Alex Mann is back with another edition of This Week in Tennis covering week 30 with tournaments in Atlanta, Kitzbühel, Umag, Prague and Warsaw.
TOURNAMENT PREDICTIONS – THIS WEEK IN TENNIS (30)
It’s been an action-packed week of tennis. Bernarda Pera’s perfect post-Wimbledon form continued as she defeated Anett Kontaveit to win the Hamburg European Open.
Pera backed up last week’s win in Budapest with another title on the clay in Germany. The 27-year-old hadn’t won a WTA Tour level title until last week. She has now won two titles in consecutive weeks.
Magical Musetti
Lorenzo Musetti conjured his magical tennis to win his first ATP title, defeating top seed Carlos Alcaraz in the final in Hamburg.
The talented Italian has struggled on the pro tour since his breakthrough in 2020 but showed consistency this week, defeating Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and the in-form Francisco Cerundolo on his way to the final.
His exquisite one-handed backhand and delicate drop shots were on full display as he stormed to a 6-4 5-3 lead against Alcaraz in the final.
After saving multiple match points, Alcaraz returned and took the second set on a tiebreak. At this point in the match, it looked like it was going to be another of Musetti’s performances, which we have seen in the last few years; some great shot-making but unable to sustain it throughout a full match.
This time, however, the 19-year-old re-grouped in the third set and played consistently to battle past Alcaraz.
Ruud in Gstaad
Casper Ruud defended his title in Gstaad to win the Swiss Open. Rudd returned from a set down to defeat Matteo Berrettini in the final as he won his 9th ATP Tour title.
Irina-Camelia Begu won the title in Palermo, Italy, defeating Lucia Bronzetti in the final. This was Begu’s 5th WTA Tour title and her first since 2017.
Looking ahead to this week’s action on the tennis circuit, we have events in Atlanta, Kitzbühel, Umag, Prague and Warsaw.
If you’re into tennis betting, you can bet on the events here.
Atlanta Open (ATP 250)
Reilly Opelka leads the stacked field in Georgia, USA. Six-time champion John Isner will look to win a record-extending 7th title but will face challenges from youngsters Jenson Brooksby and Brandon Nakashima, Frances Tiafoe, Tommy Paul, Alex de Minaur, and Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios.
This is hard to predict, but I will go with Kyrgios. He had an impressive grass court season, and if he can replicate this form on the hard courts, he can go deep in every tournament he enters.
Prediction – Kyrgios to win
Austrian Open Kitzbühel (ATP 250)
One of the most picturesque tournaments in the world, Kitzbühel, always provides some spectacular views of the Austrian mountains, as well as some high-quality tennis.
Defending champion Casper Ruud has withdrawn from the tournament, as well as Matteo Berrettini. Roberto Bautista Agut is the highest-ranked player in the draw and will be looking to win his first title in Kitzbühel. He faces intense competition from Aslan Karatsev and Albert Ramos Viñolas, veteran Richard Gasquet, Lorenzo Sonego and Tallon Griekspoor.
Prediction – Bautista Agut to win
Croatia Open (ATP 250)
It would be fitting to call this year’s tournament in Umag, the Next-Gen Open.
Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz leads this year’s young line-up, which includes 19-year-old Holger Rune, 20-year-old Italians Jannik Sinner and Lorenzo Musetti and 21-year-old Sebastian Baez.
Alcaraz was only 18 when he won the title last year, so it will be intriguing to see if he can win his second Croatia Open as a teenager. He will be determined given last week’s final loss to Musetti.
Prediction – Alcaraz to win
Prague Open (WTA 250)
Defending champion Barbora Krejcikova and top seed Anett Kontaveit headline a strong line-up in Prague. Alize Cornet, Sorana Cirstea, Anastasia Potapova and Marie Bouzkova are all participating.
Third seed Elise Mertens has already been knocked out of the tournament by Magda Linette.
Krejcikova will be looking to gain some form heading into the US swing and Kontaveit will hope to go one better than last week’s final appearance in Hamburg.
I’m going to go with Alize Cornet for this year’s title. The 32-year-old has arguably had her best season this year and ended Iga Swiatek’s 37-match unbeaten streak at Wimbledon a few weeks ago.
Prediction – Cornet to win
Poland Open (WTA 250)
The second edition of the Poland Open takes place in Warsaw this year.
After hosting the ‘Iga Swiatek and Friends for Ukraine’ charity tennis exhibition in Krakow, Swiatek returns to her home city to take part in the Poland Open.
Caroline Garcia, Petra Martic and Kristina Mladenovic are also taking part.
Prediction – Swiatek to win
