Italian Open 2022: Jannik Sinner vs Pedro Martinez preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds and pick
Match details
Fixture: (10) Jannik Sinner vs Pedro Martinez.
Tournament: Italian Open 2022.
Round: First round (Round of 64).
Venue: Rome, Italy.
Category: ATP Masters 1000.
Surface: Clay.
Prize money: €6,008,725.
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video | India - Voot & Sports 18.
Jannik Sinner vs Pedro Martinez preview
Home favorite Jannik Sinner will square off against World No. 44 Pedro Martinez in the first round of the 2022 Italian Open.
Sinner started his clay season at the Monte-Carlo Masters, where he made it to the quarterfinals. He defeated Borna Coric, Emil Ruusuvuori and Andrey Rublev before falling to World No. 3 Alexander Zverev in straight sets.
At the Madrid Open, Sinner showed immense mental fortitude to oust Tommy Paul in the first round after saving three match points. It incidentally marked his fourth win after saving a match point this year. He followed that up with a convincing win over Alex de Minaur after that, which was also his 100th career victory.
Sinner ultimately lost to Felix Auger-Aliassime in the third round.
Jannik Houdini strikes again 💥
@janniksin saves THREE match points to defeat Tommy Paul in Madrid, 6-7 7-6 6-3.
#MMOPEN https://t.co/gmY3lc8g7G
Pedro Martinez won his first career title at the Chile Open in February, which was during the South American clay swing. However, he has struggled quite a bit on the surface over the last few weeks.
Martinez defeated Ugo Humbert in straight sets at the Monte-Carlo Masters before losing to Hurbert Hurkacz in the second round. His next two tournaments were in his native Spain, but that didn't help him perform any better.
The 25-year-old lost in the first round of the Barcelona Open and the Madrid Open to Ilya Ivashka and Alex de Minaur respectively.
Craft 🙌
Smooth stylings, @PedroMPortero
#MMOPEN https://t.co/Pyyh7FJ7OQ
Martinez has now arrived at the Italian Open on a three-match losing streak, something he'll be keen to snap as soon as possible.
Jannik Sinner vs Pedro Martinez head-to-head
This is set to be the first meeting between Sinner and Martinez, so the head-to-head stands at 0-0 for now.
Jannik Sinner vs Pedro Martinez odds
All odds are sourced from BetMGM.
Jannik Sinner vs Pedro Martinez prediction
Given their recent form, Sinner will be the favorite to win heading into this contest. While he did suffer a crushing loss to Auger-Aliassime in Madrid, it's unlikely to affect him too much as he enters the Italian Open. His best performance at the tournament so far has been a third-round showing in 2020.
Sinner needs to be prepared to engage in long rallies, as Martinez is quite adept at keeping the ball in play with his counterpunching skills. The Spaniard often displays immense patience to elicit errors from his opponents.
Sinner, however, isn't content to simply extend the rallies and likes to be proactive. He has a remarkably balanced game and his groundstrokes off both wings are quite consistent, though his backhand is his better shot. Martinez could be lacking in confidence to execute his usual game plan given his current losing streak.
Even if Sinner falls behind, he has demonstrated that he's quite capable of staging comebacks. The home crowd will also be firmly behind him and could motivate him to raise his level as well. Sinner shouldn't face any difficulty in dispatching his opponent to advance further.
Pick: Jannik Sinner to win in straight sets.