominal injury he will be the heavy favorite here against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina is ranked #58 in the world, slightly down from his career-high of #51. Like his opponent Matteo Berrettini, he is well-known for his flashy style of tennis, utilizing slices and drop shots very effectively and not allowing his opponents to get into a rhythm. The young Spaniard was very impressive in his First Round win over Australian Alex De Minaur, winning 6-4, 7-6. Although he has not had a very successful start to his clay-court season, he will be very confident after that win, plus the fact that his opponent has not played any matches in a long time. While he enters this match as the underdog, he is certainly capable of causing the upset here at the 2021 Monte-Carlo Masters with the momentum that he has built.
This will be the first time the two players have faced each other on the ATP Tour, and their head to head record stands at 0-0. While Matteo Berrettini is much higher ranked and has the better clay court resume, this match has the potential to be very interesting. The Italian has been out due to injury for a long time and will be rusty. Additionally, abdominal injuries can be quite devastating, particular on power players like him who rely on those muscles a lot. While Davidovich Fokina has not been particular successful recently, he still has the talent to win here if Berrettini is not at his best, and can definitely give the Italian star a run for his money. I expect this match to be a long battle, with Berrettini edging the win possibly in three sets. This prediction depends on him being fully fit, and we have no reason to believe that he isn’t. Matteo Berrettini will win and advance to the Round of 16 here at the 2021 Monte-Carlo Open.
Free Tennis Pick and Prediction: Matteo Berrettini to win
Want more Free Tennis Picks from our Experts? Check out our latest Tennis Predictions now!
