Vienna Open 2022: Lorenzo Sonego vs. Emil Ruusuvuori Tennis Pick and Prediction

TennisSection previews the 2022 Vienna Open as Lorenzo Sonego takes on Emil Ruusuvuori in the first round on Tuesday, October 25th, 2022.

Will Lorenzo Sonego snap his three-match losing streak? Or Will Emil Ruusuvuori add to the agony? Not long ago Sonegowas celebrating a title win in Metz, so what has really happened in just a month’s time? Let us take a closer look at this match in detail.

Playing on home turf doesn’t always translate to winning matches easily. Such was the case for Lorenzo Sonego who was given a reality check in two newly-minted ATP events in Italy. Sonego was sent packing at the first hurdle, first in Florence by Bernabe Zapata Miralles and then by Sebastian Baez in Naples. The latter defeat was the most surprising considering that Baez had not won a match outside clay in four months. Sonego has a great record at the Vienna Open having famously reached the final in 2020 as lucky loser and dismantling Novak Djokovic, Hubert Hurkacz and Dan Evans en route.

Emil Ruusuvuori, meanwhile, arrives at the Vienna Open on a great run of form. He reached the semifinals in Stockholm, beating the likes of Joao Sousa and Jiri Lehecka before thrashing a fatigued Frances Tiafoe in the quarterfinals. Ruusuvuori met his match in the semis as he was outclassed by the top-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas. The Finn will have a chance to bounce back from that loss when he takes on Lorenzo Sonego, in a match that pits two players looking to solidify their top 50 status.

Lorenzo Sonego and Emil Ruusuvuori have not crossed paths on the ATP Tour. Monday’s match at the Vienna Open will be their first official meeting. Sonego’s form in his last two tournaments is a real cause of concern. His serve was non-existent and his ground strokes – which tend to be so fluid – on indoor hard courts were erratic. Ruusuvuori, for his part, was crashing every ball in sight in Stockholm and if he can replicate that form here, he should have an edge in this matchup.