Struff with anger in his belly!
The ATP tournament in Halle is celebrating its 30th anniversary! The competition is one of the top players’ must-attend events during the grass-court season in preparation for the annual highlight on grass in the form of the London Grand Slam tournament at Wimbledon.
French tennis legend Henri Leconte triumphed at the first edition in 1993 and the fans in East Westphalia would certainly not mind celebrating the ninth success of a German local hero at this anniversary event.
Roman Safiullin and Jan-Lennard Struff will now face each other in the first round of the Terra Wortmann Open 2023. Tips as well as odds can be read in the following text. Both players also competed in the Boss Open in Stuttgart last week.
While Safiullin was able to pack away his rackets after his first match and a defeat against Benjamin Hassan, the German’s path led him to the final. There he hoped that there would be a German winner for the first time since 1992 and Michael Stich’s victory.
However, this wish remained unfulfilled as the Warsteiner was defeated in three sets by the US American Frances Tiafoe in a highly dramatic final. For the upcoming duel between Roman Safiullin and Jan-Lennard Struff, however, the betting is now aiming for a two-set victory for the German favourite.
Roman Safiullin – Statistics & current form
The Russian is already playing his third match at the Terra Wortmann Open 2023. In contrast to his upcoming opponent, the right-hander, who is coached by Mikhail Bril, already had to play in the qualifying of the competition.
Safiullin first beat Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi and then his compatriot Aslan Karatsev. Both victories came in two sets and can be seen as a surprise.
After all, Bonzi and Karatsev are clearly ahead of the professional from Podolsk in the world rankings. He is currently only number 92 and his highest ranking so far was 82nd in February last year.
Safiullin has only Challenger victories to his name
Safiullin has also yet to leave a major mark on the ATP Tour. He did reach the semi-finals of an ATP tournament for the first time in Marseille in 2022, but this is his biggest success at this level so far.
Otherwise, only four Challenger triumphs can be discovered in the CV of the Russian, who has been playing professionally since 2015. With this, he has not yet fulfilled the formerly high expectations of him after his still very successful time as a junior player. After all, the 25-year-old did not win a tournament less than the Australian Open as a junior eight years ago.
Jan-Lennard Struff – Statistics & current form
Jan-Lennard Struff was defeated by the Belarusian Ilya Ivashka in his first outing at last year’s Terra Wortmann Open. This year, however, things have clearly gone better for the player from Warstein.
Among others, he beat last year’s winner in Halle, Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz, in the semi-finals of the Boss Open last week. Furthermore, the following final on the Killesberg against the US American Frances Tiafoe was only lost by a razor-thin margin after losing a tiebreak in the third set.
Struff is higher in the world rankings than ever before
On top of that, it was already the second ATP final this year for Struff, after he also reached the final in Madrid last May. After an injury last year, 2023 has been very successful for Struff so far. This can also be seen in the fact that he has climbed to 21st place in the world rankings – the best ranking in his career!
In view of this, tips and betting odds on a win for the current German number 1, including a handicap of – 3.5 games, are also worth recommending for the match between Roman Safiullin and Jan-Lennard Struff. Quotes for the prediction are available for example at Bet-at-home.
The German also benefits from the fact that his recent very successful week in Stuttgart has given him additional self-confidence. In addition, he proved that he can repeat his previous successes on clay on grass as well.
No tiebreak between Safiulin and Struff?
Struff has not been a proven grass court specialist so far, but it seems that his strong form is continuing on this surface at the moment. His serve in particular is working very well for him at the moment. One example was the final in Stuttgart against Tiafoe, in which he managed no less than 28 aces and did not allow a single break point.
Against this backdrop, predictions and odds on no tiebreak are also offered for the showdown between Roman Safiullin and Jan-Lennard Struff.
Roman Safiullin – Jan-Lennard Struff Direct comparison / H2H balance
Struff and Safiullin have faced each other once so far. The match took place in October last year at the tournament in Basel on hard court. It ended with a straight 2:0 in favour of the Russian.
Roman Safiullin – Jan-Lennard Struff Tip
Jan-Lennard Struff is already 33 years old, but this year has been particularly successful for the player from Sauerland. Although he will certainly still be disappointed that his third ATP final in the course of his career was also lost last Sunday at the Boss Open, the performance was still right, because the defeat was exceedingly close.
Moreover, the successful week in Swabia gave him a lot of self-confidence with regard to his game on grass. For the clash between Roman Safiullin and Jan-Lennard Struff, tips and odds on a two-set victory for the German are therefore worth considering.
In addition to Struff’s very strong form, the prediction is supported by the fact that his opponent is clearly weaker in terms of his game. The Russian is only 92nd in the world rankings and is only a qualifier in the main draw of the Terra Wortmann Open.
Moreover, Safiullin already disappointed last week when he lost in Stuttgart in the qualifier against the 284th ranked Benjamin Hassan from Lebanon. Anything other than a victory for the German would therefore be a big surprise.
Furthermore, after the exhausting last week in Stuttgart, Struff wants the match to be finished in two rounds in the most energy-saving way possible. In the light of this, a very focused performance from him can be expected from the start
