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Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters: Semi-Final Preview
On Sunday, the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters will have a first time winner after the two remaining former champions were knocked out in the Round of 16 and quarter-finals. Before we delve into these games, head to our Cross Sport Specials page to check out some of the special offers we have. You can also read about our new feature; the Pick 11 Jackpot Bet here.
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Semi Final 1: Andrey Rublev (6) vs. Taylor Fritz (10)
All four semi-finalists cruised past the quarter-final stage with relative ease, winning their respective matches in straight sets. Taylor Fritz enjoyed the biggest upset on Thursday after knocking out World #3 and the back-to-back reigning champion Stefanos Tsitsipas (6-2, 6-4), having already knocked out 2014 champion, Stan Wawrinka in the Round of 32 the previous day. Though ranked the lowest among the remaining players, he’s been heavily tipped to win this title at the expense of Rublev and whoever makes it out of the Sinner vs. Rune matchup.
Both Taylor Fritz and Andrey Rublev have met 6 times in the past with Fritz leading 4-2, including victories in each of their last 3 meetings. Fritz, who became the first American to reach the last four in Monte Carlo since Vince Spadea in 2003, is 23-6 this season with a title in Delray Beach already under his belt and has enjoyed some good fortune in his career recently. Fritz will be extra motivated by his victory over Tsitsipas, having lost in 3 previous hard-court meetings to the 24-year-old Greek, and finally snapping that losing streak is expected to be a boost.
Andrey Rublev will pose a very tough opposition for Fritz, with the Russian dropping just one set in this tournament. He finished off Jan-Lennard Struff (6-1, 7-6) in the quarter-final and will push for a second final appearance in this tournament, having finished runner-up to Tsitsipas in 2021. Rublev is 16-8 in 2023 but despite being ranked higher, faces Fritz who is in better form – a worry for the Russian.
Fritz has two advantages we expect him to lean on; his serve (which has been getting better all year) and his ruthlessness when faced with a Break Point. Against Tsitsipas, he had 4/5 Break Points. In comparison, Rublev had 4/14 in his win against Struff.
Predictions:
Semi Final 2: Jannik Sinner (8) vs. Holger Rune (9)
19-year-old Danish star, Holger Rune continued his rise with a surprising (6-3, 6-4) win over Miami Open Champion, Daniil Medvedev whom many expected to win. Rune is the only player left in the tournament who is yet to drop a set having beaten Dominic Thiem 6-2, 6-4 and enjoyed a walkover against Matteo Berrettini. Rune, whose best performances this season are semi-final appearances in Montpellier and Acapulco, is 16-7 in 2023, though he remains unbeaten on Clay with a 2-0 record.
Jannik Sinner quickly brought Lorenzo Musetti back down to earth in the quarter-final with a 6-2, 6-2 victory. A day earlier, Musetti had enjoyed the upset of the tournament by knocking out Novak Djokovic in the Round of 16 after the Serbian uncharacteristically struggled with his serves. Musetti was understandably on Cloud 9 after the win and, perhaps, felt he was destined to win the tournament but countryman, Sinner was having none of that. He was very effective with his serves and won 77% of his 1st serve and 58% on the second serve. More impressively, 21-year-old Jannik Sinner did not concede a single break during the match. Instead, he broke Musetti 4 times after converting 67% of his break points (4/6).
This will be the second meeting between both players with Rune emerging victorious in their only other meeting in Sofia, Bulgaria (5-7, 6-4, 5-2 ret). Both players will be evenly matched heading into Saturday’s game, but Sinner looks the slightly better player on form having finished runner-up to Medvedev in the Miami Open. The Italian broke his opponents 12 times with a 55% conversion rate and dropped just 2 serves while saving 85% of the break points he conceded. Rune, who has played just twice in this tournament unlike Sinner (3), broke his opponents 6 times with a 43% conversion rate. He dropped one serve and saved 75% of the break points that he conceded.
Predictions:
