No surprise.

Respectively the favorites in their semifinal. These two players still had to fight hard in the semi and even dropped a set to reach the final, where anything can still happen.

This is the week that could mark the return to form of Stefanos Tsitsipas, who’s finding his rhythm again despite conditions that are far from ideal for him, due to the speed of the courts. However, this speed can help him be particularly strong on serve, because the Greek is extremely solid and consistent behind his serve and forehand. He does, however, struggle on return or when he gets pinned on the backhand side, which is immediately harder to turn around on clay at altitude than on very slow clay. This week, we’re seeing a good version of the Greek player. So yes, he drops a few sets here and there, it’s not perfect yet, but the level is good and he’ll also be the more experienced of the two, which could help him handle this final better.

Collignon won in 3 sets, but for him it’s a bit of a miracle that he managed to turn the match around, as he was down a set and a break without really having any solutions. But he fought to the very end and flipped the momentum. This match reflects his level, but also his weaknesses, since he’s still a bit too often driven by his emotions. He can lose a big set 6–1, do almost anything on his second serve, get angry, force his game, but as soon as he finds his tennis and stays focused, he’s really a top player. He’s also about to break into the top 40, which to me is where he belongs, if not higher. He can play well everywhere, even if he doesn’t particularly like altitude conditions, because he struggles a bit to control his shots and to really make an impact on return.

What I imagine for this final is, once again, a tight match that will be dictated by the servers, with probably few chances either way. If I have to pick one of the two who might crack or take a bit of time to settle into the final, it would rather be Collignon, because he sometimes needs time to adjust on his second serve or really manage to control his game and get into his matches. I think Tsitsipas offers a bit more reliability and personally reassures me more this week. It’s likely to be tough, but for me the Greek is the favorite.