Day 3 of ATP Pune will see the campaigns for the top seeded players kick off. Botic van de Zandschulp, Sebastian Baez and Emil Ruusuvuori will all be in the action as they look to make a strong start to the year. As has been the case throughout the week, we will present our predictions for today’s play. So, who will apply in Pune? We also have Predictions including Roberto Carballes Baena vs Marin Cilic.
Pune ATP forecast for day 3
Boutique van de Zandscholp vs. Flavio Copoli
Face to face: the first meeting
And Copoli, the young, eligible Italian, has looked good this week by not dropping a set yet. The 20-year-old has very little experience on the ATP Tour, and that would be a huge step up in quality from his former opponents. Van de Zandschulp has had his ups and downs in 2022 after breaking through at the 2021 US Open. He’s a solid player at all levels, but hard courts may still be where his best tennis lies.
Since Cobolli has already played three matches (and won them all convincingly), there is no doubt that he will be prepared and suited to the circumstances. Van de Zandschulp often takes a while to get going, and I can see this opener is hard for him. The Dutchman hits a heavy ball and should beat the Italian, but it may take him some time to cross the line.
Prediction: Van de Zandscholp at 3
Benjamin Bonizzi vs. Emil Rossovori
This should be a really fun encounter. Bonzi has had a great 2021 season on the Challenger circuit, and was impressive on the ATP Tour last year. Now that the Frenchman is more used to playing against the best player in the world every week, I have no doubt we will see another strong rise from him. He started brilliantly against Tsing, but it’s not an easy match by any means.
Emil Rossofori should have a great year in 2023. He’s one of the purest ball forwards on this tour, and his consistency is improving all the time. He should be able to get Bonzi out from the back of the field, but the Frenchman moves with finesse and won’t make life easy for Emil. I can see this goes a long way – they both have their strengths which will work for them but I think Russoforie has more in his arsenal.
Prediction: Ruusuvuori at 3
Philip Krajinovic vs. Michael Camouh
Face to face: the first meeting
Krajinovic was drawn to three sets in his opening round match with Sumit Nagal, and it was a tough match to start the year. He’s always been a very veined and flaky player, so it’s never easy to know which version of him will turn out. When he’s in good form, he can mix it up with the best, but he’s also liable to lose to players far below him.
Michael Moh has impressed me for a while. The American is an explosive player, equipped with a fantastic forehand – which could serve him well here. Mmoh came through the talented 15-year-old Manas Dhamni without too many problems, but this is going to be a completely different match. If Krajinovic is solid and aggressive, he must be very strong here. However, I don’t feel like I can fully trust him to be the best he can be, and Mmoh has been gaining momentum over the past few seasons. I can see the annoyance here.
Prediction: Mohs at 3
Sebastian Paez x Pedro Martinez
Head to head: 1-0 Martinez
It’s not a surface where we’d expect these two to encounter, but that’s what interests me here. Baez had a great season in 2022 until losing the Bastad final to Serondolo, his year unfortunately going off the rails with just one win in 12 games. It is important to remember that it was his first ATP season, his hard court experience was limited, and he took on a large number of strong opponents in the first round. His US Open match against Carlos Alcaraz was all I needed to know he would succeed on the hard courts.
Martinez, like Paez, is much better on clay than on hard courts. He’s a grinder and while he’s hard to beat, he just doesn’t have the weapons to make himself too much of a threat away from the red dirt. Baez has an incredible forehand (and one of the most underrated balls in the men’s game), and that’s what this game hinges on for me. If Baez is making a forehand and taking the game to Martinez, he should be on top. It’s not going to be easy by any means as it’s his first match of the year, but I can see him start winning here.
Prediction: Bayes at 3
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