TennisSection previews the 2022 Australian Open as Aslan Karatsev (18) meets Adrian Mannarino in the Third Round on Friday January 21st, 2022.
Former Australian Open surprise package Aslan Karatsev will play Adrian Mannarino in the Third Round of the 2022 Australian Open. Mannarino caused a massive upset when he defeated Hubert Hurkacz in the Second Round, and will be looking to keep his momentum going. Can he cause yet another upset win here in Melbourne?
Aslan Karatsev is the 18th seed here at the 2022 Australian Open and is ranked #15 on the ATP Tour. The Russian is back on the scene where he made his most memorable run at a Major event, stunning the world by reaching the 2019 Semi-Finals as a relative unknown. Now as an established top 20 player, he will be hoping to replicate that feat with a strong performance here in Melbourne. He is an elite mover with ultra-aggressive groundstrokes, and can cause some serious damage on this quick surface. After performing brilliantly to start the year by capturing the title in Sydney he has failed to convince so far here in Melbourne, with tough wins over Jaume Munar and Mackenzie McDonald to start his campaign. He knows he will have to be better against the veteran Adrian Mannarino, who is in fantastic form at the moment.
Adrian Mannarino is unseeded here at the 2022 Australian Open and is ranked #69 in the world. The Frenchman is one of the most underrated payers on the circuit, but also one of the most inconsistent. After losing in the First Round of both the warm-up events here in Australia, he defeated James Duckworth in the First Round before stunning tenth seeded Hubert Hurkacz in straight sets. His inconsistency can be maddening at times and is impossible to predict. If he plays his best he is capable of a second consecutive upset, but even that looks unlikely here against Aslan Karatsev.
This is a very difficult match to predict given the uncertain form that both men have been in, and we have to assume that Aslan Karatsev will improve while Adrian Mannarino will decline. This will be their first meeting on the ATP Tour, and it seems likely to be a rather close affair. After considering everything, it is hard to look past Karatsev, despite his mixed form at the moment. This is a tournament that he has played well at in the past, and he has the game to overpower his opponent here. It won’t be easy, but expect the Russian to get the win here, and move on to the Fourth Round of the 2022 Australian Open.
Free Tennis Pick and Prediction: Aslan Karatsev to win in 4 sets
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