This has the potential to be a cracker. 4th seed Stefanos Tsitsipas just notched up the 350th win of his ATP Tour career, seeing off Russian Karen Khachanov in three closely fought sets.
2025 ATP Tour
ATP 500
Dubai Duty Free Championships
Aviation Club Tennis Centre, Dubai, UAE (Outdoor Hardcourt)
Selected Quarterfinals- 27th February
Stefanos Tsitsipas (4) 1.29 vs Matteo Berrettini 0.61
This has the potential to be a cracker. 4th seed Stefanos Tsitsipas just notched up the 350th win of his ATP Tour career, seeing off Russian Karen Khachanov in three closely fought sets. To be fair, Khachanov imploded a bit towards the end, missing a few makable volleys to hand Tsitsipas the initiative. Be that as it may, the result extended Tsitsipas’ laudable record of having always reached the quarterfinal stage of this event (he finished runner-up here in 2019 and 2020). The former World No.3 has improved to 4-3 for the year, as he looks to build some momentum ahead of the clay-court season (which is traditionally where he thrives). He served seven double-faults against Khachanov and his backhand side still looked vulnerable. But his forehand has been in solid working order and he seems comfortable with the pace of these surfaces.
Matteo Berretttini secured his quarterfinal berth with a convincing 7-6, 6-2 victory over Aussie Christopher O’Connell. The charismatic Italian was absolutely clinical on his serve, torpedoing 15 aces while winning 89% of his first-serve points. Berrettini has suffered with a myriad of injuries over the course of his career. He returned to action last year and rapidly stared to dominate the ATP 250 circuit (winning three titles and reaching a further final). But he still lacked incisiveness when he came up against stronger opposition. So, he must be thrilled with reaching back-to-back Middle East quarterfinals. He serve looks deadly and his forehand is as lethal as ever. He – like Tsitsipas- has a weaker backhand wing that can be targeted. But he possibly possesses a bit more variety on that backhand side, able to consistently slice to keep himself in rallies.
The Verdict: Berrettini to win in straight sets at 2.95- Tsitsipas leads the head-to-head 3-1. However, it was the Italian who claimed victory in their most recent meeting, downing the Greek in straight sets in last year’s Gstaad semifinal (an event he would go on to win). I think that Berrettini has the firepower to take down Tsitsipas this week. The courts look brisk this year and Berrettini is serving like a machine. I think that the Greek’s backhand is very limited and Berrettini’s forehand could expose it.
