Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Alex Michelsen - Japan Open Tokyo Tennis Prediction and Pick 9/26/24

Stefanos Tsitsipas is making his first stop in Tokyo since 2018 when he lost Kei Nishikori in the quarterfinal. The Greek star is 39-17 for the season. Tsitsipas is 11-9 on outdoor hard courts and will begin his Asian swing at the Japan Open with ambitions to return to the Top 10, having been out of it for a longer duration than he imagined.

Tsitsipas has one title this year which he won in Monte Carlo during the clay swing. He last competed at the Laver Cup this past week where he scored a singles win for Team Europe against Thanasi Kokkinakis, avenging his defeat to the Aussie at the US Open.

Alex Michelsen, for his part, is playing at the Japan Open for the first time. He had to qualify for the main draw beating Yasutaka Uchiyama and Borna Coric without dropping a set. Michelsen improved to 35-28 for the season and has fast-tracked his rise into the Top 50 for the first time after his run to the Winston-Salem final in late August.

The 20-year-old American has won 12 of his last 17 matches on hard courts and will look to eliminate the fourth seed Tsitsipas out of the tournament in Tokyo on Thursday.

Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Alex Michelsen Head-To-Head

• Tsitsipas and Michelsen have never played each other on the ATP Tour.

Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Alex Michelsen Prediction

This has been a mixed season for Stefanos Tsitsipas who fell outside the world's Top 10 for the first time since 2019. He's also terminated coaching services of his father Apostolos. With just two wins in his last six matches, it is tempting to take Michelsen at evens here as you can double your money. Still, I don't doubt the Greek from finding his top gear when he needs to. If he is in the right frame of mind (which he was at the Laver Cup), I trust him to avoid the upset, but only just.