Taylor Fritz and Hubert Hurkacz are set to battle it out in the round of 16. While both prefer the hard court, they have shown fantastic performances on clay in 2024. Hurkacz won the Estoril Open while only dropping one set. Fritz managed to reach the final of the Bavarian International while dropping one set. He couldn’t manage to take the win from Jan-Lennard Struff in the final.

Now, the two players will have a battle in the Madrid Open as they aim to get an even better result on clay. The winner of the clash will face either one of Alexander Zverev or Francisco Cerundolo. 

Taylor Fritz vs Hubert Hurkacz: Preview

Fritz beat Luciano Darderi 7-6, 6-4 and Sebastian Baez 6-2, 6-3. The American player has hit an astounding 20 aces in both matches, 9 against Darderi and 11 against Baez. He has an average of 87% points won on first serve. Fritz won 5 out of 13 break points, showing some difficulty with closing out the game. He only got his serve broken once in both matches and lost 20 points from his serve.

Hurkacz beat Jack Draper 6-1, 7-5 and then defeated Daniel Altmaier 6-4, 7-6. The Polish star hit 18 aces with no double faults and won an average of 76% points from first serves. He took 3 out of 9 break points from Draper and 4 out of 5 from Altmaier. While his serve has helped him, he has only landed 58% of first serves against Draper and 60% against Altmaier.  

Fritz vs Hurkacz: Head-to-Head

Hurkacz and Fritz have met each other three times on the ATP Tour. The American player leads 2-1 in their rivalry, which began in 2019. 

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• 2019 Eastbourne International quarterfinal: Taylor Fritz 6-4, 7-5
• 2019 Canadian Open round of 64: Hubert Hurkacz 6-3, 7-5
• 2023 United Cup semifinal: Taylor Fritz 7-6, 7-6

They have never traded blows on clay in their careers. Fritz prefers to play on Grass, while Hurkacz prefers hard courts. It will be their first clash on clay and will be an exciting one as both are playing well.  

Prediction: Hurkacz to take the win

Fritz and Hurkacz are not too far apart in their match-up. Hurkacz has more wins on clay than Fritz and is 8-1 on the surface this year. Despite losing to the American player twice, he will equalize their head-to-head score in Madrid. The world number 9 has a better grasp on clay than Fritz and can further exploit his backhand, which is troublesome even on his favorite surface.

Fritz has shown trouble breaking his opponents quickly, which will not bode well against Hurkacz. A big serve is not considered an advantage on clay, yet Fritz has turned his matches in his favor through his serves. He has a chance of winning the clash if he makes his serve a lethal weapon once again against Hurkacz, but needs to ensure he stays in control for most of the match. 

The victory lies with the higher-ranked player at the moment. Do you agree?