Tsitsipas and Norrie set to meet in the final of Lyon

It was semi-finals day in Lyon on Saturday, as Stefanos Tsitsipas and Cameron Norrie both booked their spots in Sunday’s final.

In the first match of the day in Lyon, it was a tough battle as Tsitsipas and Lorenzo Musetti faced off. It was the second meeting between the two, as Tsitsipas now holds a 2-0 head-to-head advantage over the 19-year-old from Italy. After losing the first set 6-3, Tsitsipas recovered quickly with a 6-3 score line of his own in the second set. Tsitsipas then ran away with the third set, taking it 6-0 and the match along with it.

Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas returns the ball to Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti during their ATP 250 Lyon Open Parc tennis tournament semi-final match on May 22, 2021. (Photo by JEFF PACHOUD / AFP) (Photo by JEFF PACHOUD/AFP via Getty Images) /

It was Tsitsipas who was able to control the match with his first serve, and although he only made his first serve 57% of the time, he won 90% of the points when he did, according to Infosys ATP Stats. Tsitsipas also added six aces, while Musetti had none of his own. Musetti struggled to win points off his first serve, and while his first serve percentage was much higher than Tsitsipas’, he only won 57% of points on the first serve.

In the second match, it was Cameron Norrie with a big upset in a dominant fashion, taking out the eighth seed Karen Khachanov 6-1, 6-1. It was the third meeting between the two, as Norrie now leads the head-to-head match-up 2-1. This was also the third time they met this year.

ROME, ITALY – MAY 11: Cameron Norrie of Great Britain plays a backhand during his singles match against Roberto Carballes Baena of Spain during day 4 of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia at Foro Italico on May 11, 2021 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images) /

Cameron Norrie faced one break point the entire match, while Khachanov faced seven of his own. Norrie was able to save the break point, while Khachanov was broken five times in the match. Khachanov won just 25% (5/20) of his second serve points, leading to those five breaks, while Norrie won just under 60% of his second serve points, according to Infosys ATP Stats. Even on the first serve, Khachanov was unable to get many free points, as he won just 58% of his first serve points to go along with two aces. On the other side, Norrie finished with five aces and won 77% of the points when making the first serve.

The final will be the first time Tsitsipas and Norrie face off in their careers. Norrie will be coming into this match not only well rested after a straightforward semi-final win, but also with a ton of confidence, especially after beating Dominic Thiem earlier in the tournament in straight sets. However, even with this confidence, it will be a difficult task to beat one of the hottest players on tour right now in Stefanos Tsitsipas. Tsitsipas has taken his game to the next level in 2021 and is a tough out in any tournament he plays. I expect a really good match between the two, but in the end, I think Tsitsipas takes the title in Lyon in three sets.

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