Grand Prix Hassan II: Laslo Djere vs Fabio Fognini; Preview, Head-to-Head, Prediction

Laslo Djere and Fabio Fognini will play each other in the ATP 250 event Grand Prix Hassan II. The tournament is one of the first championships in the clay court season and is a great opportunity for both Djere and Fognini to transition their game to the tricky surface. Both are down on their luck and could use good momentum to move ahead in the coming season.

Djere and Fognini have had different tracks to their season. Fognini has played in more tournaments than the Serbian player, and he is looking to turn his form around.

Laslo Djere vs Fabio Fognini: Preview

Djere started 2024 with an opening-round loss in the Hong Kong Open in three sets to J.C. Shang. A similar result awaited him in the Australian Open, this time to Arthur Cazaux in five sets. The Argentina and Rio Open would have him exiting in the second round, to Andrea Vavassori and Dušan Lajović, respectively. Unfortunately, he would not be able to turn his fate around in Miami, with a second-round loss to Karen Khachanov. In the Grand Prix, he received a wild card and will play straight away in the round of 16. 

Fognini has played in four challenger-level tournaments in 2024 so far. He lost in the second rounds of both Tenerife and Manama, with similar exits in Phoenix and Napoli. His worst performance came in Phoenix, as he lost 6-1, 6-1 to Aleksander Vukic, but he managed to push the rest of the clashes to three sets.

Aside from the Challengers, Fognini played in the Qatar Open but failed to win his first qualifying match. In the Indian Wells Masters, he won against Bernabé Zapata Miralles but went on to lose to Sebastian Baez 7-5, 6-3. In the ATP 250 tournament in Morocco, Fognini beat his two qualifier opponents by three sets and followed it with a similar victory to Hugo Gaston.  

Djere vs Fognini: Head-to-Head

Djere and Fognini have met each other three times on the ATP Tour. Their first meeting came in the 2021 Geneva Open, where Djere would beat Fognini in a tough three-set bout. He opened with a first-set win but saw Fognini trump him in the second-set tiebreaker. However, Djere proved to be a difficult match as he ended it 6-3, 6-7, 6-1.

Their second bout took place in the 2021 Wimbledon, where Fognini would have his revenge. Although bageled in the first set, he would be the winner at 6-3, 6-4, 0-6, 6-4. The round of 32 in Buenos Aires would house their third clash. Djere would be quick to end their match 6-4, 6-4 and lead the head-to-head. Being ahead in their statistics does give Djere an edge, but it’s not going to be an easy match.

Prediction: Djere to end the stint of the Italian Veteran

Djere has a first-serve win percentage of 53.9% against Fognini, who is not far away with 51.4%. Second-serve win stats also favor Djere, who has a 39.5% win against Fognini. In the matches preceding this game, Fognini won 48% of the points on his second serve, and Djere is following suit. Fognini has won 33% of his opponents’ first-serve points, whereas Djere has won 27%. The statistics for second-serve return points are 53% and 52%, respectively.

Historically, Fognini has a 63% win on clay courts, winning 448 of 265 matches. Djere has a slight edge with a win percentage of 66%, winning 291 out of 147 matches. Djere has the edge over Fognini if he can manage to bring his talent to the clay court once again.

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