ATP Dubai Tennis Championships 2022: Men’s Singles Draw Preview, Analysis, and Prediction
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Andrey Rublev, Novak Djokovic and Felix Auger Aliassime
The 2022 Dubai Tennis Championships will commence on February 21 and will feature some of the biggest names on the ATP tour. The tournament will mark the return of World No.1 Novak Djokovic after his vaccination debacle.
Tournament Details:
- Tournament: ATP Dubai Tennis Championships 2022
- Date: February 21–26, 2022
- Number of Entrants: 32 (Singles), 16 (Doubles)
- Venue: Dubai, UAE
- Surface: Hardcourt
- Prize Money: $2,794,840
- Defending Champion: Aslan Karatsev
Top Seeds at the ATP Dubai Tennis Championships 2022
- Novak Djokovic
- Andrey Rublev
- Felix Auger-Aliassime
- Jannik Sinner
- Hubert Hurkacz
- Denis Shapovalov
- Aslan Karatsev
- Roberto Bautista Agut
Men’s Singles Draw Analysis and Prediction
Top Half
20-time grand slam champion Novak Djokovic will be back on tour for the first time in over 3 months. He will headline the top half of the draw and to his misery, gets a very tough draw. He will open against Italian teen sensation Lorenzo Musetti and will face either Olympic silver medalist Karen Khachanov or Alex de Minaur in the second round. He is drawn opposite 8th seed Roberto Bautista Agut who will face Arthur Rinderknech. Marin Cilic is also in the first quarter of the draw.
3rd seed Felix Auger-Aliassime will be up against Nikoloz Basilashvili in the opening round and will face either a qualifier or Jan-Lennard Struff in the second round. Denis Shapovalov will be up against Marton Fucsovics and could face David Goffin in the second round. The second quarterfinal could be an All-Canadian battle between Denis Shapovalov and Felix Auger Aliasimme.
First Semi-Final Prediction: Novak Djokovic vs Felix Auger Aliasimme
Bottom Half
Andrey Rublev is seeded second and will be up against Dan Evans in the first round. He will face either Ilya Ivashka or Soonwoo Kwon in the second round. Defending champion Aslan Karatsev is also in the last quarter of the draw and will face Mackenzie McDonald in the opening round. He will face the winner of the match between Filip Krajinovic and Malek Jaziri.
Italian 4th seed Jannik Sinner will open his campaign against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the opening round. Sinner could face 3-time grand slam champion Andy Murray in the second round. Murray will face a qualifier in the opening round. 5th seed Hubert Hurkacz will play Alexander Bublik in the first round and will face either Lloyd Harris or Botic van de Zandschulp in the Round of 16.
Second Semi-Final Prediction: Jannik Sinner vs Andrey Rublev
Semifinals
Top seed Novak Djokovic will face in-form Felix Auger Aliasimme in the first semifinal. Djokovic is the obvious favorite on paper but Felix has shown this year that he is here to stay. The Canadian will give a tough time to the Serb but beating him would be a little too ambitious for him at this point in time.
In the second semifinal, Jannik Sinner will face Andrey Rublev. Sinner has been phenomenal for the last few months and would fancy his chances in Dubai. Rublev has struggles a lot this year but has still managed to pull off some incredible results. Expect a thrilling match with Sinner getting the better of Rublev.
ATP Dubai Final: Novak Djokovic vs Jannik Sinner
Final
The best player in the world currently, Novak Djokovic will take on Italian Jannik Sinner in the final of the 2022 Dubai Tennis Championships. Djokovic had to go through a lot of trouble this season and a title triumph would definitely make things better for him. He will start the favorite in the final but will be wary of Sinner’s recent form. Expect a tight match with Djokovic adding another silverware to his cabinet.
Champion: Novak Djokovic
Also read: WTA Qatar Open 2022: Women’s Singles Draw Preview, Analysis, and Prediction
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Lakshya Chopra
(2595 Articles Published)