Alex Mann is back with his weekly recap of the ATP and WTA tours called This Week in Tennis. Rublev on fire and Swiatek’s 8th title.
Rublev on fire
Bouncing back from her loss to Krejcikova in last week’s Ostrava Open final, Iga Swiatek defeated Donna Vekic to win her 8th title. The world number 1 took the first set, 6-3, before Vekic fought back in the second to take 6-3 to take the match to a decider. However, it was a one-sided set as Swiatek stormed to victory, 6-0, in the third. Although Vekic’s run ended in defeat, she defeated some top WTA players, including Sakkari, Pliskova, Sabalenka, and Collins. The Croatian, who reached a career-high ranking of 19 in 2019, looks to be finding her old form as she returns from injury.
This week also saw Andrey Rublev lift his ATP fourth title of the year as he defeated Sebastian Korda in Gijon. With this win, Rublev closes in on his place at the year-end ATP finals in Turin. It wasn’t only Rublev who had a successful week on the indoor hard court in Spain.
Dominic Thiem continued his comeback from injury, reaching the tournament’s semi-finals before losing out to Rublev.
This Week in Tennis #42
Let’s look at the ongoing week in tennis with several interesting events on the ATP and WTA tours.
Guadalajara (WTA 1000)
Guadalajara, Mexico, hosts its first-ever WTA 1000 event. Although the world number 1 and 2, Iga Swiatek and Ons Jabeur are not competing, 15 of the top 20 players have entered. Paula Badosa is the top seed but faces an early test against Victoria Azarenka. The second seed, Aryna Sabalenka, kicks off her tournament against the in-form Ludmilla Samsonova. Look out for Coco Guaff and Barbora Krejcikova, who will be favorites to lift the trophy.
Prediction – Krejcikova to win
European Open (ATP 250)
Hubert Hurkacz leads the lineup in Antwerp, Belgium. Fresh off the back of winning his second ATP title this week, can Felix Auger-Aliassime win back-to-back titles? Diego Schwartzman and Karen Khachanov will also be the ones to look out for this week.
Prediction – Khachanov to win
Stockholm Open (ATP 250)
The first edition of the Stockholm Open was held in 1969. John McEnroe and Boris Becker share the record of winning the tournament four times. Tommy Paul defeated some top-quality opponents to lift the trophy last year and will have to do this again if he is to defend his title. In the first round, Paul faces Leo Borg, Bjorn Borg’s son. Stefanos Tsitsipas enters as the highest-ranked player, while Cameron Norrie, Frances Tiafoe, and Denis Shapovalov make up the top four seeds.
Prediction – Tsitsipas to win
Tennis Napoli Cup (ATP 250)
The tournament in Naples has been upgraded from an ATP Challenger event to an ATP 250. The increase in ranking points has seen a higher-quality field enter this year’s event. The top four seeds are Pablo Carreno Busta, Matteo Berrettini, Roberto Bautista Agut, Lorenzo Musetti.
Prediction – Carreno Busta to win
