The tournaments being played this week continue to move through the draw at a pace and there are a few days left before both Tours have a very slight break ahead of the Indian Wells Masters.
With matches running down, the Tennis Picks will also slow down and the only match in Dubai that figures to be worth a play can be seen below.
Nothing has stuck out in Acapulco so far this week, but they are only in the Second Round in Mexico and better opportunities may be found as the tournament reaches a conclusion on Sunday.
Matteo Berrettini - 1.5 games v Stefanos Tsitsipas: The last of the Quarter Final matches to be played at the ATP Dubai event looks the standout match of the day.
Both Matteo Berrettini and Stefanos Tsitsipas will feel pretty good about their chances of winning the title here, even as they sit in the tougher top half of the draw. Performances through the first couple of Rounds will have given the players confidence and both look to be getting closer to the levels that had them entrenched in the top ten of the World Rankings.
It is Stefanos Tsitsipas who is the higher Ranked of the players right now, and winning the title in Dubai would take him back into the top ten. Things have been much tougher for Matteo Berrettini in the last couple of years with Jannik Sinner moving past him as the poster boy of Italian Tennis and with injury meaning Berrettini has dropped out of the top 20.
He is also plenty motivated and winning this ATP 500 event would actually have Matteo Berrettini moving to the brink of returning to the top 20 and this ahead of two big Masters events on the hard courts. Rebuilding the confidence will be important for a player that has been very strong on the grass in recent years and who may become a big threat at Wimbledon later in the year, especially if his current form can be maintained.
Both players have been serving well this week and it is going to be tough for Tsitsipas and Berrettini to have much of an impact on the return.
However, the edge on that side of their tennis has to be with the Italian who has been finding a way to get into return games with a bit more effectiveness compared with the World Number 11. Add in the fact that Stefanos Tsitsipas was having some issues with his control of the serve and the ball toss in the narrow win over Karen Khachanov in the Second Round on Wednesday and you have to believe Matteo Berrettini can make it back to back wins over this opponent.
Last year Matteo Berrettini snapped a four match losing run against Stefanos Tsitsipas and that was on the clay courts that you would have thought would favour the Greek player. On the faster surfaces, Matteo Berrettini has to believe in his serve and he can take advantage of any loss of confidence Stefanos Tsitsipas has in his own service motion.
You have to assume that both players will be able to roll through some of the service games, but Stefanos Tsitsipas may just offer up one or two more Break Point chances compared with Matteo Berrettini. That could just make the difference for the latter and he can edge through to the Semi Final with a cover of this handicap mark set.
MY PICKS: Matteo Berrettini - 1.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet365 (1 Unit)
Weekly Update: 3-4, - 1.65 Units (7 Units Staked, - 23.57% Yield)
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