Australian Open 2021 qualifiers: Prajnesh Gunneswaran vs Brayden Schnur preview, head-to-head & prediction

Match details

Fixture: Prajnesh Gunneswaran vs Brayden Schnur

Date: 11 January 2021

Tournament: Australian Open 2021 qualifiers

Round: First round

Venue: Doha, Qatar

Category: Grand Slam

Surface: Outdoor Hardcourt

Match timing: Approx. 2.30 pm local time, 4 pm IST

Prajnesh Gunneswaran vs Brayden Schnur preview

India's No. 1 men's singles player Prajnesh Gunneswaran has been pitted against Canada's Brayden Schnur in the first round of the Australian Open 2021 qualifying competition.

Gunneswaran played at the Challenger level for most of 2020, registering some mediocre results along the way. But he will now be looking to rediscover the form that saw him rise to as high as No. 75 in the ATP rankings (back in April 2019).

Brayden Schnur

Brayden Schnur, 25, turned professional in 2016 after years of playing college tennis. And while he hasn't had the biggest results on the ATP tour, he still has a vast level of experience playing on hardcourt.

The Canadian made the final of the 2019 New York Open, beating a couple of big names from American tennis in the form of Sam Querrey and Steve Johnson en route.

With solid groundstrokes and good defensive abilities, Schur could prove to be a tenacious opponent for Gunneswaran, giving the Indian a lot to think about.

Prajnesh Gunneswaran vs Brayden Schnur head-to-head

Prajnesh Gunneswaran will look to use his big groundstrokes to control the rallies.

Prajnesh Gunneswaran leads Brayden Schnur 1-0 in the head-to-head record. The Indian beat his opponent in straightforward fashion in their only prior meeting, which came on the hardcourts of Bangalore in 2018.

Prajnesh Gunneswaran vs Brayden Schnur prediction

The first round encounter will see two very different brands of tennis, with Prajnesh Gunneswaran's firepower taking on Brayden Schnur's stealth.

The last time that the two men played, Gunneswaran managed to outmuscle his Canadian opponent. However, the latter has grown in stature since.

The Indian's fortunes on the other hand have plummeted in the past year or so, and he has been unable to sustain any sort of form. He has also been guilty of coughing up too many unforced errors in his matches, and will need to pull out a special performance if he wishes to progress past Schnur.

Prediction: Brayden Schnur to win in three sets.