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Match Details
Fixture: (7) Alexander Bublik vs Andy Murray.
Date: 9 June 2022.
Tournament: Boss Open 2022.
Round: Second round (Round of 16).
Venue: Stuttgart, Germany.
Category: ATP 250.
Surface: Grass.
Prize money: €769,645.
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | Canada - TSN | UK - Amazon Prime Video | India - Discovery.
Alexander Bublik vs Andy Murray preview
World No. 42 Alexander Bublik will take on three-time Grand Slam champion Andy Murray in the second round of the 2022 Boss Open on Thursday.
Bublik made a winning start to his campaign in Stuttgart in both singles and doubles. He teamed up with Nick Kyrgios to defeat Philipp Oswald and Hans Hach 6-2, 6-4 in the first round on Monday. The duo didn't drop serve even once during the encounter.
Bublik then took on Denis Kudla, who reached the final of a Challenger event on grass last week, in singles. The opening set was a closely contested affair. Both players held serve quite comfortably, except for some trouble early on when they each had to save a couple of break points.
Bublik then played a flawless tie-break to nab the opener. The Kazakh jumped to an early lead in the second set, but Kudla leveled the score at 2-2. Both players tried to gain an advantage in the next six games, but to no avail.
With Kudla serving at 5-5, Bublik made his move and successfully secured a break of serve. He easily served out the match to win 7-6(3), 7-5.
Andy Murray, meanwhile, kicked off his grass season at the Surbiton Trophy, a Challenger event. After straight-sets wins over Jurij Rodionov, Gijs Brouwer and Brandon Nakashima, he lost to Denis Kudla in three sets in the semifinals.
Murray took on qualifier Christopher O'Connell in the first round of the Boss Open. The Brit was on the backfoot early on as he trailed 3-0. He then reeled off five games in a row to take a 5-3 lead. The Australian managed to stop the bleeding by taking the next game, but the former World No. 1 easily served out the set.
With momentum firmly on Murray's side, he quickly went 3-1 up in the second set. He held on to this advantage and broke O'Connell's serve once more in the ninth game to win the match 6-4, 6-3.
Alexander Bublik vs Andy Murray head-to-head
The duo have faced off thrice before, with Murray leading 2-1 in the head-to-head. Bublik won their most recent encounter at this year's Indian Wells Open in straight sets. The Brit won their only match on grass at the 2017 Wimbledon Championships in straight sets.
Alexander Bublik vs Andy Murray odds
(All odds sourced from BetMGM)
Alexander Bublik vs Andy Murray prediction
Murray is an accomplished player on grass, as evidenced by his two titles at Wimbledon. Bublik's resume isn't as impressive, but he's a dangerous opponent nonetheless.
Bublik was on fire in his first-round clash against Kudla, hitting 19 aces and winning 86% of his first-serve points. His serve is a huge asset on faster surfaces; he's ranked ninth on the ATP tour when it comes to aces served so far this year (301).
Murray's serving stats were solid as well, as he won 88% of his first-serve points in his first-round clash against O'Connell. The Brit will need to focus on neutralizing Bublik's serve. He'll also need to keep an eye out for an underarm serve or two, as his opponent is known for his trickery.
Murray has a more well-rounded game than the Kazakh. While both players can go toe-to-toe from the baseline, the Brit is more consistent and should be able to turn the tide in his favor.
The match is likely to go down to the wire, but Murray should be able to come out on top in the end.
Pick: Andy Murray to win in three sets.
