Madrid Open 2023: Karatsev vs Struff Tennis Prediction and Pick

TennisSection previews the 2023 Madrid Open semifinal match featuring Aslan Karatsev vs. Jan-Lennard Struff on Friday, May 5, 2023.

Aslan Karatsev vs. Jan-Lennard Struff Preview

Will Aslan Karatsev reach his first Masters 1000 final? Will Jan-Lennard Struff get revenge? This will be an interesting one, where we have a pair who met in qualifying facing off in the semifinals. Who will triumph and move through to the final at the 2023 Madrid Open?

Aslan Karatsev took down Zhizhen Zhang in straight sets, continuing his incredible run from the qualifiers and looking to be back at the top of men’s tennis for the moment. He’ll face Jan-Lennard Struff, a player with a couple of big wins under his belt himself, but Karatsev has played a few big matches before, and with the tennis he’s shown I expect him to be the one imposing himself in this match as he’ll look to reach the final of the 2023 Madrid Open.

Jan-Lennard Struff pulled off the upset over Stefanos Tsitsipas 7-6 (5) 5-7 6-3, serving unbelievably well and hitting several stunning backhands. He’ll need to continue serving well as he takes on Aslan Karatsev, because, with the way Karatsev is able to stand in on his return, Struff can’t afford to give him too many looks at his 2nd serve. He’ll want to shorten the points as he did against Tsitsipas if he wants a chance at the final at the 2023 Madrid Open.

Aslan Karatsev vs. Jan-Lennard Struff Prediction and Pick

Aslan Karatsev and Jan-Lennard Struff have never met before, with this being their first career meeting. Though they’ve never had an official meeting, the pair played in the qualifying of this very event, with Karatsev taking down Struff 6-4 6-2, Struff would go on to get into the draw as a lucky loser. I expect the result to be closer this time around, but Karatsev will still be the man imposing himself on court with his massive groundstrokes as he looks to march into the 2023 Madrid Open final.