Rotterdam 2021: Men's singles draw analysis, preview & prediction | ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament
Australian Open runner-up Daniil Medvedev and second seed Stefanos Tsitsipas lead the field at the 2021 ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament, in the absence of defending champion Gael Monfils.
Also crowding a packed draw are fellow Next Gen names Alexander Zverev, Andrey Rublev, Felix Auger-Aliassime, as well as former Grand Slam winners Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka.
With main draw action set to begin at the Rotterdam Ahoy from Monday, here is a look at the prospects of the top names in the fray:
Top half: Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev handed tough draws
Expected semifinal: Daniil Medvedev vs Alexander Zverev
Analysis: Daniil Medvedev has been handed a tricky draw, and is set to be tested at nearly every stage.
Medvedev opens his campaign against Serbia's Dusan Lajovic, a player who has upset him in the past. Lajovic hasn't had the best of starts to the season, but he is a legitimate threat to the top seed.
Another interesting battle brewing in Medvedev's section is one between Felix Auger-Aliassime and Alex de Minaur. Assuming that both men come through their respective opening round matches, they could set up an enticing Round of 16 encounter against each other.
Third seed Alexander Zverev has a relatively easy first round, but in the second he could face some resistance from the winner of the Tommy Paul vs Lorezno Sonego match.
Zverev is projected to face Roberto Bautista Agut in the last eight. But the Spaniard, who seems to have found his stride at the Montpellier event this week, will first have to to fend off the crafty Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and the big-serving Reilly Opelka.
Predicted semifinal: Daniil Medvedev vs Roberto Bautista Agut
Dark horse: Felix Auger-Aliassime
Bottom half: Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka look to flip the script
Expected semifinal: Andrey Rublev vs Stefanos Tsitsipas
Analysis: Andrey Rublev starts against a qualifier, but could face former World No. 1 Andy Murray in the second round. Murray faced a straight-sets loss in his first match of the season last week, and will be keen on a better showing here.
Also crowding Rublev's quarter are Ugo Humbert and David Goffin, who are likely to battle for the other last eight spot. Neither man has had the best of starts to the season, but Humbert has shown a lot of promise in recent months and could well pose a threat to the seeds.
Stan Wawrinka and Karen Khacahanov's first round matchup is likely to draw a lot of eyeballs. The winner of that encounter will have a good shot making of making the last eight, with no major threats looming ahead.
The draw hasn't afforded the same luxury to second seed Stefanos Tsitsipas, who will have to battle against Egor Gerasimov in the first round and the winner of Adrian Mannarino vs Hubert Hurkacz next. But the Greek has been in good form of late, and an upset here is unlikely.
Predicted semifinal: Andrey Rublev vs Stefanos Tsitsipas
Dark horse: Ugo Humbert
Notable first-round matches
Daniil Medvedev vs Dusan Lajovic
Kei Nishikori vs Felix Auger-Aliassime
Stan Wawrinka vs Karen Khacahanov
Robin Haase vs Andy Murray