10sBalls shares Ricky’s picks for Saturday’s tennis finals: Tsitsipas vs. Bautista Agut and Fritz vs. Cressy

By Ricky Dimon

The last matches before Wimbledon will be contested on Saturday, when finals are taking place in Mallorca and Eastbourne. Stefanos Tsitsipas is set for a showdown with Roberto Bautista Agut, while Taylor Fritz faces Maxime Cressy.

Here are my previews and picks for the two matches.

Mallorca Championships: (5) Roberto Bautista Agut vs. (2) Stefanos Tsitsipas

Tsitsipas has been slumping since he finished runner-up at the Rome Masters, but things could be turning around for him in time for Wimbledon. The sixth-ranked Greek has advanced in Mallorca with victories over Ilya Ivashka, Marcos Giron, and Benjamin Bonzi. He is trying to bounce back from losses at the French Open (fourth round to Holger Rune), Stuttgart (quarterfinals to Andy Murray), and Halle (second round to Nick Kyrgios).

Up next for Tsitsipas in Saturday’s final is a third meeting with Bautista Agut, who trails the head-to-head series 2-0. The Spaniard went down 7-5, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6(2) at the 2019 Australian Open and 7-5, 7-5 at the 2021 ATP Cup. This has also been a much-needed week for Bautista Agut, who has played only two tournaments since the start of the clay-court swing. The world No. 20 started to pick up some momentum with a quarterfinal performance in Halle (lost to world No. 1 Daniil Medvedev) and now he is through to the Mallorca title match thanks to defeats of Taro Daniel, Medvedev, and Antoine Bellier. Bautista Agut was a Wimbledon semifinalist in 2019 and has reached the fourth round on three other occasions. His game works extremely well on grass and Tsitsipas’ does not, so a minor upset could be in the cards.

Pick: Bautista Agut in 3

Rothesay International: Maxime Cressy vs. (3) Taylor Fritz

It will be an all-American affair when Fritz and Cressy battle for the Eastbourne title on Saturday. This marks just the second-ever ATP final for Cressy and it is no surprise that it comes on grass. The world No. 60 serves and volleys more than anyone else on tour and he has worked that style to perfection this week. Cressy booked his spot in the championship match with wins over Reilly Opelka, Dan Evans, Cam Norrie, and Jack Draper.

Cressy does not have to face a fourth consecutive British opponent–nor is he running into Rafael Nadal, who beat him for a 250 title in Melbourne earlier this year. Fritz, however, is a formidable foe. Despite being plagued by injury during the clay-court season, the world No. 14 is still in serious Nitto ATP Finals contention thanks in part to a triumph at the Indian Wells Masters. Fritz appears to be rounding back into form with Mallorca victories over Thiago Monteiro, Alexander Bublik, and Alex de Minaur. The third seed was especially impressive in his last two matches and Cressy dealt with an apparent abdominal or hip issue in his semifinal against Draper, so look for Fritz to capture his third ATP title–and second in Eastbourne.

Pick: Fritz in 2

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