2024 ATP Tour – ATP 250
Swiss Open Gstaad
Roy Emerson Arena
Selected QF matches – 19 July
Stefanos Tsitsipas 1/9 | Fabio Fognini 52/10
People need to get thicker skin. Greek star Tsitsipas has caused a ‘stir’ with recent Instagram posts, where he jokingly chides girlfriend Paula Badosa about her fitness and calls her a ‘hippo’.
Sure, this doesn’t sound great out of context. But it was just playful banter between two ultra-fit athletes. In any event, Tsitsipas will be using this event to finetune his clay-court game ahead of the rapidly approaching Paris Olympics.
The Greek is coming off a really disappointing grass-court swing and he will be hoping that a return to his favourite surface can pay rich dividends. He looked a bit shaky in his opener, surviving a tight first-set tiebreak to eventually overcome Medjedovic in straight sets.
But Tsitsipas is a seasoned clay-court aficionado who will only grow as the tournament progresses. He was exceptional on the sticky stuff earlier this year, winning in Monte-Carlo before adding a runner-up finish in Barcelona. Victory in this tournament will be just what the doctor ordered ahead of Paris.
Next up for Tsitsipas is grizzled Italian veteran Fabio Fognini. A former Monte Carlo Masters champion, Fognini always had the ability to shock on the biggest stages.
But at 37 years of age, the chances of him taking down a bona fide Grand Slam contender have grown much slimmer. He has battled with injuries and poor form throughout the season.
But he did reach the quarter-finals at the Grand Prix Hassan II. And he just showed up surprisingly well at SW19, eventually going down in five sets to Bautista Agut in the third round. And he should be pretty comfortable in these environs, winning the title here back in 2018. He started this week in impressive fashion, downing Frenchman Droguet in straight sets.
He was made to dig deep against Viralles, coming back from a set down to take the match. Fognini can be a very tricky operator, using a variety of drop-shots to unsettle his opponents. Could he turn back the hands of time to cause a real upset here?
The Verdict: Tsitsipas to win in three 29/10
Tsitsipas has utterly dominated this rivalry 4-0 (only dropping one set to Fognini in the process). I just think this venue will give Fognini some confidence.
The higher altitude means that he can really go for broke on that forehand wing, eliminating some of the more protracted rallies. He really has nothing to lose out there and can essentially treat this like a glorified exhibition match.
A loss for Tsitsipas could prove catastrophic to his gold medal chances. Maybe a three-set win for Tsitsipas provides the best value. I just think that the mercurial Fognini always has it in him to steal a set on clay (even against the best).