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Match Details
Fixture: (2) Lorenzo Musetti vs (Q) Philip Sekulic
Date: September 23, 2023
Tournament: Chengdu Open 2023
Round: Second Round (Round of 16)
Venue: Chengdu, China
Category: ATP 250
Surface: Hard
Prize money: $1,152,805
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime | Canada - TSN
Lorenzo Musetti vs Philip Sekulic preview
After a first-round bye, second seed Lorenzo Musetti will take on qualifier Philip Sekulic in the second round of the 2023 Chengdu Open on Saturday.
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Musetti's had a pretty decent season so far and has notched up a 29-22 record for the year. His best result at a Major came at the French Open, where he made it to the fourth round. He also reached the third round at Wimbledon, while failing to win a match at the Australian Open and the US Open.
Musetti's other notable results include a runner-up finish at the United Cup with his fellow Italians. He made it to the semifinals in Barcelona and Bastad, but lost to Stefanos Tsitsipas and Casper Ruud respectively. A quarterfinal showing at the Monte-Carlo Masters was another highlight of his season.
Sekulic defeated Nick Chappell and Evgeny Donskoy in the Chengdu Open qualifiers to reach the main draw of an ATP tournament for the first time. He faced Nuno Borges in the opening round.
The two traded service breaks to start the match, but remained steady on serve for most of the first set after that. With Borges serving to force a tie-break at 6-5, Sekulic broke his serve to take the set.
Sekulic rallied from a break down to get back on serve in the second set, but dropped the last three games of the set to lose it. The 20-year old from Australia dug deep in the third set to put himself in the lead as a decisive break in the fourth game helped him win the match 7-5, 5-7, 6-3.
Lorenzo Musetti vs Philip Sekulic head-to-head
This will be the first meeting between them, so the head-to-head stands at 0-0 for now.
Lorenzo Musetti vs Philip Sekulic odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Lorenzo Musetti vs Philip Sekulic prediction
Sekulic held his nerve to oust Borges in three sets and make a winning debut on the ATP tour. The Australian has a decent game, but there's a long way to go before he's able to utilize his raw talent to win matches against the big guns on the main tour.
Musetti is currently on a three-match losing streak and Sekulic offers a perfect opportunity for him to resume his winning ways. The Italian shouldn't be too bothered by the 20-year old, who's just starting off on the ATP tour.
Sekulic's lack of experience against higher-ranked players could expose the holes in his game. Musetti's a great shotmaker when he's in the zone and his opponent isn't at that stage yet where he'll be able to exploit his weaknesses effectively on a consistent basis. Expect the Italian to score an easy win.
Pick: Lorenzo Musetti to win in straight sets.
