Tennis Tip & Prediction for Alexander Bublik – Arthur Rinderknech
The tennis year 2021 is slowly but surely coming to an end. Before the ATP Finals in Turin with the eight best players in the world, one or the other still serves at other tournaments.
These days we are looking at the Swedish capital. The Stockholm Open is finally taking place again after a year’s break and is looking for Denis Shapovalov’s successor.
The field of participants is balanced, not only between Alexander Bublik and Arthur Rinderknech can the bookmakers imagine two winners.
So it’s a case of replacing a Canadian title holder, or will there be a defence of the trophy? The audience in Stockholm will get to see some well-known pros. Denis Shapovalov wants to repeat his success, but has compatriot Felix Auger-Aliassime in tow.
Alexander Bublik starts at position six in the seedings. The world number 36 belongs to the extended circle of those who can go far, but the draw gave him a tough match right from the start.
The Kazakh knows his way around tough opponents. At the Masters in Paris, he had to start against Daniel Evans, who also travelled to Sweden. After his 2-6, 7-5, 7-5 he probably would have wished for a little more luck.
Casper Ruud faced him and was out of his depth at 4-6, 0-6. Bublik has not exactly had a successful few weeks for his quite good ranking in the world rankings, at the US Open he had already failed in round 2 to Jack Sock.
The last time he beat two opponents in a tournament who were not ranked below him: Wimbledon, where he knocked out Grigor Dimitrov. The 24-year-old has had too little success with his service game lately.
At 1.96m, he is actually very dangerous, but his service no longer comes as it did in dreaded times. So for his debut in Stockholm, he will have to live with being the slight underdog.
Whether just above or just below 2.00, it is not only at Betway that his opponent is slightly ahead. And that, although the Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech is actually listed a few places further back. Number 62 in the world – and then the favourite in the first match?
The duel of the two players of the same size will immediately provide a determination of what to expect from them. However, Rinderknech’s performances were not much better when I compare them with those of Bublik.
After the US Open, where he lost to Carlos Alcaraz in four sets in the 2nd round, he was hanging around in his home country and made a short trip to Belgium. In Rennes he made it to the semi-finals but only had opponents ranked below him.
In Antwerp a few days ago he could definitely surprise a little. First he threw Federico Delbonis out, later he also won against Dusan Lajovic. Only top player Jannik Sinner was too big for him in the end.
However, Rinderknech is not yet as consistent as he would like to be, as he showed a week ago in Brest.
Against compatriot Manuel Guinard, who is not even ranked among the top 250 in the world, he was stopped in two sets right at the beginning.
Two players who are almost two metres tall, who alternate good and bad games and who have never played against each other – if that doesn’t smell like a match of equals.
If Alexander Bublik has a good day, he can stand up to any of the top players.
In Paris he beat Daniel Evans, but Casper Ruud was far too strong for the Kazakh. He hasn’t beaten a really good one for a while. With Arthur Rinderknech, light and shadow alternated again and again.
Whether winning against the number 30 or having no chance against the number 265, within a few days the Frenchman could do both. So since both he and Bublik have no consistency in their performances, I don’t believe in a quick match.
