Two match ups, champions vs challengers, who will progress to the final of the Barcelona Open?
The tournament has been plagued with upsets so far, with the early losses of Nadal, Rublev and now De Minaur. Therefore, the draw has opened up for two players no one picked to be in the semi-finals, Dusan Lajovic and Tomas Martin Etcheverry. Standing in their way are the finalists of the Monte Carlo masters, Tsitsipas and Ruud who are continuing their solid run of form.
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Tsitsipas Vs Lajovic
Wow, what a rare occasion, two single handed backhands in the semi-final of a mens clay court event, it’s a tennis purists dream. Stefanos and Dusan play with lots of flair and fire power. Both punching through the court with heavy forehands, but with enough feel on the backhand side to bring a variety of wicked spins and angles to the slow clay courts of Barcelona.
The Greek won their last battle on clay way back in 2020 and will be the clear favourite going into this match, especially after his win in Monte Carlo. This is one of those match ups where Tsitsipas has the ability to do everything Lajovic does but 10% better. He has a bigger serve, more consistent forehand and is a better mover on the court.
However, the Serbian has had an amazing run so far, taking out the likes of Ugo Humbert and Arthur Fils. He is a rhythm player and likes the Barcelona courts. Stefanos also narrowly escaped Diaz Acosta in the QF indicating a degree of vulnerability. If Lajovic continues this run of form, he’ll make Stefanos work hard to win this match.
Ruud vs Etcheverry
The next match up should prove to be a more even contest. Ruud has progressed to the semi-final without dropping a set and along with Tsitsipas is the form player of the tournament.
Casper’s game suits the Spanish clay perfectly, his forehand kicks like a mule and his clay court craft is almost unmatched. Ruud puts more RPMs on the ball than Rafa and it’s quite clear why he is a two-time runner up at Roland Garros.
His opponent Tomas Martin Etcheverry is also a clay court specialist and after a breakthrough year in 2023 he has become a consistent top 30 player. I was lucky enough to see him play live at the Australian Open, where he impressively displayed some of the earliest forehand preparation on the tour and a rock-solid fortress like mentality, the Argentine was born for the clay. He has also clearly gelled very well with his new weapon of choice, a version of the Yonex Percept 97.
Their previous meeting was in China last year, where the Norwegian won 7-6 in the third set on hard court. It’s difficult not to pick Ruud in this match up, solely due to his run of form and clay court prowess. If Etcheverry holds his court position on the base line, serves well and stays aggressive off his forehand he may push Ruud and at least take a set off him. However, this will be a giant mountain for Tomas to climb.
So, who’s your pick to move through to the final of Barcelona? Will we see a Monte Carlo final rematch or is there a new champion on the horizon?
