Blockbuster duel in the third round

Turn on the TV, get out the popcorn and enjoy – that should be the motto for Saturday’s absolute top match on the hallowed turf of Wimbledon. An absolute cracker is on the agenda in the third round. The duel between Nick Kyrgios and Stefanos Tsitsipas pits two players against each other who are both extended favourites at this year’s All England Tennis Championships.

Even after the draw, Greece’s Tsitsipas will not have been pleased that he is already facing an extremely unpleasant draw at this early stage of the tournament. Kyrgios is a player who can beat any player on the tour. Especially on grass, anything is possible for him, because his “hara-kiri style” with quick point wins comes into its own even better. For the bookmakers, the world number 40 is even considered the favourite on Saturday. Between Kyrgios and Tsitsipas, odds of around 1.75 are offered for the “Aussie”, with the Greek attracting just over double the stakes.

If both players can play up to their potential, the fans can expect a pure spectacle. A clear victory – no matter for whom – is hardly imaginable, rather a dramatic fight is expected.

Nick Kyrgios – Statistics & current form

The 27-year-old Australian Nick Kyrgios is a professional who polarises. His appearance makes the headlines time and again, because discipline is not necessarily his greatest strength. Discussions with the referee, insults towards the linesman or the audience and listless performances have been seen time and again. But Kyrgios is also a player who is enormously entertaining with his way of playing tennis.

Security in his game is not really an aspect, because even on his second serve he can serve at over 220 km/h time and again. Or even his interspersed forearm service is considered disrespectful by the competition. Kyrgios delivers all the facets tennis has to offer.

Bearish performance in round two

His best career result was 13th place, which he held in January 2017. During the Corona pandemic, Kyrgios was rarely seen on the tennis court but has lost none of his quality. This year in particular, the bad-boy has presented himself in strong form. His annual record of 20 wins and seven losses is absolutely impressive.

Accordingly, many tennis experts consider Kyrgios to be one of the extended favourites on the hallowed turf of Wimbledon. He was unable to fulfil this role in the first round when he had to fight against local hero Paul Jubb (219 in the world) and only managed to win by a razor-thin margin in five sets. Kyrgios himself was surprised by his performance, in which he was far from his normal form.

He showed his skills in round two when he literally catapulted Filip Krajinovic off the court. The Serb was completely lost and only managed to win six games. Kyrgios was untouchable on serve, surrendering only nine points. With such service dominance, which the Greek can also display, tiebreaks are likely to be the logical consequence. Between Kyrgios and Tsitsipas, odds of over 2.00 are being offered on at least two tiebreaks being played.

Stefanos Tsitsipas – Statistics & current form

Church Road has not necessarily been the Greek’s favourite place to play so far. In 2017, 2019 and 2021, he was defeated in the first round on each occasion. Before this year’s appearance, he could only celebrate victories on the hallowed turf in 2019 – when his third Grand Slam tournament of the year ended in the last 16.

That the world number five has the ability to convince on the green surface, he could prove a few days before the start of the tournament. At the 250 tournament in Mallorca, he defeated Roberto Bautista-Agut in a thrilling final. For Tsitsipas, this was his ninth ATP title and his first on grass.

Confident victory without shining

Stefanos Tsitsipas celebrated his two victories at Wimbledon this year without any major problems. Nevertheless, the performances were not really convincing, because against the Swiss qualifier Alexander Ritschard (188 in the world) he was extremely vulnerable, especially on his serve. The 28-year-old Swiss even had 17 break points, which is an enormous number on grass. Tsitsipas therefore had to do a little lap of honour and needed four sets.

Without losing a set, he beat the Australian Jordan Thompson, who showed a clear improvement in performance. He, too, did not allow much in the way of service (18 points, one break) and was able to secure his place in the third round in just under two hours. However, his performance was by no means as convincing as Kyrgios’. The 23-year-old Greek has the necessary power to stand up to Kyrgios.

Nick Kyrgios – Stefanos Tsitsipas Direct comparison / H2H balance

Head to Head: 3:1

In a head-to-head comparison, “Bad Boy” Nick Kyrgios has the edge over the Greek. The two have faced each other four times on the Tour, and the man from Australia has been able to celebrate three times. The last encounter was only a few days ago, when Kyrgios won in the second round in Halle despite trailing in the first set. This victory on grass is certainly also an argument for the bookmakers to favour the Australian in the third round clash between Kyrgios and Tsitsipas on Saturday.

Nick Kyrgios – Stefanos Tsitsipas Tip

Tennis fans can look forward to this blockbuster duel on Saturday. Already in the third round, a real treat is on the programme, in which there are several winners to see. The duel at eye level promises enormous tension and drama, which is why a prediction on the over at the Games line is absolutely obvious for Kyrgios against Tsitsipas. The bookmakers are offering a line of 41.5.

42 Games sounds an enormous amount at first glance, but this can also be achieved in four sets. Due to the strength of the serve of both players and the powerful style of play, the respective returner will only rarely have a chance to break. It is hard to imagine a clear 3-0 win for one player and with two tiebreaks the over 41.5 games would already be secured. In general, betting on at least two tiebreaks between Kyrgios and Tsitsipas is very interesting. For this bet, a stake of six units is recommended