Casper Ruud and Stefanos Tsitsipas are one round away from a potential rematch of their Monte-Carlo title tilt from last week. Ruud awaits Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the Barcelona semifinals on Saturday, while Tsitsipas faces Dusan Lajovic.
(3) Casper Ruud vs. (13) Tomas Martin Etcheverry
Ruud and Etcheverry will be squaring off for the second time in their careers when they battle for a semifinal spot at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell on Saturday. Their only previous meeting came last fall on the hard courts of Beijing, where Ruud prevailed 1-6, 7-5, 7-6(7). The rematch should be just as competitive and of even higher quality now that both guys find themselves on what is by far their favorite surface.
This season has been outstanding for Ruud regardless of playing on either clay or hard courts. The sixth-ranked Norwegian boasts a 27-7 record and is coming off a runner-up performance in Monte-Carlo. So far in Barcelona he has taken out Alexandre Muller, Jordan Thompson, and Matteo Arnaldi in straight sets. Etcheverry earned his place in the last four by beating Nick Hardt, Brandon Nakashima, and Cameron Norrie. The 30th-ranked Argentine has now reached at least the quarterfinals of four clay-court tournaments in 2024. This could be the best match of the entire tournament, with a slight edge going to Ruud since he is on an absolute roll right now.
Pick: Ruud in 3
(5) Stefanos Tsitsipas vs. Dusan Lajovic
Tsitsipas was on life support in his Barcelona quarterfinal match on Friday, but his bid for two titles in two weeks is still alive. The seventh-ranked Greek saved two match points against Facundo Diaz Acosta before winning 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(8). Thus continues a clay-court hot streak for Tsitsipas, who rolled to the Monte-Carlo trophy last weekend–beating Alexander Zverev, Karen Khachanov, Jannik Sinner, and Ruud in the process. Prior to overcoming Diaz Acosta in Barcelona, the fifth seed ousted Sebastian Ofner and Roberto Carballes Baena in straight sets.
Up next for Tsitsipas on Saturday is a fourth contest against Lajovic, who trails the head-to-head series 2-1 at the ATP level. They have gone head-to-head just once since the start of the 2020 season, with Tsitipas taking their only previous main-draw clay-court encounter 7-6(5), 6-2. Lajovic had been a mere 7-8 for the 2024 season heading into Barcelona, but he is turning things around with victories over Diego Schwartzman, Ugo Humbert, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, and Arthur Fils. Although the 59th-ranked Serb has always does his best work on clay, the surface doesn’t give him any kind of advantage against Tsitsipas. Count on the Greek maintaining his winning ways.
Pick: Tsitsipas in 2
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