Toronto 2021: Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Karen Khachanov preview, head-to-head & prediction | National Bank Open
Match details
Fixture: (3) Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Karen Khachanov
Date: 12 August 2021
Tournament: 2021 National Bank Open
Round: Third round (Round of 16)
Venue: Aviva Centre, Toronto, Ontario
Category: ATP Masters 1000
Surface: Outdoor hardcourt
Prize money: $2,850,975
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video | India - Voot
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Karen Khachanov preview
Stefanos Tsitsipas and Karen Khachanov will lock horns in the third round of the 2021 National Bank Open on Thursday.
Tsitsipas, the third seed, entered the Masters 1000 event in Toronto on the back of a series of early exits. The Greek was defeated in the first round at Wimbledon, the quarterfinals in Hamburg and the third round in the Tokyo Olympics.
But he seems to have put his struggles behind him, avenging his Olympics loss to France's Ugo Humbert in the second round in Toronto. The Greek will look to make a deep run at this tournament in order to gain some much-needed confidence and momentum ahead of the US Open.
Khachanov, on the other hand, has been in sublime form in recent weeks. The Russian reached his first quarter-final at Wimbledon in July and followed that up with an impressive silver-medal finish in Tokyo.
Khachanov has scored impressive wins over Aslan Karatsev and Cameron Norrie in Toronto and will be feeling confident about his prospects going into Thursday's clash.
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Karen Khachanov head-to-head
Stefanos Tsitsipas leads Karen Khachanov 3-0 in their current head-to-head. The Greek needed three hard-fought sets to dismiss the Russian in their match in Rotterdam earlier this year.
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Karen Khachanov prediction
Notwithstanding the duo's one-sided head-to-head record, this could end up being a close contest. Both Stefanos Tsitsipas and Karen Khachanov possess power-packed games and will look to take control of the rallies the first chance they get.
Khachanov has found a lot of success with his aggressive baseline game in recent weeks. His big serve and huge groundstrokes have helped him cruise past some top names and he will look to come out swinging against Tsitsipas.
The Russian has struggled to find answers to Tsitsipas' all-court game in the past. To have any kind of chance at staging an upset, Khachanov will need to try and force the Greek out of his comfort zone. His serve must fire on all cylinders and he should look to direct most of the traffic to the Greek's weaker wing -- his backhand.
But Tsitsipas has shown that he can deal with Khachanov's power and while he might be tested on Thursday, he should be able to eke out a win.
Prediction: Stefanos Tsitsipas to win in three sets