Playable this R1 for Luca!

Kotov is not THE guy you want to avoid in M1000, it's a great opportunity for Luca and it's up to him to take advantage of it!

Van Assche left for Phoenix after his frustrating defeat against Arnaldi and he returned with full confidence, 3 victories and a defeat in 3 sets against the future winner, enough to prepare well for this tournament! We already felt for several weeks that he was coming back well and it's a bit of a tournament where we're waiting for confirmation, especially since it's Ruud behind and not Alcaraz or Sinner! We already have to get past Kotov and it's far from being a gift but it's true that the Russian doesn't play much in 2024 and he doesn't have crazy results, that's correct. He jumps to IW against a confident Tabilo at the end of the suspense, nothing to panic but we expected a little more after his crazy end to the season. Match-up level is relatively even, two players who fight well and we should have many long rallies. Be careful with Kotov's physique if the match drags on as the humid conditions and heat have already wreaked havoc in the qualifiers. So good advantage Luca?