Australian Open 2023: Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Jiri Lehecka preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds and pick
Match Details
Fixture: (3) Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Jiri Lehecka.
Date: January 24, 2023.
Match Timing: Approx. 8:30 pm local time, 3:00 pm IST, and 9:30 am GMT; 4:30 am ET.
Tournament: Australian Open 2023.
Round: Quarterfinals.
Venue: Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia.
Category: Grand Slam.
Surface: Outdoor Hardcourt.
Prize money: A$76,500,000.
Live telecasts: USA - ESPN | UK - Eurosport | India - Sony Six, Sony Ten & Sony Liv.
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Jiri Lehecka preview
Third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas will take on Jiri Lehecka in the quarterfinals of the 2023 Australian Open on Tuesday.
Tsitsipas entered the tournament as the third seed and started by beating France's Quentin Halys 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(6). He followed this up with straight-set wins over Rinky Hijikata and Tallon Griekspoor to set up a fourth-round clash against Jannik Sinner.
Tsitsipas won the first two sets 6-4, 6-4 but the Italian bounced back to take the next two 6-3, 6-4 and force the match into a decider. The Greek broke his opponent in the sixth game of the final set and it turned out to be decisive, as he won 6-3 to book his place in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open.
Jiri Lehecka, meanwhile, started the Australian Open by stunning 21st seed Borna Coric 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 in the opening round. He then beat Christopher Eubanks 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 to set up a third-round clash against 11th seed Cameron Norrie.
The Brit led by two sets to one but Lehecka bounced back to take the next two sets 6-1, 6-4 and reach the fourth round. Here, he was up against 6th seed Felix Auger-Aliassime and came back from a set down to stun the Canadian 4-6, 6-4, 7-6(2), 7-6(3) and reach his maiden Grand Slam quarterfinal.
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Jiri Lehecka head-to-head
Tsitsipas leads 1-0 in the head-to-head against Lehecka, having beaten him 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 in the semifinals of last year's Rotterdam Open.
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Jiri Lehecka odds
All odds are sourced from BETMGM.
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Jiri Lehecka prediction
Tsitsipas will enter the match as the favorite to win but Lehecka should not be written off as he has already beaten the likes of Felix Auger-Aliassime and Cameron Norrie.
The Greek has served 42 aces throughout the Australian Open so far and will look to accumulate as many of those as he can against Lehecka. He has one of the best one-handed backhands on tour, if not the best, and will look to make the most of it. Tsitsipas also hit 55 unforced errors in his last match, and will have to be careful not to repeat the same mistake on Tuesday.
Lehecka has been very strong in his service games throughout the tournament, winning 232 out of 301 points (77.1%) on his first serve and 91 out of 155 (58.7%) on his second. The Czech will have to dominate his service games while looking for the odd, decisive break.
Lehecka has caused a few upsets at the Australian Open but Tsitsipas might turn out to be too good for him. The Greek, therefore, should manage to come out on top and reach the semifinals of the Melbourne Major for the third successive year.
Pick: Tsitsipas to win in four sets.