Stefanos Tsitsipas will lock horns with Ilya Ivashka at the round of 32 of the Barcelona Open on Wednesday, April 20th.
Stefanos Tsitsipas will be high on confidence after winning the Monte Carlo Open. The Greek star beat Alejandro Davidovich-Fokina in the final of the tournament to clinch his 8th ATP title and his fourth on a clay court. It was a perfect start to the clay season for Tsitsipas.
The 23-year-old also made it to the Australian Open semi-finals, finished as the runner-up in Rotterdam and reached the semifinals in Acapulco as well. However, he will be looking forward to carrying his Monte Carlo success into the Barcelona Open as well.
Tsitsipas has also made it to the Barcelona Open on two occasions and suffered defeat twice against Rafael Nadal, in 2018 and 2021. This time, he will be hoping to go all the way and win the tournament.
Meanwhile, Ilya Ivashka has not had a fruitful year so far. The Belarusian won his maiden ATP title at Winston-Salem in 2021 but has struggled to find any consistency this year. At 28, Ivashka still has plenty to prove to the Tennis fraternity and will be aiming to cause an upset by taking down Tsitsipas on clay.
Tsitsipas currently leads the H2H duels between the two players, winning the only game they’ve played. The Greek star beat Ivashka 6-4, 6-1 in straight sets in Rotterdam earlier this year.
Tsitsipas has looked very comfortable on the clay courts and he is a firm favourite to win this tournament in Barcelona as well. Our prediction is a win in straight sets for the ‘Prince of Clay’.
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