Top seed Stefanos Tsitsipas will meet fifth-seeded Alex De Minaur in the final of the 2023 Los Cabos Open on Saturday, August 5, 2023.
We've got a marquee final at the 2023 Los Cabos Open with Greek star Tsitsipas looking to win his first title of the season up against Australia's De Minaur who is unbeaten in nine matches in Mexico.
With a host of top names taking a breather this week, and a few electing to play the high-profile ATP 500 event in Washington, Tsitsipas raised eyebrows by making the long trip to Western Mexico to spearhead this year's Los Cabos Open.
And that decision could yield dividends for the Greek star who has played some of his best tennis this week in a surprisingly competitive field for an ATP 250 event. Tsitsipas tamed two big servers in John Isner and Nicolas Jarry - the latter being the only opponent to take a set from him thus far.
In the semifinal he outclassed Croatia's Borna Coric, dropping just five games. De Minaur, for his part, has dropped two sets, both coming in his last two matches. The Aussie faced stiff competition from the likes of Tommy Paul and Dominik Koepfer, needing to recover from a break down in the decider in both matches.
Head-to-head:
Tsitsipas owns a healthy 9-0 head-to-head record over De Minaur. Since their first clash at Tour level in 2018, Tsitsipas has dominated this rivalry on two of the three surfaces. What is even more worrying for the Aussie, he's managed to win just three sets in the series.
Tsitsipas won their only meeting in 2023 at the Barcelona Open quarterfinal 6-4, 6-2.
Prediction:
Stefanos Tsitsipas will play in his third ATP final this season. While that record might be music to the ears for many lesser-ranked players, the Greek won't be content given the lofty ambitions he has set for himself. So anything less than a title win this week could be a disaster of some sort.
De Minaur just doesn't favor this matchup. He's been bulldozed by Tsitsipas many times. He's been his own worst enemy, as his counterpunching style plays right into the Greek, who is the most accurate striker of a short ball on the forehand.
But De Minaur will give it a real go here. He brings a nine-match win streak in this part of the world, having won in Acapulco earlier this season. Still, Tsitsipas knows this is his best chance to end his title drought, and I think he'll finally overcome that hurdle.
Prediction: Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets.
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