Tennis Prediction Lorenzo Darderi vs Alexander Zverev: Rome R1

🇮🇹 Rome

• Darderi is becoming extremely threatening this week at home.

• And yet, if we look at his results before this Rome Masters 1000, the momentum was not necessarily incredible.

• But little by little, we find the very good Darderi again: much more solid from the baseline, very aggressive when he needs to take the initiative and above all driven by a huge energy with the Italian crowd behind him.

• And in this context, I really have a hard time seeing a completely one-sided match today.

• The two players have also already faced each other here a year ago, with a 7-6 6-2 victory for Zverev.

• This first duel quite well summarizes what I imagine today: a Darderi capable of resisting, holding his games and taking advantage of his opportunities when they arise.

• Especially since he is coming off an extremely convincing match against Tommy Paul where he perfectly assumed the pressure.

• The stats since the beginning of the week also go in this direction:

🇩🇪 Alexander Zverev

• 2h57 spent on the courts
• 71% of points won behind 1st serve
• 55% behind 2nd serve
• 5.1 break points conceded per match

🇮🇹 Luciano Darderi

• 3h53 spent on the courts
• 73% of points won behind 1st serve
• 64% behind 2nd serve
• 2.5 break points conceded per match

• And what stands out most is that Darderi is protecting his serve very well since the start of the tournament.

• In these slow conditions, with the support of the crowd, he plays freely and takes a lot of chances.

• I see Zverev overall on top, especially thanks to his experience and his ability to manage the important moments but I would be surprised to see him completely roll over here.