(Tennis news) Stefanos Tsitsipas began his campaign against Gregoire Barrere in Halle. Six breakpoints were available to the Greek in three of his opponent’s service games, but he did not take advantage of them. It turned out to be expensive for him because he later lost the set in a tie-break. After falling behind 3-1 in the second set, Tsitsipas won five of the following six games to win the set. The final set likewise went to a tie-break because the two players refused to give up any ground while serving. The Greek prevailed to seal a comeback triumph of 6-7 (6), 6-4, 7-6 (3).

In the meanwhile, Nicholas Jarry’s opening-round opponent was Corentin Moutet. For the majority of the first set, the two players were evenly matched, although the former improved his level towards the conclusion. The Chilean won the final three games of the set to seal the victory. In the opening moments of the second set, Jarry had to save a number of breakpoints, which put him in a challenging situation. As the set progressed, his performance significantly improved, and in the 11th game, he broke Moutet’s serve. After then, the 27-year-old served out the match to prevail 6-3, 7-5.

Head-to-Head

The two have evenly split their previous two encounters, leaving the head-to-head tie at 1-1. At the 2023 Monte-Carlo Masters, Tsitsipas triumphed in their most recent match in straight sets.

Predictions

At the Boss Open last week, Tsitsipas was defeated by Richard Gasquet in his opening match. He was headed for yet another early exit when he made a stunning comeback to beat Barrere and earn his first victory this year on grass. Against Barrere, Tsitsipas was quite successful thanks to his serve. He made 46 winners compared to just 12 unforced errors, hit 16 aces, and won 83% of his first serve points. His victory over Moutet was his first on grass since the Eastbourne International opening-round triumph in 2019 over Pablo Cuevas. 

The Chilean performed admirably throughout the contest and accomplished nearly everything correctly to cross the finish line. While Tsitsipas did triumph over Nicholas Jarry earlier this year, their prior matchup, which took place on grass courts, ended in a loss for Tsitsipas. Since then, the Greek has adjusted his gameplay to better suit the needs of the surface, although he is still fairly vulnerable there.

Stefanos Tsitsipas to win in 2 sets.

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