Men’s ABN AMRO Rotterdam Open – Selected Round of 16 Preview – 16 February 2023

Stefanos Tsitsipas (3/5) vs Jannik Sinner (6/5)

Greek superstar Stefanos Tsitsipas will be looking to go one better this year after losing to Felix Auger-Aliassime in last year’s final. The Greek has looked imperious this season, winning 11 of his 12 matches in all competitions.

He started the year in patriotic fashion, helping to guide Greece to the semi-final stage of the United Cup. He then produced some brilliant tennis in Melbourne, reaching his 2nd Grand Slam final and underlining his status as one of t/he leading players in men’s tennis.

This week is actually his first outing since that painful defeat to Novak Djokovic. He took some time to get settled in his opening encounter against Emil Ruusuvuori. The World No.3 was broken early in the first set but soon settled into his usual rhythm.

His serve started to dominate and he ultimately delivered a very professional performance. He hit 19 winners to only eight unforced errors. His dynamic, power-packed style is perfectly suited to the rigors of these slick indoor conditions.

Next up for him is a rematch against the man who came closest to ending his Aussie Open final run: Jannik Sinner.

21-year-old Jannik Sinner has also enjoyed a really solid start to the season. He is currently 9-2 for the campaign. He had a mediocre start in Adelaide but ramped things up at the Aussie Open.

He would go on to push Tsitsipas to five sets in a pulsating 4th round defeat. His aggressive baseline game really put the fear of god into Tsitsipas, allowing serving demons to creep into the Greek’s game.

But he couldn’t quite keep up the momentum and Tsitsipas’ superior physicality won him that 5th set. Sinner bounced back from that disappointment by winning the Montpellier title. It was a win that highlighted his brilliance on indoor hardcourts.

He has won four of his seven ATP titles on these surfaces. That’s why it came as a slight surprise that he needed three sets to see off enigmatic Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi.

Still, Sinner looked clinical in that closing set and will feel confident of pulling off a surprise here.

Verdict: Sinner to win in three at 14/5

Sinner is going to have to overcome a significant head-to-head deficit to progress to the quarterfinals. Tsitsipas leads the head-to-head 5-1. But Sinner will probably feel quite confident in the aftermath of that Aussie Open slugfest. I just have the feeling that Sinner could get some revenge here. His ultra-aggressive style is perfectly suited to the vagaries of indoor tennis