TennisSection previews the 2022 Qatar Open as Denis Shapovalov takes on Arthur Rinderknech in the quarterfinal on Thursday, February 17th, 2022.
Denis Shapovalov returned to winning ways at the Qatar Open following a shock first-round exit in Rotterdam. Now the top seed will take on Arthur Rindeknech whose place in the last eight has come as a bit of a surprise considering his recent injury woes. Will the Canadian progress?
Denis Shapovalov produced a flawless serving performance on Wednesday at the Qatar Open. The top-seeded Canadian made amends for his shock first-round defeat in Rotterdam by beating Alex Molcan of Slovakia in a battle of the lefties. Shapovalov won 6-4 6-0 in just 52 minutes. He dropped just eight points behind his serve. Shapovalov outmaneuvered and outmuscled Molcan from the baseline, utilizing his ferocious ground strokes to dictate proceedings right from the off. The 22-year-old has the chance to win his second career title this week, but will need to be consistent for the next three matches.
Arthur Rinderknech, for his part, has defied the odds somewhat to reach the quarterfinals of the Qatar Open. Rinderknech had not played a match since the Australian Open due to a wrist injury he picked up in Melbourne. Rinderknech was forced to miss out from his home tournament in Montpellier and Rotterdam, but seems to have fully recovered. The Frenchman has come through a couple of testing encounters in Doha, beating both Jiri Vesely and Alexander Bublik from a set down.
Denis Shapovalov leads Arthur Rinderknech 1-0 in their head-to-head. Shapovalov defeated the Frenchman in a tight encounter last autumn at the Stockholm Open. Not many people foresaw this run at the Qatar Open from Rinderknech after his recent wrist injury. And he’s had no problems playing long matches either, which ironically has only helped his cause. But Shapovalov made a real statement with that mauling of Molcan in his first match. If the Canadian continues to serve lights out, it is hard to see the Frenchman stopping him.
Free Tennis Pick and Prediction: Denis Shapovalov to win.
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