Vienna 2020: Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Grigor Dimitrov preview, head-to-head & prediction | Erste Bank Open
Match details
Fixture: Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Grigor Dimitrov
Date: 29 October 2020
Tournament: Erste Bank Open 2020
Round: Second round (Round of 16)
Venue: Vienna, Austria
Category: ATP 500
Surface: Indoor hardcourt
Prize money: €1,409,510
Match timing: Approx. 7.20 pm local time, 11.50 pm IST
Live telecast: USA - ESPN / Tennis Channel | India - Sony ESPN
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Grigor Dimitrov preview
The second round of the 2020 Vienna Open will witness a repeat of the fourth round clash from this year's French Open, with Stefanos Tsitsipas taking on Grigor Dimitrov for a spot in the last eight.
The Greek youngster came through a tough three-setter in Paris, and would be hoping for an easier outing this time around - especially after his first-round scare against Jan-Lennard Struff. The 29-year-old Bulgarian on his part will be looking for his first win over a top 10 opponent this season.
Dimitrov has done reasonably well in his last few campaigns, but a big break has eluded him in 2020. He has managed a couple of semifinals this season, but hasn't made the business end of tournaments as often as he would have liked.
Luckily for him, he has played some of his best tennis on the indoor hardcourts around Europe. The conditions suit his high-risk game particularly well, and he manages to control his serve and groundstrokes the best on this surface.
It goes without saying that Dimitrov has had a few troubles with his game heading into the tournament. The Bulgarian has been struggling to close out big matches, having played a couple of poor tiebreaker sets over the last two months.
However, he would have found plenty of joy in the way he played against Karen Khachanov on Tuesday. Dimitrov was clutch in the first set tiebreaker of that first-round match, before running away with the second.
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Grigor Dimitrov head-to-head
The fourth-round encounter in Paris was the only prior meeting between the two players. Tsitsipas leads the duo's head-to-head 1-0 by the virtue of winning that match.
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Grigor Dimitrov prediction
The match could be a tough fight, given how both men seem to be playing solid tennis at this point. Stefanos Tsitsipas and Grigor Dimitrov have similarly aggressive games, and it will likely be all about first-strike tennis on Thursday.
The opening set could hold the key to this match, especially for Dimitrov. The Bulgarian didn't fare well after losing the close second set tiebreaker of the match in Paris, and he wouldn't want to start off that way.
Tsitsipas, on the other hand, was quick to bounce back after losing a similar set to Struff in his opener here. The Greek remained especially strong on serve, and could pose huge trouble for Dimitrov if he maintains that level.
Dimitrov will have no other option but to be aggressive, and hope for lapses in his opponent's service games. He will have to pounce on any opportunity that comes his way, or else Tsitsipas will wriggle out another tight win here.
Prediction: Stefanos Tsitsipas to win in three sets.