Cincinnati 2022: Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Jannik Sinner preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds and pick | Western & Southern Open
Match Details
Fixture: (7) Felix Auger-Aliassime vs (10) Jannik Sinner
Date: August 19, 2022
Tournament: Cincinnati Open 2022
Round: Third round (Round of 16)
Venue: Cincinnati, United States
Category: ATP Masters 1000
Surface: Hard
Prize money: $6,280,880
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | Canada - TSN | UK - Amazon Prime Video | Australian – beIN Sports | India - Sport18
Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Jannik Sinner preview
Felix Auger-Aliassime and Jannik Sinner will lock horns in the third round of the 2022 Cincinnati Open on Friday.
Auger-Aliassime has had a decent season to date, winning 35 out of 54 matches - including his maiden singles title. He kickstarted his year with a splendid display of tennis at the ATP Cup back in January. He beat the likes of Taylor Fritz, Alexander Zverev and Daniil Medvedev to reach the final of the tournament, where he defeated Roberto Bautista Agut 7-6(3), 6-3.
The World No. 9 replicated his form at the Australian Open to reach the quarterfinals before losing to the eventual the runner-up Medvedev. He continued his form and momentum after Melbourne, winning the first singles title of his career at Rotterdam. Having beaten former World No. 1 Andy Murray and Andrey Rublev, Auger-Aliassime cruised past Stefanos Tsitsipas in the summit clash to be crowned the champion.
Alex de Minaur in straight sets to move on to the next round at the @CincyTennis 
Back to winning ways! 🇨🇦
Félix Auger-Aliassime moves past 🇦🇺Alex de Minaur in straight sets to move on to the next round at the @CincyTennis 👌
#TennisNation | @nationalbank https://t.co/njgZRWahiB
However, the Canadian suffered a subsequent dip in form and made quite a few early exits. He has managed to reach the quarterfinals of tournaments consistently but has struggled to go beyond that stage.
The 22-year-old traveled to Cincinnati on the back of a quarterfinal defeat to Casper Ruud at the Canadian Open. He rolled over Alex de Minaur 6-3, 6-2 to set up this mouth-watering clash with Sinner.
Sinner has had a good season so far, winning 38 out of 48 matches. He made a quarterfinal exit at the Australian Open, losing to Stefanos Tsitsipas. A week later, the World No. 12 made another quarterfinal exit, this time at the Dubai Tennis Championships at the hands of Hubert Hurkacz.
During the grass swing, he adjusted well to the change in surface. At Wimbledon, Sinner beat the likes of Stan Wawrinka, John Isner and Carlos Alcaraz to reach the quarterfinals.
Facing Djokovic, the 21-year-old began strong by taking the first two sets. However, the Serb came back strong to win the next three and clinch the contest 5-7, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-2.
The Italian finally laid his hands on his first piece of silverware, beating Carlos Alcaraz 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-1 in the title clash at the Croatia Open.
FORZA 🇮🇹 FORZA 🇮🇹
#CincyTennis | @janniksin https://t.co/9WibTHvyaS
Sinner made a second-round exit at the Canadian Open last week, bowing out in Montreal following a 6-2, 6-4 defeat to Pablo Carreno Busta. He began his Cincinnati campaign with a nervous win against Thanasi Kokkinakis. He dropped the first set before making a comeback to take the second set. The Aussie's tenacious play, however, forced the decider to go into a tie-breaker, which Sinner won. He then received a walkover in the second round after his opponent Miomir Kecmanovic was forced to withdraw due to an injury.
Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Jannik Sinner head-to-head
Auger-Aliassime leads Sinner 1-0 in the head-to-head. The pair faced each other at this year's Madrid Open, where the Canadian comfortably won 6-1, 6-2 in the third round.
Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Jannik Sinner odds
(All odds sourced from Betmgm)
Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Jannik Sinner prediction
Auger-Aliassime possesses a decent serve and intelligent on-court movement. Despite his favorite surface being clay, the Canadian has the ability to alter his game to suit other surfaces as well.
He possesses both a strong forehand and backhand and also has a decent return technique. His tall stature gives him the added advantage of generating huge power in his shots.
Sinner, who also shares a similar playing style with the Canadian, is an aggressive baseliner. He is capable of using his opponent's power to his advantage. A powerful two-handed backhand is the Italian's strongest weapon. At his peak, he commits very few double faults and his topspin can easily trouble his opponents.
Sinner has struggled for form lately. His first-round win against Kokkinakis wasn't the most fluid of victories. Auger-Aliassime, on the other hand, picked up a comfortable first-round victory. The Canadian, who has consistently reached the last eight of his last few tournaments, should be able to beat the Italian and progress to the next round.
Pick: Felix Auger-Aliassime to win in three sets.