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Fixture: (7) Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Dusan Lajovic
Date: Saturday, April 29
Tournament: Madrid Masters 2023
Round: Second Round (Round of 64)
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
Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Dusan Lajovic
Seventh seed Felix Auger-Aliassime gets underway at the Madrid Open against recently crowned Srpska Open champion Dusan Lajovic on Saturday.
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The ninth-ranked Auger-Aliassime has had an underwhelming campaign, winning only 12 of his 19 matches before his European claycourt swing season debut. The 22-year-old Canadian had a solid North American hardcourt swing, reaching the Indian Wells quarterfinals (losing to eventual winner Carlos Alcaraz) and the third round in Miami.
Auger-Aliassime started his season with a run to the second week at the Australian Open before making the last eight in Rotterdam and the semifinals in Doha. The Canadian is 3-3 in Madrid, with two of those wins coming during his run to the quarterfinals last year (lost to Alexander Zverev).
Meanwhile, World No. 40 Lajovic is coming off one of the best weeks of his career, winning his second singles title at the inaugural Srpska Open in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina. He continued that winning run with a straight-sets win over Australian Jason Kubler in his Madrid opener.
The 32-year-old Serb has fared well on clay this year, reaching the quarterfinals at Buenos Aires (lost to eventual champion Alcaraz), Rio de Janeiro (lost to Alcaraz again) and Santiago. Lajovic is now 6-4 in Madrid, where he reached the quarterfinals five years ago and the third round last year.
Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Dusan Lajovic head-to-head
Auger-Aliassime has lost both of his two previous meetings with Lajovic - both on hardcourts. Their last meeting was in the Round of 32 of the 2021 Canada Open. They're yet to meet on clay.
Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Dusan Lajovic odds
(All odds as per BETMGM)
Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Dusan Lajovic prediction
Both Auger-Aliassime and Lajovic are quintessential baseliners, but the similarities in their game styles end there.
While Auger-Aliassime is a big server and a powerful hitter of the ball, Lajovic, with his signature single-handed backhand, has more modest weapons and tends to play his best tennis on clay.
The Canadian is a work in progress on clay, going 31-28, while Lajovic brought up his 100th win on the surface by beating Kubler. Expect the in-form Serb to win here.
Pick: Lajovic in three sets
