Lajovic – Cecchinato

Lajovic Cecchinato Doha prediction

Dujan Lajovic and Marco Cecchinato will square off on Thursday in the ATP Doha quarterfinals.

Lajovic had a pretty good season last year, particularly on clay, but he also played well later in the season on hard courts. The Serbian finished the year inside the Top 50 for the first time in his career, and he will be looking to build on that this season. Lajovic defeated Mannarino and Berankis here in Doha, but he had huge problems in the second round against Berankis – barely edging that match 7-6 0-6 7-5.

Cecchinato had a breakout year in 2018, climbing almost 100 places in the rankings (!!), mostly due to his surprising semifinal showing at Roland Garros. That wasn`t his only success though, as the Italian also won the first two titles of his career (Budapest, Umag). Cecchinato will be looking to translate his clay court success onto hard courts this season, and he started well here in Doha with a clear victory against Stakhovsky, before benefiting from a walkover in the second round.

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Lajovic leads the H2H 2-1, but that doesn`t say much. All meetings were on clay, the last one in 2015. Both players are natural clay courters, but Lajovic is more of an all rounder and definitely had better success on hard courts during his career compared to Cecchinato.

While Cecchinato has never been a hard court player, that may well change now, when his ranking allows him to enter any tournament he wants.

The Italian already had some good wins on this surface last year, beating guys like Simon or Chung, and he really played well in his only match here in Doha. Stakhovsky wasn`t a big name opponent, but the Ukrainian was in good form (he was the favorite in that clash). Cecchinato played a great game and gave him no chance, also looking very comfortable on the hard court. That is very important, since the main argument against Marco here is the surface.

Lajovic has also played well this week, but a solid point can be made that Cecchinato`s level against Stakhovsky was better than anything Lajovic showed during the week. Lajovic should have probably lost in the second round against Berankis, and if he doesn`t raise his performance, he could be in trouble here.

This looks more like a 50-50 match, I would even give Cecchinato an edge, as he really impressed me on Monday. Lajovic should be an accessible opponent for Marco, if the Italian plays the same way – not in the sense of an easy win, but in the sense that Marco can definitely beat him. As such, I see clear value in his odds.

My tip will be Cecchinato to win, and low-medium stakes are enough for a good potential profit. Prediction: Dusan Lajovic – Marco Cecchinato 7-6 4-6 4-6.

Pick: Cecchinato
Odds: 2.50 @ Betfair Sportsbook
Stake: 5
Possible profit: 7.50
Event date: 3 January

About Rostick

Born in '88. Running betting tips websites since 2007. Launched Betdistrict in 2013. Worked as a bookie for a year to spy on the other side. Rugby Union and NBA expert. Editor info & statistics.

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