The Rothesay International Eastbourne continues this week as Zhang Zhizhen faces Miomir Kecmanovic as Cameron Norrie goes up against Emil Ruusuvuori.
2024 ATP Tour – ATP 250
Rothesay International Eastbourne
Devonshire Park Lawn Tennis Club
Selected Round of 32 matches – 26 June
Zhang Zhizhen 98/100 | Miomir Kecmanovic 8/10
I was hugely impressed by Zhang Zhizhen’s history-making performance at the last Halle Open. Known primarily as a clay-court specialist, Zhang has never really shown much of a proclivity for grass-court tennis in his career (though he did reach the quarter-finals here last year).
But he has been making some real progress over the last year or so, becoming the first Chinese man in the Open Era to reach a grass-court semi-final at last week’s Halle Open.
And he did it in real style, producing a huge upset to eliminate Daniil Medvedev. He also pushed World No.1 Jannik Sinner in a really competitive semi-final (he actually manufactured a set-point in the second set).
The Chinese baseliner has produced decent results on all surfaces this year and I was really impressed with the way he manipulated the ball last week. He was quite content to operate from the baseline, using crazy drop-shots to change the tempo of rallies. Can he enjoy another positive grass-court week with Wimbledon peaking around the corner?
This has been a really frustrating year for 24-year-old Serb Miomir Kecmanovic. He comes into this event with a drab 13-17 record for the season (with a fourth-round run at the Aussie Open an obvious standout performance).
I have been slightly disappointed with his progression over the last few years. His 2022 Miami Open quarter-final against Carlos Alcaraz seemed to announce the arrival of two exceptional talents. Sure, he did manage to reach two minor finals last year.
But he has struggled with consistency this season and is now ranked outside the top 50 in the world. He has very little grass-court pedigree to speak of (though he did reach the third round at Wimbledon in 2022).
He is a brilliant defensive player with solid grounds off both strokes. But he doesn’t really have that humongous weapon that can separate him from the pack. But he is a supreme athlete and I think he should be well suited to deal with Zhang’s variety.
The Verdict: Kecmanovic to win in three at 32/10
Kecmanovic leads the head-to-head 2-0- including one Challenger win. Crucially, the Serb brushed aside the Chinese player when they met in Madrid earlier this season.
I just think the Serb’s pure athleticism will allow him to dismantle the tricky Zhang. He won’t be outdone too easily by drop-shots and he probably has a little more firepower than the Chinese. Still, this should be a fairly tight affair.
Cameron Norrie 47/100 | Emil Ruusuvuori 33/20
Cameron Norrie is desperately in need of a solid week. The lefty recently surrendered his British No.1 ranking to Jack Draper and his form has been in absolute freefall this year.
I honestly think that he has been a victim of playing too much tennis over the last three years or so. He is a pugnacious fighter who doesn’t just win matches emphatically.
He grinds players down and I think that has taken its toll on him. Norrie has some obvious grass-court pedigree, reaching the Queens final back in 2021 before a Wimbledon semi-final appearance in 2022.
But his 2024 grass-court season has been nothing short of a disaster. He tried boosting his confidence by dropping to Challenger level in Nottingham. That backfired horribly, as he was embarrassed by World No.773 Jack Pinnington Jones.
He then lost to grass-court veteran Milos Raonic in Queens last week. He needs something positive to hold onto as he enters the year’s 3rd Grand Slam.
Norrie will probably feel pretty pleased that his next opponent is 25-year-old Finn Emil Ruusuvuori (a player whose recent form is arguably worse than his own).
He started the year in decent fashion, reaching the final at the Hong Kong Open. The Finn has gone 1-5 in tour-level matches since the start of the Indian Wells Masters. He also endured a pretty miserable start to his grass-court campaign, going down to Sho in the Surbiton Trophy.
He has never gone beyond the second round at Wimbledon but there has been some progression in his grass-court play over the years. He reached the quarter-finals at Queens back in 2022 before a semi-final run at last year’s Libema Open. The Finn likes to take the ball early and dictate the tempo of points. He will look to be the aggressor against the more calculating Norrie.
The Verdict: Ruusuvuori to win in 48/10
This will be the third career meeting between these two and they currently share the spoils at one win apiece. The Finn won their last meeting at the 2021 Atlanta Open.
I think there’s decent value in backing the upset here. Neither of these two players are in great form and it could go either way. Norrie just looks a little shell-shocked of late and the Finn’s aggressive style could peg him back.
