The Italian veteran Fabio Fognini begins his singles campaign at the Sofia Open against Australia’s Aleksandar Vukic on Tuesday.
The 35-year-old produced some decent results in the first part of the season but things have gone downhill for him following his semifinal appearance in Serbia. Fognini played the quarter-finals in the Argentina Open and the semi-finals in the Rio Open but other than these outings, he has mostly struggled in 2022.
Fognini is coming into the tournament after being ousted in the second round at the US Open by 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal. The world No. 57 played extremely well to win the first set but the legendary Spaniard pulled things back in his favor in the second and eventually won the match in four sets.
The 26-year-old reached the quarter-finals in Adelaide the semi-finals in the Challenger event in Bengaluru. After his stint in Bengaluru, Vukic went through a very rough phase and couldn’t manage a win in the main draw in eight consecutive competitions.
Vukic finally found some form in the Columbus Challenger II, where he made it to the quarter-finals before losing to Cannon Kingsley in straight sets. The world No. 144 will have to bring his best game to give Fognini a good run for his money.
Aleksandar Vukic and Fabio Fognini have not faced each other as yet. Therefore, the head-to-head scoreline currently stands at 0-0.
Prediction: Fabio Fognini to win in straight sets.
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