Rotterdam Open 2020: 3 players to watch out for
The first 500 tournament of 2020 starts this week. A string of top players - including Daniil Medvedev, Stefanos Tsitsipas and David Goffin - are in Rotterdam to play in one of the most important tournaments from the first quarter of the season.
There are some changes this year with regard to the surface of play. It is going to be a black surface, such as the one from the New York Open last season, and it is a bit slowed down compared to previous editions.
The Rotterdam Open has seen many upsets and surprise winners in the last decade, with Roger Federer (in 2018) being the the only number one seed who managed to win the tournament. Considering all this, let's take a look at three players to watch out for this week:
1. Roberto Bautista Agut
Roberto Bautista Agut had a very good start this season. The Spanish player had some impressive performances in the ATP Cup in the first part of January, and also played well at the Australian Open before he lost in five sets against Marin Cilic.
Bautista Agut has won a 500 tournament before, at Dubai in 2018, and he has the ability to defeat the top players from his part of the draw - including David Goffin and Stefanos Tsitsipas.
The surface in Rotterdam might actually be helpful for Bautista Agut, considering it's a little slower than before. It is still fast enough for him to be dangerous on serve, but not so fast that he will not be able to get a lot of returns in.
Considering Bautista Agut plays his best tennis on slow- to medium-paced hardcourts, he would be fancying his chances at winning the title this week.