ATP Madrid Open 2022: Men’s Singles Draw Preview and Prediction
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Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev
The 2022 Madrid Masters draw will commence from May 1 and has a packed draw for the same. Most of the top players on the ATP Tour including Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal will compete in the coveted tournament.
Tournament Details:
- Tournament: Madrid Open 2022
- Date: May 01 – 08 2022
- Number of Entrants: 56 (Singles), 28 (Doubles)
- Venue: Madrid, Spain
- Surface: Clay Court
- Prize Money: €6,744,165
- Defending champion: Alexander Zverev
Top Seeds at the Madrid Masters 2022
- Novak Djokovic
- Alexander Zverev
- Rafael Nadal
- Stefanos Tsitsipas
- Casper Ruud
- Andrey Rublev
- Carlos Alcaraz
- Felix Auger-Aliassime
Men’s Singles Draw Preview
Top Half
The draw is almost unbalanced and is heavily packed in the top half. Novak Djokovic headlines the top half of the draw and has been given a first-round bye along with the other top 8 seeds. He receives a very tough draw and will face either Gael Monfils or Carlos Gimeno Valero in the second round. 14th seed Denis Shapovalov will face a qualifier in the first round while Dominic Thiem will lock horns against 3-time grand slam champion Andy Murray in a blockbuster opening round clash. Either Thiem, Murray, or Shapovalov will face Djokovic in the Round of 16.
Miami Open finalist Casper Ruud will open his campaign against either Borna Coric or Roberto Bautista Agut and is drawn opposite 12th seed Hubert Hurkacz. The Pole will face a qualifier in the opening round and will face either Lloyd Harris or in form Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the second round. Hurkacz and Ruud are expected to meet in the third round.
21-time grand slam champion Rafael Nadal has been handed an extremely tough draw and will start his clay-court season against either Alexander Bublik or in form Miomir Kecmanovic. 16th seed Pablo Carreno Busta will play Botic van de Zandschulp in the first round and will most probably face Aslan Karatsev in the second round. The winner is expected to face Nadal in the Round of 16.
18-year-old Carlos Alcaraz will face the winner of the match between Fabio Fognini and Nikoloz Basilashvili in the second round and is drawn opposite Cameron Norrie who will face a qualifier in the opening round. The Brit is expected to face John Isner or Filip Krajinovic in the second round. Alcaraz will likely face Norrie in the Round of 16 before a mega clash with Nadal in the last 8.
1st Semifinal Prediction: Novak Djokovic vs Rafael Nadal
Bottom Half
Defending champion Alexander Zverev leads the bottom half of the draw and will open against the winner of the match between Marin Cilic and Albert Ramos Vinolas. He is drawn opposite Reilly Opelka who faces in form Sebastian Korda in the opening round with the winner facing Ilya Ivashka in the second round.
8th seed Felix Auger Aliassime will play against either Cristian Garin or Frances Tiafoe in the first round. Jannik Sinner will face Tommy Paul in the opening round and is expected to once again gain some experience by facing Alex de Minaur in a possible Round 2 match. Felix and Zverev are projected to meet in the Round of 16.
Monte Carlo champion Stefanos Tsitsipas will take on Karen Khachanov or Lucas Pouille in the second round and this time will most probably face Diego Schwartzman or Grigor Dimitrov in the third round. As for Taylor Fritz, he will face countryman Jenson Beooksby in the first round with the winner facing either Dan Evans or Federico Delbonis in the next round. 6th seed Andrey Rublev, who is in good form, will face either Jack Draper or Lorenzo Sonego. Rublev is drawn to meet Sinner in the last 8.
2nd Semifinal Prediction: Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Alexander Zverev
Semifinals
The two Titans of men’s tennis- Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal will meet in the first semifinal. Both Djokovic and Nadal lack match practice but given their experience, the match should be closely fought. Expect a thriller with Nadal beating Djokovic.
Stefanos Tsitsipas will face Alexander Zverev in the second semifinal. The two often meet in the later stages of the tournament and don’t fail to deliver. Tsitsipas won the last time they met in Barcelona two weeks back and the same result is expected this year too.
Madrid Masters Final: Novak Djokovic vs Rafael Nadal
Final
The ‘King of Clay’ Rafael Nadal will lock horns against the current best player on Clay- Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Final of the 2022 Madrid Masters. Nadal will be the favorite on paper but given his recent form, Tsitsipas will fancy beating Nadal on clay and winning the title.
Champion: Stefanos Tsitsipas
Also read: Boris Becker Sentenced to 2.5 years in prison, found guilty of four charges
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Lakshya Chopra
(2595 Articles Published)