Ricky’s picks for Tuesday at the French Open: Alcaraz vs. Tsitsipas and Sinner vs. Dimitrov

We have already reached the quarterfinals at the French Open, where an intriguing order of play is on tap for Tuesday. Carlos Alcaraz faces Stefanos Tsitsipas and Jannik Sinner is going up against Grigor Dimitrov.

Here are previews and picks for the two matchups.

(9) Stefanos Tsitsipas vs. (3) Carlos Alcaraz

Alcaraz and Tsitsipas also faced each other in last year’s Roland Garros quarters and–like all of their other meetings–it not go well for the Greek. Alcaraz won 6-2, 6-1, 7-6(5) to take a 5-0 lead in the head-to-head series. He has defeated Tsitsipas three times on clay and also won their only other major encounter in five sets at the 2021 U.S. Open.

More of the same is likely in store for Tuesday in Paris. Since they last met 12 months, Alcaraz has only improved whereas you could probably say that Tsitsipas has taken a step back. The world No. 9 is playing pretty well this fortnight, but unfortunately for him it looks like Alcaraz’s arm issues are a thing of the past. Four convincing wins at the French Open have answered any questions in a big way for the third-ranked Spaniard. Count on him once again being too good for Tsitsipas.

Pick: Alcaraz in 3

(10) Grigor Dimitrov vs. (2) Jannik Sinner

There were reports in the Italian media heading into this event that Sinner would not even play due to a hip injury. Well, Sinner has played alright. Not only did he show up in Paris but he also powered his way into the quarterfinals with the loss of just one set. He is now 32-2 this season and looks poised to take over the No. 1 ranking from Novak Djokovic at the end of the French Open.

All of this is bad news for Dimitrov–as is the fact that the 33-year-old Bulgarian got blown out by Sinner 6-3, 6-1 earlier this spring in the Miami Open title match. That gave Sinner a 3-1 lead in the head-to-head series. Dimitrov is also looking good at this tournament, but his Tuesday opponent obviously represents a steep step up in competition. Count on the second seed staying red hot.

Pick: Sinner in 3

Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on Twitter at @Dimonator.