(Tennis news) Hubert Hurkacz, the 17th-ranked player in the world, began the year with high expectations and positive attitudes as he worked tirelessly to win his first Slam at the Australian Open. Hurkacz advanced to the fourth round before falling to Sebastian Korda in a thrilling five-set match.

He won the Marseille Open in less than a month and along the road defeated players like Benjamin Bonzi and Alexander Bublik to claim his first-ever championship for the new year. He was looking good in only his next match at the Dubai Championships when Novak Djokovic ended his streak.

Hurkacz only put forth a mediocre series of performances after that, failing miserably to advance farther in any of the competitions.

However, he has gained much-needed confidence in recent months after making it to the semi-finals of the Cincinnati Open, the Wimbledon Championships, and the Mercedes Cup. He also finished in the round of 16 in the recently held Wimbledon Championships.

Marc-Andrea Huesler, on the other hand, is not a name that tennis fans frequently hear.

He began the year with disappointing first-round exits at the Australian Open, Marseille Open, Dubai Championships, Rotterdam Open, and also at the Indian Wells Masters. He has had a fairly mediocre year by his standards.

His second-round finishes at the Winston-Salem Open, the Libema Open, the Mexican City Challenger, the Montpellier Open, and the German Open are among his notable performances this year.

For the first and only time this year, he went the distance at the Viking Eastbourne International, winning three matches in a single competition.

Prior to falling to Francisco Cerundolo, he defeated players like Marek Gngel, Beibit Zhukayev, and Ryan Peniston.

He had a disastrous finish to his participation in the recently played Cincinnati Open because he was unable to advance past the qualifying rounds.

Head-to-Head

Marc-Andrea Huesler and Hubert Hurkacz have not yet come into conflict in their professional careers.

Predictions

The Pole is anticipated to advance after a thrilling first-round matchup at the US Open between Hurkacz and Huesler. Given the recent stretch of form Hurkacz has seen, Huesler will find it challenging to handle him when they square off on Monday.

Hurkacz excels at first serves and can seamlessly transition from defence to offence at any point in the match.

No offence to Huesler, who is also one of the greatest hitters of all time, but considering his recent performances, he lacks the cutting edge and the crispness in his hitting.

Huesler also has a strong serve, which helped him win a number of matches in the beginning of the year. But since then, the average amount of aces every game has significantly decreased.

Hurkacz is predicted to win the match handily and advance to the next round; his capacity for manipulation and opponent weariness is predicted to be a crucial contributing element in the outcome.

Hubert Hurkacz to win in 3 sets