The first round competition in Rotterdam concludes on Wednesday, when seeds Alexander Bublik and Arthur Rinderknech take the field. They will face Hubert Hurkacz and Stefanos Tsitsipas respectively.
Hubert Hurkacz vs. (3) Alexander Bublik
There are certainly concerns about Bublik on the way to the ABN Amro Open. Firstly, he leaves the unsuccessful Davis Cup duty for Kazakhstan, as he lost to Valentin Vacherot and his team was withdrawn by Monaco. The number 10 in the world is also behind 6-1 in the head-to-head series against Hurkacz.
Of course there is also plenty 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. Furthermore, all of his losses to Hurkacz occurred before the fall of 2023 – long before Bublik finally became the player he is today. Hurkacz started the 2026 season in heated fashion by leading Poland to the United Cup crown with a 4-1 singles record, but things have gone downhill since that result. The world number 70 was blown away by Ethan Quinn in the second round of the Australian Open and lost in straight sets to Martin Damm during the first round in Montpellier. The margins between these two huge servers will obviously be small, but Bublik should have a slight edge.
Choice: Bublik in 3
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs. (8) Arthur Rinderknech
Tsitsipas was probably not the unseeded player in his very 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 considerably since his miraculous second-place finish to Vacherot, his cousin, at the Shanghai Masters. The 28th-ranked Frenchman is 4-6 in his last ten matches since that result, with two of those wins coming against much lower-ranked Davis Cup opponents. Moreover, Rinderknech is 0-3 lifetime in Rotterdam – with all three of his defeats coming in the first qualifying round. Tsitsipas, on the other hand, has reached the final, semi-final and quarter-finals of this tournament.
Choice: Tsitsipas in 2
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