Reilly Opelka vs Alex Michelsen Prediction & Betting Tips - ATP Newport Open

Prediction published on 19/07/2024, 03:29  by Steve Ashfield | Modified on 19/07/2024 at 05:16 in Tennis Predictions

Alex Michelsen is one match away from his second successive Hall of Fame Open final. The third seed faces wild card and history maker Reilly Opelka in the semi-final of this grass court tournament. Possible opponents in the final include Marcos Giron, Aleksandar Vukic and Christopher Eubanks.

Michelsen was the runner-up in Newport last year, losing to Adrian Mannarino in the final. The American was 61st in the latest rankings but eight places lower in the live rankings. Winning this match could take him as high as 60th.

In the ATP Live Race, he's in 59th position and can rise five places if reaching this final. This is his first grass court semi-final of the year. His previous best had been a last eight appearance in Mallorca. This week has seen him beat Maxime Cressy and Aleksandar Kovacevic in straight sets.

Former world number 17 Reilly Opelka has made history with this run to the semi-finals. This is his first tournament since August 2022 after time out due to wrist and hip operations.  Ranked 1188th, he's the lowest-ranked player to reach an ATP semi-final.

Opelka is up to 429th in the live rankings and making it into the final can take hm to 309th. The 27-year-old (28 next month) reached three finals in 2022 (winning two of them) before his injury problems came along.

This week has seen him beat Constant Lestienne, top seed Adrian Mannarino and in the last eight, Mackenzie McDonald. He served 27 aces against McDonald but had to come from a set down to win. It was his third successive three-set match. We tip Michelsen to win this.