Italian Open 2022: Men’s Singles Draw Preview and Prediction for Rome Masters

Italian Open 2022: Men’s Singles Draw Preview and Prediction for Rome Masters

Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz, and Novak Djokovic

The 2022 Rome Masters will be the last mega tournament ahead of the French Open. All of the top players in the world will compete in order to tune up for Roland Garros. Novak Djokovic is the No.1 seed while Alexander Zverev is seeded No.2.

Tournament Details:

  • Tournament: ATP Italian Open 2022
  • Date: May 8- May 15, 2022
  • Number of Entrants: 56 (Singles), 28 (Doubles)
  • Venue: Foro Italico, Rome, Italy
  • Surface: Clay Court
  • Prize Money: €5,415,410
  • Defending champion: Rafael Nadal

Top Seeds at the ATP Italian Open 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

Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic

World No.1 Novak Djokovic will headline the top half of the draw. Along with the other 8 seeds, he receives a first-round bye and will face Russian Aslan Karatsev in the second round. 14th seed Reilly Opelka will face 3-time grand slam champion Stan Wawrinka in the opening round and will face either Laslo Djere or Borna Coric in the next round. Djokovic is expected to face Opelka in the Round of 16.

8th seed Felix Auger Aliassime will play either Ilya Ivashka or Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the second round. Diego Schwartzman is also in the top quarter and will face Miomir Kecmanovic in the first round. He will face either Alexander Bublik or Marcos Giron in the next round. Either Schwartzman or Felix could face Djokovic in the quarterfinal.

FS Video

Defending champion Rafael Nadal will open his campaign against John Isner or Fransisco Cerundolo and could meet Denis Shapovalov in the Round of 16 who faces Lorenzo Sonego in the opening round. Nikoloz Basilashvili will face Dan Evans in the first round with the winner expected to meet Shapovalov in the second round.

5th seed Casper Ruud will face either Sebastian Korda or Botic van de Zandschulp in the second round and is drawn opposite Hubert Hurkacz who faces David Goffin in the opener. Hurkacz will face either Jenson Brooksby or Flavio Cobolli in the second round and is expected to face Ruud in the Round of 16.

1st Semifinal Prediction: Novak Djokovic vs Rafael Nadal

Also read: “It’s difficult for me,” Carlos Alcaraz shares unfortunate news ahead of the French Open 2022

Bottom Half

Alexander Zverev
Alexander Zverev

Second seed Alexander Zverev will be up against the winner of the match between Tallon Griekspoor and Sebastian Baez in the second round. He once again gets a very easy initial draw and will either one of Dusan Lajovic, Alex de Minaur, Tommy Paul, or Albert Ramos Vinolas in the third round.

Madrid Masters champion Carlos Alcaraz will open his campaign at Foro Italico against Cristian Garin and will face either Marin Cilic or Cameron Norrie in the Round of 16. Madrid finalists Alcaraz and Zverev are expected to meet in the quarterfinals this week.

Monte Carlo champion Stefanos Tsitsipas will face Brandon Nakashima or Grigor Dimitrov in the second round and is drawn to face Pablo Carreno Busta in the third round. The 15th seeded Spaniard will face Federico Delbonis in the opening round and will most probably face Karen Khachanov in the next round.

6th seed Andrey Rublev will face Filip Krajinovic in the second round and is in the same quarter as Jannik Sinner who opens against Pedro Martinez. 3-time grand slam champion Dominic Thiem will be up against Fabio Fognini in the opening round with the winner facing Sinner in the next round.

2nd Semifinal Prediction: Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Alexander Zverev

YouTube video

Semifinals

Rafael Nadal, ATP Madrid Open
Rafael Nadal

After almost one year, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal are expected to go head-to-head. Djokovic is slowly edging closer to his peak form while Rafa is looking to regain his fitness. As always, expect fireworks in the ‘clash of the titans’ with Djokovic edging past Nadal.

In the second semifinal, Stefanos Tsitsipas will be up against Alexander Zverev. Tsitsipas is one of the best players on clay currently but Zverev too is in great form after his Madrid outing. The Greek is in some form and is expected to avenge his loss to make it to the finals at Foro Italico.

Rome Masters Final: Novak Djokovic vs Stefanos Tsitsipas

Final

Novak Djokovic | Tennis News | FirstSportz
Novak Djokovic

World No.1 Novak Djokovic will Monte Carlo champion Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final of the Rome Masters. Both players are top contenders for the French Open and thus, expect a tight final with Djokovic repeating the 2021 French Open result.

Champion: Novak Djokovic

Also read: WTA Italian Open 2022: Women’s Singles Draw Preview and Prediction