Thursday tennis acca tips: Carlos Alcaraz to win on clay return

Top seed and defending champion Carlos Alcaraz opens his clay court account in the Buenos Aires Round of 16 on Wednesday.

Alcaraz plays for the first time since his Australian Open last eight loss to Alexander Zverev.

The ATP Tour also sees action in Rotterdam and Delray Beach this week.

 

ATP Rotterdam: Hubert Hurkacz vs Tallon Griekspoor | Pick: Hurkacz

ATP Rotterdam: Jan-Lennard Struff vs Emil Ruusuvuori | Pick: Struff

ATP Buenos Aires: Andrea Vavassori vs Laslo Djere | Pick: Djere

ATP Buenos Aires: Carlos Alcaraz vs Camilo Ugo Carabelli | Pick: Alcaraz

ATP Buenos Aires: Federico Coria vs Cameron Norrie | Pick: Norrie

ATP Buenos Aires: Sebastian Baez vs Luciano Darderi | Pick: Darderi

ATP Delray Beach: Alex Michelsen vs Tommy Paul | Pick: Paul

ATP Delray Beach: Radu Albot vs Frances Tiafoe |Pick: Tiafoe

 

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ATP Rotterdam: Hubert Hurkacz vs Tallon Griekspoor

Hubert Hurkacz will be out to continue a strong start to his season when he faces Tallon Griekspoor for the fourth time.

Hurkacz holds a 2-1 lead in their head-to-head rivalry with all three clashes coming in the 2023 season.

The Pole won the encounters on clay and hard courts but lost to Griekspoor on grass at Halle.

Griekspoor probably won't be able to match an in-from Hurkacz in too many respects.

 

ATP Rotterdam: Jan-Lennard Struff vs Emil Ruusuvuori

Jan-Lennard Struff could claim a second head-to-head win in as many meetings with the Finn if he can best Emil Ruusuvuori in Rotterdam.

The only previous clash between the players came in qualifying for the Monte Carlo Masters last season.

Struff won a three-set battle by handing Ruusuvuori a bagel in the decisive frame.

That kind of win has a way of sticking in the head and Ruusuvuori would do well to upset the German No 2.

 

ATP Buenos Aires: Andrea Vavassori vs Laslo Djere

World No 152 Andrea Vavassori faces a stiff test in the form of Laslo Djere, his second round opponent.

Djere defeated Marin Cilic in his last outing to make a winning start to his South American clay swing.

Vavassori comfortably saw off Thiago Seyboth Wild in the first round suggesting he could be a handful.

Djere has an excellent record on clay and shouldn't be stunned by a player well out of the top 100.

 

ATP Buenos Aires: Carlos Alcaraz vs Camilo Ugo Carabelli

Carlos Alcaraz will be playing under a microscope again as concerns over his physical condition continue to be voiced.

Camilo Ugo Carabelli has an opportunity to upset the world No 2 and top seed who comes into the match not having played yet.

Carabelli might match Alcaraz from the baseline but if the Spaniard moves well he will be almost impossible to beat.

This will be the first meeting between these players.

 

ATP Buenos Aires: Federico Coria vs Cameron Norrie

Cameron Norrie might hope to recapture the dominant form he had when he beat Federico Coria at the 2020 US Open in this round of 16 clash.

Norrie has a fair bag of rankings points on the line after doing well in South America last season.

That turned out to be the highlight of a campaign that dipped off sharply for the British No 1.

Norrie knows how to play on these courts and also knows how to beat Coria.

 

ATP Buenos Aires: Sebastian Baez vs Luciano Darderi

Luciano Darderi beat Sebastian Baez on his way to a maiden ATP Tour title in Cordoba.

However, Darderi still gives up over 40 rankings places to world No 30 Baez.

The recency of that last meeting makes it extremely significant with Darderi denying Baez a final appearance on home soil.

Baez may have an axe to grind but Darderi can quickly recapture his Cordoba momentum.

 

ATP Delray Beach: Alex Michelsen vs Tommy Paul

Alex Michelsen and Tommy Paul both reached the third round of the Australian Open.

Paul has gone on to win a title this season, coming out on top in Dallas and could double up in Delray Beach.

Michelsen has made strides into the top 100 and can prove himself a top contender by taking down his compatriot.

 

ATP Delray Beach: Radu Albot vs Frances Tiafoe

Frances Tiafoe is out to shrug off a string of underwhelming results in 2024 so far as he hits Delray Beach.

Moldovan qualifier Radu Albot was stretched to get beyond Juncheng Shang after giving up the opening set but fought back to book his date with Tiafoe.

Tiafoe owns two qualifying wins over Albot so he isn't altogether unfamiliar with his opponent.

Tiafoe is yet to win back-to-back matches but has claimed all three of his opening matches at tournaments in 2024.