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Fixture: (12) Hubert Hurkacz vs (17) Borna Coric
Date: Sunday, April 30
Tournament: Madrid Open 2023
Round: Third Round (Round of 32)
Venue: Caja Magica, Madrid, Spain
Category: Masters 1000
Surface: Outdoor clay
Prize money: €7,705,780
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video
Hubert Hurkacz vs Borna Coric preview
The 12th seed Hubert Hurkacz takes on 17th seed Borna Coric at the Madrid Open as a place in the fourth round beckons.
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The 15th-ranked Hurkacz fought from the brink against veteran Frenchman Richard Gasquet, coming back from 3-1 down in the decider to improve to 17-9 on the season.
After losing a tight opener in a tiebreak, Hurkacz restored parity only to fall behind early in the third. However, Gasquet rued squandering the opportunity to serve for the match at 5-4 as the Pole sealed the win three games later to live to fight another day.
The 26-year-old has had a decent season, winning his first title of the year in Marseille before reaching the Dubai quarterfinals. He's now 6-3 in Madrid, with half of these wins coming last year during his run to the last eight.
Meanwhile, World No. 20 Coric improved to 8-8 in 2023 after seeing off Hugo Gaston in his opener. The win snapped the Croat's five-match losing streak since reaching the Dubai quarterfinals in February, stumbling in the opening round at four tournaments, including Monte-Carlo and Banja Luka on European clay.
The right-hander is now 7-5 in Madrid, having reached the quarterfinals six years ago. He lost in the first round last year.
Hubert Hurkacz vs Borna Coric head-to-head
Hurkacz is 1-2 against Coric, with the Croatian winning the pair's only claycourt meeting in the Monte-Carlo Masters opening round four years ago. They last met in the Vienna quarterfinals last year, which Coric won in a third-set tiebreak.
Hubert Hurkacz vs Borna Coric odds
(All odds as per BETMGM)
Hubert Hurkacz vs Borna Coric prediction
Both Hurkacz and Coric are quintessentially baseliners and have pretty similar game styles. Both serve big, hit powerfully off either flank, and also move well, but the Croatian takes the edge in terms of claycourt pedigree.
While Hurkacz is 21-24 on the surface, Coric is 57-48, winning one title. Moreover, the Croatian is the fresher of the two players, as he needed straight sets to see off Gaston, while Hurkacz went the distance against Gasquet.
Nevertheless, it's a close match to call. Despite Coric winning two of the pair's three meetings, their first claycourt clash could go the way of Hurkacz, as the Croatian has not won successive matches in more than two months.
Pick: Hurkacz in straight sets
