Time to begin the main draw action at the 2023 National Bank Open, held this year in Toronto on the ATP side. Milos Raonic is making a return to this venue after five years and he’ll be trying to produce another stunning run at home. Can he do it after being drawn against someone so tough in his opener? We also look at the rest of the day’s matches, split between two articles. One features Gael Monfils vs Christopher Eubanks, and the second features Matteo Berrettini vs Gregoire Barrere. Who do you think will advance?
ATP Toronto Day 1 Predictions
Alexander Bublik vs Hubert Hurkacz
Head-to-head: Hurkacz 5-1
For a player with such a strong serve, the record Alexander Bublik has against Hubert Hurkacz is actually really weak. The Pole’s return stats are down this year and he’s constantly playing tie-breaks, but has already defeated the Kazakh twice in 2023. It’s tough not to give the edge to Hurkacz then as even with his return issues worsening, he’s still picking up wins against this opponent. Would be a shocker to see this one end without a tie-break, but somehow only two out of their six clashes had one.
Prediction: Hurkacz in 3
Adrian Mannarino vs Taro Daniel
Head-to-head: Daniel 2-0
This is a fairly surprising head-to-head with one clay match years ago (Adrian Mannarino’s weakest surface by far), but also another one in Atlanta last year, where the conditions should have suited the Frenchman more. Taro Daniel’s solid game could be a bit troubling for Mannarino and force him to dictate more than usual, but the 35-year-old is having a great season and it shouldn’t be that much of a problem. Time to grab that first win in this rivalry.
Prediction: Mannarino in 2
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Tommy Paul vs Diego Schwartzman
Head-to-head: First meeting
With how this season is going for Diego Schwartzman so far this year, getting to this stage is already a pretty great result for him. To do that he had to win two matches in the qualifying draw, including the recent Atlanta runner-up Aleksandar Vukic. There were a lot of easier spots saved up for the qualifiers though. Tommy Paul had a great run in Canada last year (although it was at a different venue) and might just be too strong of a hard-court player.
Prediction: Paul in 2
Milos Raonic vs Frances Tiafoe
Head-to-head: Tiafoe 1-0
Milos Raonic is coming back after a while and actually looked pretty decent in his first two events. This one at home must be pretty special for him too and he once made three consecutive quarterfinals in Toronto. With his serve, it feels like he always has a shot and the movement looked okay on the grass. Here his experience advantage over the field will not be as important and it feels like Tiafoe is possibly too tough of a first-round opponent.
Prediction: Tiafoe in 3
Main Photo Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
