Fabio Fognini faces a tricky start to his Movistar Open campaign, as he meets Lukasz Kubot in round one

Fabio Fognini is seeded for this week’s ATP Santiago Open, and will be aiming to at least achieve a decent run here. Unfortunately for him, he will have to face Lukasz Kubot in the first round. Whilst this is a match that Fognini is being tipped to win, his Polish opponent has the ability to make things difficult.

Fognini is one of the younger players on the tour, and appears to be steadily improving each year. He currently sits just outside of the top fifty in the world rankings, and will be looking to edge closer to the top 20 this season. Kubot has proved to be a late bloomer, but sits in a similar position. He broke into the top hundred last year, achieving a career-best ranking of 41st back in April. He has since exited the top fifty.

This pairing has met three times previously on clay. Fognini leads the head to head 2-1, but was convincingly thrashed by Kubot when they met last year in the Costa do Sauipe Open. This match could turn out to be a close one, and is arguably the most intriguing first round clash here.