Damien Kayat previews Taylor Fritz vs Aslan Karatsev and Wu Yibing vs Marton Fucsovics in Selected Round of 16 matches of the BOSS Open, on the 15th of June 2023.
2022/23 ATP Tour
ATP 250 Series
BOSS Open
Tennis Club Weissenhof, Stuttgart, Germany (Outdoor Grass)
Selected Round of 16 Matches – 15th June
Taylor Fritz 2/9 | Aslan Karatsev 31/10
This should be a fascinating clash between two extremely hard-hitting players. American Taylor Fritz has fast turned into one of the pin-up idols of men’s tennis. He exudes easy charisma and has been one of the most consistent players on tour this year.
He won his 5th career title at the Delray Beach Open and has reached a further five semi-finals. He was also hugely influential in helping America win the inaugural staging of the United Cup. He looked composed at the French Open before running into clay-court specialist Cerundolo.
And he is entering potentially the most inviting portion of his season. Fritz has already showcased a proclivity for playing on grass. He has won the Eastbourne International twice (in 2019 and 2022). And he reached his maiden Grand Slam quarterfinal at last year’s Wimbledon Championships.
He has a booming serve that allows him to dictate quick, concise points (ala Pete Sampras).
29-year-old Aslan Karatsev is clawing his way back to relevance after a trying few years. He burst onto the scene with a scarcely believable 2021 campaign. He reached the semi-finals of the Aussie Open in his maiden Grand Slam appearance.
He would also go on to win titles in Dubai and Moscow in an incredible breakthrough season. But last year turned into a nightmare season for Karatsev. He won the Sydney International prior to a diabolical run of form.
He was then faced with a flurry of match-fixing allegations that threatened to stall (even end) his career. But he seemed to have weathered that storm and has started to show glimpses of his best form in recent weeks.
He reached his maiden Masters 1000 semi-final in Madrid (beating the red-hot Danil Medvedev in the process). He just came through a gruelling opening match with Moutet. He is an aggressive shot-maker who also prefers short points to the drudgery of long rallies.
Verdict: Fritz to win in three at 26/10
This will be the first career meeting between these two. Fritz will obviously be the favourite given his form and grass-court pedigree. But Karatsev is a mercurial campaigner who has the capacity to shock anyone on his day. I think there’s value in backing the hard-hitting Russian to nick a set here. But Fritz should persevere in the end.
Wu Yibing 43/20 | Marton Fucsovics 7/20
23-year-old Chinese player Wu Yibing is fresh off arguably the biggest win of his career. He beat last year’s Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios in straight sets to advance to the round of 16. Granted, Kyrgios was returning to action following knee surgery.
But I just loved the way Yibing went about his business, dictating from the baseline and dominating on serve. Wu Yibing has quietly been making history on this year’s ATP Tour. A former junior World No.1, Yibing’s early career was blighted by injury and the pandemic (his movement was severely restricted for some time).
But he won three Challenger titles last year and became the first Chinese man to reach the 3rd round of the US Open. And just earlier this year he became the first Chinese man to win an ATP event in the Open Era, outlasting John Isner to claim the Dallas Open title.
Hungarian ironman Marton Fucsovics has experienced a pretty rapid decline over the past few years. I have never understood why he doesn’t win more. He obviously has amazing physicality and he couples that power with excellent movement and technique.
I think he often lacks the mental fortitude to be a great player. He rose to prominence with a quarterfinal run at the 2021 Wimbledon Championships. He also reached his maiden ATP 500 final that year. But 2022 turned into a real grind for the ripped Fucsovics.
It seems as if his obsession with attaining a perfect physique has correlated with a dip in form. But there have been brief signs of encouragement for him this year. I think he must still be wondering how he lost that Aussie Open 3rd round match with Jannik Sinner.
He led by two sets yet somehow conspired to lose to the young Italian. He had to come through qualifying here before facing a tricky first-round opponent in Denis Shapovalov. But those ironman chops came in handy this time as he came form a set down to diffuse the big-hitting Canadian.
Verdict: Yibing to win in three sets at 58/10
This will be the first career meeting between these two. I really think that Wu Yibing has the chance of going deep in this tournament. He looked completely in control against Kyrgios and I loved the smooth flow of his serve. In any event, I think this will be a gruelling affair between two supreme athletes. I just think Yibing has the momentum at present.
