Cincinnati Open 2024: Casper Ruud vs Felix Auger-Aliassime preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds and pick
Match Details
Fixture: (7) Casper Ruud vs Felix Auger-Aliassime
Date: August 15, 2024
Tournament: Cincinnati Open 2024
Round: Second Round (Round of 32)
Venue: Lindner Family Tennis Center, Ohio, USA
Category: ATP Masters 1000
Surface: Hard
Prize money: $6,795,555
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | Canada - TSN | UK - Sky UK | India - Sony Liv
Casper Ruud vs Felix Auger-Aliassime preview
The second round of the 2024 Cincinnati Open will feature an enthralling contest between seventh-seed Norwegian Casper Ruud and Felix Auger-Aliassime. The winner of the match will face either ninth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas or Jack Draper in the third round.
The Norwegian has had a decent 2024 season so far, winning the Barcelona Open and the Geneva Open, while also reaching the final of the Monte-Carlo Masters and the semifinals of the French Open.
Even though a better part of the good results for Ruud in 2024 have come on clay, the World No. 8 has fared well on hard courts, making two finals and having an overall record of 19-5 on the surface. He entered the Cincinnati Open after withdrawing from his third-round match against Sebastian Korda at the Canadian Open in Montreal.
Felix Auger-Aliassime has won 26 out of 45 matches so far in 2024. Clay has been the most successful surface for the Canadian, as he reached the final of the Madrid Open and the semifinals at the Paris Olympics, where he also won the bronze in the mixed doubles category.
However, the former World No. 6 has not performed well on hard courts so far in 2024, with a semifinal run in the Open Sud de France in Montpellier being his best performance.
Auger-Aliassime suffered an opening-round exit at the Canadian Open, following which, he was unseeded at the Cincinnati Open. The 24-year-old started his campaign at the tournament against Aleksandar Kovacevic and registered a dominant 6-3, 6-1 win to book his place in the second round.
Casper Ruud vs Felix Auger-Aliassime head-to-head
The head-to-head between the two is currently tied at 3-3. They most recently locked horns in the quarterfinals of the Paris Olympics, with Auger-Aliassime winning 6-4, 6-7(8), 6-3.
Casper Ruud vs Felix Auger-Aliassime odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Casper Ruud vs Felix Auger-Aliassime prediction
Ruud's hard-court numbers are not as prolific as his numbers on the clay. The Norwegian has a 59 percent win ratio on the hard courts, with six finals to his name. However, the former World No. 2 has only one title on the hard courts, the San Diego Open back in 2021, defeating Cameron Norrie in the final. That said, he did reach the finals of the US Open, the ATP Finals and the Miami Open.
On the other hand, Auger-Aliassime has a 61 percent win ratio on hard courts, with ten final appearances. All of the Canadian's five career titles have come on the hard courts, the last of which came at the Swiss Indoors last year, where he defeated Hubert Hurkacz in the final.
When it comes to hard courts, the head-to-head is 2-1 in Ruud's favor. However, overall, Auger-Aliassime has a better track record on the surface and he has won his last two matches against Ruud. Therefore the Canadian will have a slight advantage going into the match.
Pick- Felix Auger-Aliassime to win in three sets.