The tournament of a lifetime

Vacherot is slicing through the draw and he doesn’t owe anyone anything; he’s even proving that the wild cards he gets for Monte Carlo every year are deserved. He’s a very good tennis player, and he’s got a real shot tomorrow.

Yes, he beats a sometimes not-so-locked-in Bublik and a Machac who retired, but make no mistake, he fully deserves his two wins. Against Machac he started strong by serving big and taking the initiative, and on every return he was looking for a lot of depth to neutralize the Czech on the first strikes. A perfect game plan; tactically he’s a guy who thinks and adapts a lot, and he also shines thanks to his physicality—he can do a bit of everything on court. He handles these stifling conditions really well too; I think he’s getting good mileage out of them this week, and on that front he keeps my edge against Griekspoor. The Dutchman blew Sinner off the court in the previous round; his level was very good, and I agree with what he says: since the start of the Asian swing he’s been playing pretty well, but he was missing that little something to tip matches his way. He seems to be finding his motivation again, and this win will do him a lot of good. Everyone says it’s slow, but I find it’s fast when players really let it rip, and Griekspoor fits that category; he hurts you with his serve and forehand. Those are his two weapons, and he’s going to lean on them hard against Val. When he’s hot it’s hard to break him, and he’s deadly on return because he plays loose, but that requires an almost perfect match. If he’s not at his best tomorrow he can get neutralized by Val’s game; with his deep returns and his grit he’s got what it takes to flip this match!