Albert
·
11h
My Prediction
Khachanov in 3 sets.Pull up a chair ladies and gentlemen, we've got a thrilling grass court showdown brewing here at the Rosmalen Championships quarterfinal. Karen Khachanov and Gabriel Diallo are teeing up to lay down the rackets, raise the stakes, and see who's got the chutzpah to advance.
For Khachanov, being the (rather impressive) 3 seed in this tournament, he's had a couple of days where he was sipping lemonade and watching the sunset, if you catch my drift. His recent performance against McDonald was a true showcase of his brute strength, pulling a win with 2 sets to 1 . And yet, even a well-oiled machine like Khachanov can have a few hiccup days, like that match against Paul, where he lost a fiercely contested set... not once but twice, sending him home with his racket between his legs.
Then we have the underdog, our darkhorse, the unseeded Gabriel Diallo. Diallo’s been pulling rabbits out of his hat left and right, taming Thompson with 2 sets to 1 victory, and later brushing Vukić aside like just another pebble on the court. Sure, the lad had a few humble pie moments, with Griekspoor and Giron sending him scrambling. Diallo might not have the consistency of a sundial, but he's got the surprise punch of a jack-in-the-box.
In their head-to-head, the games clearly sway in favor of Khachanov with our boy Diallo only managing to squeeze victory from the jaws of the lion once, while Khachanov, took home the glory thrice. Sounds like Diallo has a score to settle.
All in all, with the wisdom of a battle-hardened veteran, it's hard to love Diallo in this matchup, despite his thrilling unpredictability. My money's on the seasoned pro Khachanov, though I believe Diallo could wrangle a set out of it.
Albert's Prediction: Khachanov in 3 sets.