TennisSection previews the 2021 Barcelona Open as Stefanos Tsitsipas (2) meets Alex de Minaur (14) in the Third Round on Thursday, April 22nd 2021.
Will Alex de Minaur be able to cause the upset against an opponent he has always struggled against in Stefanos Tsitsipas? Will Stefanos Tsitsipas continue to cruise through all of his matches on clay this season, with the Greek yet to drop a set in 2 weeks? Both players can win this match if they are on top of their game, but only one will make their way to the Quarter-finals. Who will it be?
Alex de Minaur cruised through his Second Round match here at the 2021 Barcelona Open against the always tough Alexander Bublik, beating the Kazakh in straight sets 7-6(3)/6-2. Alex de Minaur started off 2021 very strongly winning the title at the 2021 Antalya Open, but had since gone down in form a bit, perhaps due to his lack of involvement in many big tournaments since the Australian Open. Alex de Minaur can definitely challenge some of the best players in the world on his day, but he needs to be able to find the consistency which makes the best the best. Will Alex de Minaur find another level as he looks to defeat one of the best players at the moment in Stefanos Tsitsipas?
Stefanos Tsitsipas is just in incredible form at the moment, not having lost a single set in the last two weeks on clay as he won the Monte-Carlo Masters. Here at the 2021 Barcelona Open, Stefanos Tsitsipas started off perfectly again, destroying Jaume Munar in straight sets 6-0/6-2 to book his spot in the Third Round. Tsitsipas is just able to hit the ball with extreme speed from all angles on the court as his forehand and his one-handed backhand seem to be in perfect sync at the moment. However, Stefanos Tsitsipas will also know he needs to ensure he is continuously looking on what to improve in his game to prevent upsets from the likes of his next opponent, Alex de Minaur.
Stefanos Tsitsipas and Aled de Minaur have met 7 times before, with Stefanos Tsitsipas leading the head to head 6-1. They last met earlier this year at the ATP Cup where Tsitsipas won in straight sets 6-3/7-5. The only time Alex de Minaur beat Tsitsipas was on grass in 2017, Tsitsipas’ least favourite surface. I expect this to be a very tight match here in the Third Round of the 2021 Barcelona Open, however, the head to head does not lie, and I expect Stefanos Tsitsipas to get the job done and book himself a spot in the Quarter-finals.
Free Tennis Pick and Prediction: Stefanos Tsitsipas to Win.
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