2021 Australian Open First Round – Sergiy Stakhovsky vs Dusan Lajovic Preview & Prediction
THE FACTS
Where is Sergiy Stakhovsky vs Dusan Lajovic taking place? Melbourne Park, Melbourne
When is Sergiy Stakhovsky vs Dusan Lajovic on and what time does it start? Monday 8th February, 2021 – not before 05:15 (UK)
Where can I get tickets for Sergiy Stakhovsky vs Dusan Lajovic? Click here to reach the official 2021 Australian Open ticket selection
What channel is Sergiy Stakhovsky vs Dusan Lajovic on? The 2021 Australian Open will be televised on Eurosport so it is worth checking their schedule for this specific match
Where can I stream Sergiy Stakhovsky vs Dusan Lajovic in the UK? Sky customers can stream this match on the Sky Go app. Alternatively, the match can be streamed to subscribers of Eurosport Player, either on the official website or as an add-on to an Amazon Prime subscription
THE LOWDOWN
SERGIY STAKHOVSKY
- 35-year-old Sergiy Stakhovsky made it past three qualifying matches to make it to the first round of a Grand Slam for the first time since Roland-Garros in 2019, where he lost to Gilles Simon.
- Stakhovsky reached a career-high 31st in the ATP rankings over a decade ago and made as far as the third round here in Melbourne once, losing to Tommy Robredo in four sets in 2011.
DUSAN LAJOVIC
- 30-year-old Dusan Lajovic was unable to emulate the excellent form that saw him help Team Serbia win the inaugural ATP Cup in 2020, losing both his singles matches this year to Milos Raonic and Jan-Lennard Struff.
- The world number 26 is the 23rd seed here and will be desperate for a win in 2021 as he continues a six-match losing streak running from the second round of Roland-Garros in October last year.
THE PREDICTION
There is a little history here between Sergiy Stakhovsky and Dusan Lajovic, with the Ukrainian veteran winning their only previous meeting at this very stage of the Australian Open back in 2015 in a five-set slog. Given the form world number 26 Lajovic finds himself in right now it would not be a total shock to see 35-year0old Stakhovsky roll back the years here in another victory and that could well be worth the punt. With nothing to lose, Stakhovsky knows he has beaten Lajovic for, whilst all Lajovic knows right now is how to lose. He struggled at the ATP Cup and could fall behind early-on here and that could be enough for Stakhovsky to pull-off a big first round shock. This match is not for the accumulators but picking the world number 206 to snatch this match as a one-off could be a shrewd move.
