Seeds Jiri Lehecka and Karen Khachanov are one win away from respective titles in Antwerp and Almaty, which will be at stake on Sunday. Lehecka is going up against Roberto Bautista Agut, while Khachanov faces Gabriel Diallo.
European Open: Roberto Bautista Agut vs. (5) Jiri Lehecka
Although Lehecka has not been on tour for a particularly long time, he and Bautista Agut will already be squaring off for the fifth time in their careers when they battle for the Antwerp title on Sunday. Bautista Agut leads the head-to-head series 3-1, although Lehecka won their most recent encounter just a couple of weeks ago in Beijing via a 3-6, 6-2, 6-1 decision. The 36-year-old has won both of their previous indoor meetings–and both in straight sets.
That success against Lehecka indoors is no surprise, as Bautista Agut has always been effective on this surface. The Spaniard is up to his usual indoor tricks in Antwerp with wins over Luca Van Assche, Tomas Martin Etcheverry, Felix Auger-Aliassime, and Hugo Gaston–dropping just one set to Auger-Aliassime in the process. Lehecka is a solid 28-15 for his 2024 campaign following defeats of Jaume Munar, Daniel Altmaier, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Marcos Giron. The Czech is 1-1 lifetime in ATP finals, while his opponent is 11-11. Bautista Agut’s experience and current form could be enough to pull off a minor upset.
Pick: Bautista Agut in 3
Almaty Open: (3) Karen Khachanov vs. Gabriel Diallo
Diallo has–albeit quietly–been one of the tour’s breakthrough stars this season. The 23-year-old Canadian will soar into the top 100 next week regardless of Sunday’s outcome; he will be No. 87 with a loss and No. 76 with a win. Sure there is some pressure in a first-ever ATP final, but at the same time he has nothing to lose and he can play loose knowing that direct entry into the Australian Open–and probably all of the majors in 2025–is now pretty much guaranteed. The best week of Diallo’s career has come at the expense of Christopher O’Connell, Borna Coric, Alejandro Tabilo, and Francisco Cerundolo.
Although Khachanov got an opening bye as the third seed, his path to the final was tougher. The 26th-ranked Russian required two tiebreakers against Otto Virtanen in round two and three tight sets against Aleksandar Vukic in Saturday’s semis. Khachanov has been in mediocre form all year long and has really struggled since the clay-court swing, so this is an awesome opportunity for Diallo.
Pick: Diallo in 3
