Banja Luka 2023: Wawrinka vs Van Assche Tennis Prediction

TennisSection previews the 2023 Banja Luka Open first-round match featuring Stan Wawrinka vs Luca Van Assche on Monday, April 17, 2023.

Wawrinka vs Van Assche Match Preview and Prediction

38-year-old Stan Wawrinka faces 18-year-old Luca Van Assche in a clash of generations at the 2023 Banja Luka Open. Who will prevail?

Stan Wawrinka looks to finetune his game on the clay, playing the inaugural Banja Luka Open in Bosnia. The Swiss one-hander is one of a handful of established stars at the event and will look to build on his Monte Carlo campaign which ended in disappointing fashion in the second round against Taylor Fritz. He’ll have to put in the hard yards on Monday when he takes on fast-rising Frenchman Luca Van Assche.

Luca Van Assche is 7-2 on the clay this year, so he’s got more matches than Stan Wawrinka. That aside, he’ll also have the physical endurance to battle the one-hander should the match last beyond two sets. Van Assche won the San Remo Challenger at the start of the month, beating Juan Pablo Varillas in the final. He has since made the round of 16 in Estoril and failed to qualify in Monte Carlo. Let’s see if he can upset the three-time Grand Slam winner at the Banja Luka Open.

Wawrinka vs Van Assche Prediction and Pick

Stan Wawrinka and Luca Van Assche have not played each other on the ATP Tour, with this first-round match at the Banja Luka Open being their first meeting. Bar Djokovic, Wawrinka’s clay-court prowess is next to none in the 28-man field this week. But he’s at a stage in his career where his body is really feeling the pinch when matches last the full three sets. Last week, after playing a titanic first set against Fritz, he completely wilted in the second set. He’s yet to lose a first-round match in a best-of-three sets match this year, so he should have an edge over the fast-rising young Frenchman.