The first round of competition in Rotterdam wraps up on Wednesday, when Alexander Bublik and Arthur Rinderknech take to the court. They will face Hubert Hurkacz and Stefanos Tsitsipas, respectively.
Hubert Hurkacz vs. (3) Alexander Bublik
There is some concern about Bublik heading into the ABN AMRO Open. First, he will be coming off an unsuccessful Davis Cup campaign in Kazakhstan, as he lost to Valentin Vacherot and his team was beaten by Monaco. World No. 10 also follows a series of heads against Hurkacz 6-1.
Of course, there is also a lot of good news for Bublik. He was great last season and is off to an 8-2 start this year, including a title in Hong Kong. In addition, all of Hurkacz’s losses came before the fall of 2023 – long before Bublik ended up being the player he is today. Hurkacz started the 2026 campaign on a hot note by leading Poland to the United Cup crown with a 4-1 record, but has gone downhill since that result. The world number 70 was blown out by Ethan Quinn in the second round of the Australian Open and lost to Martin Damm in straight sets during the first round match in Montpellier. Margins will obviously be narrow between these two major providers, but Bublik should have a slight edge.
Choose: Bublik in 3
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs. (8) Arthur Rinderknech
Tsitsipas probably didn’t look like an undiscovered player in his first match against Rinderknech, but that will be the case on Wednesday in Rotterdam. The 27-year-old Greek has dropped to number 32 in the rankings, but has been in decent form so far this season. He is 6-2 with a win over Taylor Fritz in the United Cup.
Rinderknech has cooled off in a big way since his last-gasp upset of Vacherot, his cousin, at the Shanghai Masters. The 28th-ranked Frenchman is 4-6 in his last 10 matches since that result, with two of those wins coming against lower-ranked Davis Cup opponents. In addition, Rinderknech is 0-3 in his career in Rotterdam – with all three of his losses coming in the first round of qualifying. On the other hand, Tsitsipas has reached the finals, semis, and quarters of this tournament.
Pick: Tsitsipas at 2
