Tuesday's tennis acca tips: Alexander Zverev out for second title of 2023

A pair of ATP Tour finals are going down on Tuesday in Chengdu and Zhuhai.

Alexander Zverev will chase his second title of the season when he faces Roman Safiullin in Chengdu.

Karen Khachanov takes on Yoshihito Nishioka in the Zhuhai final as well.

Meanwhile, the WTA Tour's first round matches in Tokyo continue.

 

ATP Chengdu: Alexander Zverev vs Roman Safiullin | Pick: Zverev

ATP Zhuhai: Karen Khachanov vs Yoshihito Nishioka | Pick: Khachanov

WTA Tokyo: Anna Kalinskaya vs Ekaterina Alexandrova | Pick: Alexandrova

WTA Tokyo: Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova vs Donna Vekic  | Pick: Vekic

WTA Tokyo: Harriet Dart vs Veronika Kudermetova | Pick: Kudermetova

WTA Tokyo: Natsumi Kawaguchi vs Despina Papamichail | Pick: Kawaguchi

WTA Tokyo: Daria Kasatkina vs Marta Kostyuk | Pick: Ksatkina

WTA Tokyo: Petra Martic vs Misaki Doi | Pick: Doi

 

ATP Chengdu: Alexander Zverev vs Roman Safiullin

Zverev is chasing a second victory over Roman Safiullin after seeing the Russian upset Lorenzo Musetti to reach the Chengdu final.

Safiullin had been the last remaining unseeded player by the semi-final stage.

Zverev won their last meeting, which came at the 2021 French Open when Safiullin had to battle through qualifying.

Zverev was also a titlist in Hamburg earlier this season, while his opponent hasn't won a full tour-level title this term.

 

ATP Zhuhai: Karen Khachanov vs Yoshihito Nishioka

Karen Khachanov had been in the midst of a big slump when he arrived in Zhuhai but has found form and could be walking away with the title.

Khachanov faces a player he is pretty familiar with in Japan's Yoshihito Nishioka, whom he has bested in three of four meetings.

The most recent of those was earlier this year at the Australian Open when Khachanov handed him a pair of bagels.

Since dropping his first set of the week to love, Nishioka has been on a roll but we can't see him turning things around against Khachanov.

 

WTA Tokyo: Anna Kalinskaya vs Ekaterina Alexandrova

Anna Kalinskaya has lost all four times she has come up against Ekaterina Alexandrova.

Alexandrova shouldn't be terribly accommodating to the player she owns a 4-0 record over, and this one should be done in two.

Kalinskaya has been seasoned since their last meeting but hasn't really made a significant surge up the rankings.

Alexandrova won't want to come unstuck against a player of Kalinskaya's level at this stage of a WTA 500 event.

 

WTA Tokyo: Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova vs Donna Vekic

Vekic is a dangerous prospect in Tokyo, and a good run in Japan could see her reach a new career-high ranking.

Journeywoman Pavlyuchenkova is a dangerous opponent to face at any stage of a tournament, but Vekic should have her matched.

These players haven't met before in any competitive matches at any level despite sharing the tour for a number of years.

Vekic appears to have recovered from the injury she suffered leading up to the US Open.

 

WTA Tokyo: Harriet Dart vs Veronika Kudermetova

British hope Harriet Dart has a tough ask first up as she is drawn to face Veronika Kudermetova.

Kudermetova has beaten Dart three times in as many meetings between the players, and all of the wins also came on hard courts.

Dart might have gleaned a lot of insights into Kudermetova's game in their past meetings but her ability to beat the Russian is unproven.

Kudermetova has delivered mixed late-season form and could use a confidence-boosting win.

 

WTA Tokyo: Natsumi Kawaguchi vs Despina Papamichail

Despina Papamichail certainly has the edge in experience but don't write off the home player in these circumstances.

Natsumi Kawaguchi is a relatively untested 21-year-old player with limited WTA experience.

There is a big rankings difference between the players, but given they are both outside the top 200, that won't make too much difference.

Kawaguchi gets the nod because she will get a lift from the occasion and hasn't faced her opponent before.

 

WTA Tokyo: Daria Kasatkina vs Marta Kostyuk

Daria Kasatkina has lost two of her three matches against Marta Kostyuk but knows the threat she brings well.

Kasatkina has played her best tennis since their last meeting, which came back in 2021 and has widened the gap between the players.

Kostyuk is ranked well below her potential, but Kasatkina is a danger to every player on tour.

There will likely be no handshake between the players due to their respective nationalities.

 

WTA Tokyo: Petra Martic vs Misaki Doi

Another veteran handed a tough assignment is Petra Martic, who has to face Japan's own Misaki Doi first up in Tokyo.

Doi won the first meeting between the two, but that came more than ten years ago now.

Martic has since pulled one back in the rivalry but is still yet to beat Doi on a hard court.

Playing at home might also inspire Doi to lift her game that little bit that she needs.