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The first 500 tournament of 2020 starts this week. A string of top players - including Daniil Medvedev, Stefanos Tsitsipas and David Goffin - are in Rotterdam to play in one of the most important tournaments from the first quarter of the season.
There are some changes this year with regard to the surface of play. It is going to be a black surface, such as the one from the New York Open last season, and it is a bit slowed down compared to previous editions.
The Rotterdam Open has seen many upsets and surprise winners in the last decade, with Roger Federer (in 2018) being the the only number one seed who managed to win the tournament. Considering all this, let's take a look at three players to watch out for this week:
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1. Roberto Bautista Agut
Roberto Bautista Agut had a very good start this season. The Spanish player had some impressive performances in the ATP Cup in the first part of January, and also played well at the Australian Open before he lost in five sets against Marin Cilic.
Bautista Agut has won a 500 tournament before, at Dubai in 2018, and he has the ability to defeat the top players from his part of the draw - including David Goffin and Stefanos Tsitsipas.
The surface in Rotterdam might actually be helpful for Bautista Agut, considering it's a little slower than before. It is still fast enough for him to be dangerous on serve, but not so fast that he will not be able to get a lot of returns in.
Considering Bautista Agut plays his best tennis on slow- to medium-paced hardcourts, he would be fancying his chances at winning the title this week.
2. Daniil Medvedev
After some disappointing performances at the end of last season, Daniil Medvedev seems to be back in form now. Only Novak Djokovic, in a three-set match at the ATP Cup, and Stan Wawrinka, in a thriller at the Australian Open, have managed to defeat Medvedev so far in 2020.
The Russian has quite an easy draw in Rotterdam, with Andrey Rublev being the only real threat in his quarter. I expect to see a rested and motivated Medvedev to make an appearance in Rotterdam, as this is an important title that he can add to his trophy cabinet.
If he is able to replicate a level close to the one that we saw in Shanghai or the US Open last year, it is hard to see any player from the draw beating him this week.
3. Karen Khachanov
It might be hard to back Karen Khachanov to win anything at the moment, considering the fact that he has been out of form for more than a year. However, the Russian is a better player than his last string of results show, and the conditions in Rotterdam are extremely suitable to his style of play.
The best results of Khachanov's career have come on indoor hard, so I wouldn't be very surprised if he has a deep run this week - or even wins the title.
The 23-year-old has a lot of beatable players in his quarter. Gael Monfils and Fabio Fognini are the most dangerous opponents that he could face before the semifinals, and on a good day, the Russian can defeat both of them.
His serving power should prove to be a very important asset on these courts. If he is able to stay away from unforced errors on his return games, then I expect him to have a good tournament this week.
