Queen's Club 2022: Casper Ruud vs Ryan Peniston preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds and pick | Cinch Championships
Match Details
Fixture: (1) Casper Ruud vs (WC) Ryan Peniston.
Tournament: Cinch Championships 2022.
Round: First round (Round of 32).
Venue: London, United Kingdom.
Category: ATP 500.
Surface: Grass.
Prize money: €2,134,520.
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | Canada - TSN | UK - Amazon Prime Video.
Casper Ruud vs Ryan Peniston preview
Top seed Casper Ruud will lock horns with British wildcard Ryan Peniston in the first round of the 2022 Cinch Championships.
Ruud is fresh off an incredible clay campaign. He made it to the semifinals of the Italian Open and then successfully defended his title at the Geneva Open. At the French Open, he reached his maiden Grand Slam final, but lost to Rafael Nadal in straight sets. Nevertheless, the last few weeks have been quite memorable for the Norwegian.
After a week's rest, Ruud is all set to begin his grass court season. He's still rather inexperienced on the surface. He lost in the first round of Wimbledon in his two appearances there. The 23-year-old's only other tournament on grass was the Mallorca Open last year, where he made it to the quarterfinals.
King of Clay x 14 👑
@RafaelNadal remains undefeated in Paris finals, conquering Casper Ruud 6-3, 6-3, 6-0 for a 14th title
#RolandGarros https://t.co/GctcC17Ah8
Ryan Peniston, meanwhile, mainly competes on the Challenger circuit and hasn't made an impact at the ATP level yet. Prior to this event, he recorded some good results in his two tournaments on grass this year.
Peniston made it to the quarterfinals of the Surbiton Trophy with wins over Adrian Mannarino and Jack Draper before losing to Otto Virtanen. He also reached the last eight at the Nottingham Challenger earlier this week. The Brit defeated Jiri Vesely and Borna Gojo before going down to Alexei Popyrin.
Casper Ruud vs Ryan Peniston head-to-head
This is set to be the first meeting between them, so the head-to-head stands at 0-0 for now.
Casper Ruud vs Ryan Peniston odds
All odds are sourced from BetMGM.
Casper Ruud vs Ryan Peniston prediction
Given the vast gulf in their rankings and experience, Ruud is the overwhelming favorite to win this contest. However, the Norwegian's inexperience on grass gives Peniston an opportunity to prove his mettle.
The Brit has played quite a few matches on the surface already and has gotten used to the conditions. Ruud, on the other hand, will be playing his first match on grass in almost a year. A slow start could land him in trouble if Peniston capitalizes on his chances.
After a successful clay season, Ruud will aim to replicate similar results on grass. Despite his past struggles on the surface, he'll enter the contest with confidence given his results up to now. He's a better server than his opponent, but Peniston is certainly no slouch in that department.
The Brit has already scored a couple of wins over players ranked in the top 100 over the last two weeks. He has displayed plenty of promise and with the backing of the home fans, he could certainly elevate his game enough to bother his opponent. But playing against an in-form top 10 player is a totally different matter.
Ruud might face some trouble early on, but should be able to weather the storm to move past Peniston.
Pick: Ruud to win in straight sets.