Hamburg European Open 2023: Alexander Zverev vs Alex Molcan preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds, and pick

Match Details

Fixture: (4) Alexander Zverev vs Alex Molcan

Date: July 24, 2023

Tournament: Hamburg Open 2023

Round: First Round (Round of 32)

Venue: Hamburg, Germany

Category: ATP 500

Surface: Clay

Prize money: €1,831,515

Live telecast: USA: Tennis Channel | UK: Amazon Prime | Australia: beIN Sports | Canada: TSN

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Alexander Zverev vs Alex Molcan preview

Zverev will be in action on Monday.

Fourth seed Alexander Zverev will open his campaign at the European Open in Hamburg against Alex Molcan on Monday.

World No. 19 Zverev is 28-18 on the season, coming off a quarterfinal appearance at the Swedish Open. During the grasscourt swing, he made a third-round showing at Wimbledon after making the Halle semifinals. However, the German had a decent claycourt swing, reaching the last four at Roland Garros and Geneva. He also made the fourth round in Madrid, Rome and Monte-Carlo.

Earlier in the season, the 26-year-old made the Dubai semifinals. Zverev has a 7-5 record at Hamburg, where he made the last four in his second appearance as a 17-year-old in 2014 after losing in the opening round the year before.

Meanwhile, the 81st-ranked Molcan is coming off a first-round loss against Zverev at the Swedish Open to drop to 12-14 in 2023. The 25-year-old reached his only claycourt semifinal of the season at the inaugural Banja Luka Open in Srpska. Molcan also made the Bratislava 1 Challenger semifinal last month.

The Slovakian has a 4-2 record at Hamburg, with three of those wins coming during his run to the semifinals last year. His other win came in 2021 after emerging from qualifying.

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Alexander Zverev vs Alex Molcan head-to-head

Zverev has won both his meetings with Molcan - both on clay this year. After beating the Slovak in straight sets in the Roland Garros second round, Zverev repeated the trick in the Bastad first round last week, where he dropped a set.

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Alexander Zverev vs Alex Molcan odds

Player	Moneyline	Handicap Bets	Total Games (over/under)
Alexander Zverev
Alex Molcan

The odds will be updated when they release.

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Alexander Zverev vs Alex Molcan prediction

Molcan made the Hamburg semis last year.

Both Zverev and Molcan are quintessential baseliners, but the similarities in their game styles end there.

Zverev is a big server, powerful hitter off both flanks and moves well for his height. The left-handed Molcan, though, has more modest weapons and is a counterpuncher of sorts.

Moreover, Zverev takes the edge because of his superior experience, consistency and pedigree, especially on clay, where he has a 121-48 record and six titles, while Molcan is 28-14.

Considering the same, the German should win this one, having beaten Molcan in their first two meetings without much fuss.

Pick: Zverev in straight sets