It has been a successful week for the host nation in Rotterdam, with Dutchmen Botic van de Zandschulp and Tallon Griekspoor in the quarters. Will respective matchups with Alex de Minaur and Felix Auger-Aliassime mark the end of the road?
(1) Alex de Minaur vs. Botic van de Zandschulp
De Minaur and Van de Zandschulp will be going head-to-head for the fourth time in their careers when they clash in the ABN AMRO Open quarterfinals on Friday. All three of their previous meetings have gone De Minaur’s way; 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 in the 2022 Davis Cup Finals, 6-1, 7-5, 6-4 at the 2025 Australian Open, and 6-4, 6-4 a few weeks later in Doha.
This may be a home tournament for Van de Zandschulp, but De Minaur absolutely thrives in Rotterdam. The eighth-ranked Aussie has finished runner-up at each of the past two installments and may be on course for another final appearance following straight-set victories over Arthur Fils and Stan Wawrinka. Van de Zandschulp has advanced with straight-set defeats of Luka Pavlovic and Stefanos Tsitsipas. Although the 65th-ranked Dutchman is playing well, he has never reached the semis in Rotterdam and this has always been a rough matchup for him.
Pick: De Minaur in 2
(7) Tallon Griekspoor vs. (2) Felix Auger-Aliassime
It would be tough to pick anyone to beat Auger-Aliassime on an indoor hard court these days other than Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner. The sixth-ranked Canada’s ninth ATP title last week in Montpellier was his eighth indoors, and he has extended his winning streak to six matches with Rotterdam victories over Alexei Popyrin and Hamad Medjedovic. Auger-Aliassime’s 2025 fall swing featured a triumph in Brussels, a runner-up performance in Paris, and a semifinal showing at the Nitto ATP Finals.
Up next for the second seed on Friday is a third meeting with Griekspoor. The head-to-head series is tied 1-1 on the main tour, with Auger-Aliassime prevailing 7-6(2), 7-6(5) on the grass of ‘s-Hertogenbosch in 2022 before Griekspoor won 6-4, 6-4 on the grass of Mallorca this past summer. The 27th-ranked Dutchman has done well to beat Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard and Quentin Halys, but he had been a horrendous 1-5 this year prior to arriving in Rotterdam. Asking Griekspoor to suddenly beat one of the best players in the world — especially indoors — is probably too much.
Pick: Auger-Aliassime in 2