Aslan Karatsev
8th seed Aslan Karatsev takes on the talented Tallon Griekspoor in the semifinals of the Tata Maharashtra Open on Friday.
The 29-year-old has been in fine form in the tournament thus far. He is yet to drop a set and has looked at ease in two of the three matches he has played.
In the round of 32, Karatsev made light work of Pablo Andujar. The experienced Spaniard was no match for the immaculate Karatsev and eventually suffered a loss in straight sets 1-6, 3-6. Karatsev went on to face Tim van Rijthoven in the second round. The Dutchman took the world No. 59 to the limit but eventually came up short. Karatsev won two tight sets 7-6 (9-7), 7-6 (10-8) to progress to the quarters. Karatsev completely outplayed another Spanish player Pedro Martinez in the quarterfinals. The match ended 6-1, 6-2 in favor of Karatsev.
The Dutch No. 2 has also not lost a set so far in the competition. He will be confident going into his clash with Karatsev.
Griekspoor began his campaign in Maharashtra by beating 7th seed Jaume Munar in straight sets 6-4, 7-5. The former followed it up with another fine performance against Marco Cecchinato in the round of 16. The 26-year-old won 6-4, 6-4. Griekspoor set up a date with top seed Marin Cilic in the quarterfinals. This was expected to be a big test for the youngster but Cilic had to withdraw from the tournament ahead of the match owing to a knee injury.
The head-to-head scoreline is evenly poised at 1-1 on the ATP Tour. Overall, the record stands at 1-1. Their most recent encounter came at the Firenze Open where Karatsev won after Griekspoor retired midway through the second set.
Prediction: Aslan Karatsev to win in three sets.
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