Rotterdam 2023, Day 1: Men's singles predictions ft. Stan Wawrinka vs Alexander Bublik, Grigor Dimitrov vs Aslan Karatsev | ABN AMRO Open
The opening day of the 2023 ABN AMRO Open will take place on Monday, 13 February, with the main draw of the men's singles tournament commencing.
2015 champion Stanislas Wawrinka will start off his campaign in the ATP 500 event against Alexander Bublik in what will be the second meeting between the two this season.
Grigor Dimitrov will face Aslan Karatsev while David Goffin will be up against Gregoire Barrere. Pablo-Carreno Busta is the highest-ranked player to be in action in Rotterdam on Monday as he takes on Richard Gasquet.
So, without any fiurther ado, let's take a look at the predictions for the men's singles matches on Day 1 of the ABN AMRO Open.
#1. Stan Wawrinka vs Alexander Bublik
2015 ABN AMRO Open winner Stan Wawrinka will lock horns with Alexander Bublik in the first round. It will be the fourth meeting between the two, with Bublik leading 2-1 head-to-head.
However, Wawrinka beat the Kazakh 6-3, 7-6(3) at last month's United Cup and will fancy his chances. This is his only win out of three matches so far in 2023. Bublik has had a disastrous start to the season and is yet to win a single match.
Wawrinka is far from being the player he once was but he has produced some decent performances over the past few months. Bublik may be the higher-ranked player of the two but the Swiss' experience could see him get the win and book his place in the second round.
Predicted Winner: Stan Wawrinka
#2. Grigor Dimitrov vs Aslan Karatsev
Grigor Dimitrov will lock horns with Aslan Karatsev in the first round of the ABN AMRO Open. It will be the fourth meeting between the two, with Dimitrov leading 2-1 head-to-head.
The Bulgarian won the most recent encounter between the two, which came in the first round of the Australian Open. He beat Karatsev 7-6(3), 7-5, 6-2 to book his place in the second round.
Dimitrov has a 3-2 record so far in 2023 and will be eager to have a good run at the ABN AMRO Open. Karatsev, on the other hand, is yet to win a single match in the main draw of a tournament this season. The Russian had to go through the qualifiers in Rotterdam and booked his place in the main draw with straight-set wins over Sidane Pontjodikromo and Jurij Rodionov.
Dimitrov will enter the match as the favorite to win and should be able to beat Karatsev without much trouble.
Predicted Winner: Grigor Dimitrov
#3. Pablo Carreno Busta vs Richard Gasquet
Seventh-seeded Pablo Carreno Busta will face Richard Gasquet in the first round of the ABN AMRO Open. It will be the third meeting between the two, with Carreno Busta winning both of his prior matches against Gasquet.
The Spaniard has had a disappointing start to the season, winning just one out of three matches so far. He suffered a second-round exit at the Australian Open after losing to Benjamin Bonzi despite being two sets up.
Gasquet did very well to win the ASB Classic in Auckland, where he defeated Cameron Norrie in the final. The Frenchman, however, has lost every other match he has played so far in 2023, most recently losing to teenager Arthur Fils in the first round of the Open Sud de France in Montpellier.
While Gasquet has a lot of experience behind him, Carreno Busta seems like the better player out of the two and should be able to get the win.
Predicted Winner: Pablo Carreno Busta.
#4. David Goffin vs Gregoire Barrere
David Goffin will face Gregoire Barrere in the first round of the ABN AMRO Open. It will be the third meeting between the two, with the Belgian winning both of their prior encounters.
Goffin has won two out of five matches on the ATP Tour so far this season. He recently competed at a Challenger event in his native Belgium and won it by defeating Mikael Ymer in the final.
Barrere has so far won three out of six tour-level matches this season. Like Goffin, Barrere also won a Challenger tournament, beating Arthur Fils in the final. He followed this up by reaching the quarterfinals of the Open Sud de France in Montpellier before losing to top seed Holger Rune.
While Barrere had some good moments last month, Goffin seems the better player out of the two and should manage to get the win to reach the second round of the ABN AMRO Open.
Predicted Winner: David Goffin