Sinner Faces Tricky Path In Stockholm; Murray, Felix, Shapovalov Also Play
#NextGenATP star Jannik Sinner had been handed a tricky draw in his quest for a fifth ATP Tour title of the year at the Stockholm Open, which begins on Sunday. Second seed Felix Auger-Aliassime and defending champion Denis Shapovalov also feature at the final tournament of the regular ATP Tour season.
Sinner, who narrowly missed out on a place at the Nitto ATP Finals, will need to be at his best level if he meets practice partner Andy Murray, who plays a qualifier in his first match. In recent weeks, former World No. 1 Murray has highlighted his fighting qualities in three-set wins over Carlos Alcaraz, Frances Tiafoe and Hubert Hurkacz, while Sinner has won seven of his past nine matches and broke into the Top 10 of the FedEx ATP Rankings for the first time this week.
View Stockholm Singles & Doubles Draws
Top seed Sinner or Murray may then meet in-form Taylor Fritz in the quarter-finals. Fritz has won 11 of his past 13 matches, including a run to the St. Petersburg Open final. Fourth seed Daniel Evans or eighth seed Frances Tiafoe, who beat Sinner at last week’s Erste Bank Open, may be a potential semi-final opponent.
Canadians Auger-Aliassime and third seed Shapovalov, who won the 2019 title when the ATP 250 tournament was last held, feature in the bottom half of the draw. Auger-Aliassime will meet Roberto Carballes Baena or Filip Krajinovic in the second round, while Shapovalov plays a qualifier with sixth seed Alexander Bublik a potential quarter-final opponent.
Leo Borg, son of former World No. 1 and 1980 Stockholm champion Bjorn Borg, will make his ATP Tour main draw debut when he plays against American Tommy Paul in the top half of the draw. The winner faces Fritz in the second round.