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Match details
Fixture: (5) Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Marin Cilic
Date: 12 May 2021
Tournament: Internazionali BNL d'italia 2021
Round: Second round (Round of 32)
Venue: Rome, Italy
Category: ATP Masters 1000
Surface: Red clay
Prize money: €2,082,960
Match timing: Approx. 4 pm local time, 7.30 pm IST
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Marin Cilic preview
Stefanos Tsitsipas, who currently leads the ATP race rankings, will start his Italian Open campaign on Tuesday by taking on Marin Cilic in the second round.
Tsitsipas had a strong start to the 2021 season, reaching the semifinals at both the Australian Open and Rotterdam. He also managed to make it to the final at Acapulco and the quarterfinals in Miami.
Tsitsipas then began the clay swing in superb fashion, winning nine consecutive matches before losing to Rafael Nadal in the Barcelona final. The streak comprised of a title run at Monte Carlo, where he defeated Andrey Rublev in the final to win his maiden Masters 1000 title.
Marin Cilic, meanwhile, has continued to struggle this season. He has put together a 9-8 win-loss in 2021, and will be desperately looking to reverse his fortunes here in Rome.
Cilic registered a solid victory over the in-form Alexander Bublik on Monday, which would have given him some much-needed confidence after his recent poor results.
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Marin Cilic head-to-head
Marin Cilic leads the head-to-head against Stefanos Tsitsipas by a margin of 1-0. Their only meeting was in the first round of the 2017 Tokyo Open, where Cilic won in straight sets.
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Marin Cilic prediction
Stefanos Tsitsipas has been in red-hot form lately, and he would enter this match as the clear favorite. But you can never rule out Marin Cilic, as he has the firepower to make any player uncomfortable.
Tsitsipas will rely on his all-round game - replete with a strong serve, a powerful forehand and a varied backhand - to dictate the rallies. The Greek will likely try to take control of the match from the get-go and keep the points short and quick, attacking his opponent from the baseline as well as the net.
Tsitsipas also holds the edge in the defense department, especially on clay. The 22-year-old is very comfortable sliding and scrambling on the slow surface, and he has shown over the last few weeks that it is extremely difficult to hit through him.
Cilic, on his part, will be heavily dependent on his serve throughout the match. He hit 18 aces and won 81% of his first-serve points in the opening round on Monday, and will look to reproduce those numbers against the Greek.
On the return front, the 32-year-old will look to capitalize on Tsitsipas's second serve and try to force errors through his backhand. But Cilic's strengths are neutralized to a great extent on clay, and right now Tsitsipas might be a little too solid and a little too confident for the Croat to get anything out of this match.
Prediction: Stefanos Tsitsipas to win in straight sets.
