Tien, already building on his momentum?

Crowned at the Next Gen Masters a few days ago, Tien comes in with confidence and tempo.

Big favorite in this edition, Tien didn’t really convince at the start before getting going and winning as expected. He’s confirming his progress in 2025 and an even more important 2026 season is ahead of him. He’s climbed up the rankings and the tour is no longer new to him; now he has to back it up. He opens against Carabelli, and on paper, playing this Argentinian on fast hard courts is supposed to be an excellent draw BUT Elie knows better than anyone: Carabelli is a tenacious player even on hard. He’s had some great battles (often lost), but he really tries hard. We saw him be dangerous at the end of the year against Zverev in Paris, and what if he started the year by causing an upset? When I see Baez taking out Munar and then Fritz, I tell myself we need to be wary of this type of profile. They’ve already played once, actually, also in Australia last year, and it went to 5 sets! Tien has gained experience and improved again; I’m not sure we can say the same about Carabelli, so yes, it would be logical for the American to come through once more. I’m not about to turn into a defender of Carabelli on quick courts either, but I’ll need a very tempting price on Tien’s side to get involved; otherwise I’ll skip this match without any real regrets.