Shanghai Masters 2023: Casper Ruud vs Christopher Eubanks preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds, and pick
Match Details
Fixture: (8) Casper Ruud vs (29) Christopher Eubanks
Date: October 8, 2023
Tournament: Shanghai Masters 2023
Round: Third Round (Round of 32)
Venue: Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena in Shanghai, China
Category: ATP 1000
Surface: Hard (Indoor)
Prize money: $8,800,000
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | Canada - TSN | UK - Amazon Prime Video
Casper Ruud vs Christopher Eubanks preview
Eighth seed Casper Ruud will square off against Christopher Eubanks in the third round of the 2023 Shanghai Masters on Sunday (October 8).
Ruud kicked off his challenge here against Yoshihito Nishioka in the second round. The former made a good start as an early break put him 4-1 up, but he squandered his lead down the line.
Ruud held a set point on Nishioka's serve at 5-4, but couldn't close it out. He then broke the Japanese's serve in the 12th game of the set to take it. The 2023 French Open finalist ran away with the match after that as he blanked his opponent in the second set to win 7-5, 6-0.
Eubanks, meanwhile, faced Yannick Hanfmann in the second round. The two started the match by trading service breaks, after which the German struck once again to give himself an edge. He snagged another break to go 4-2 up and remained in front to claim the set.
Eubanks raised his level going forward and was able to clinch the second set due to a lone break of serve in his favor. With momentum on his side, he broke Hanfmann's serve twice in the third set to score a 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 comeback win.
Casper Ruud vs Christopher Eubanks head-to-head
Ruud leads Eubanks 1-0 in the head-to-head. He won their previous encounter at the 2022 Indian Wells Masters in straight sets.
Casper Ruud vs Christopher Eubanks odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Casper Ruud vs Christopher Eubanks prediction
After a tight first set, Ruud just flipped a switch to dominate the match against Nishioka in the last round. He fired nine aces and won 85% of his first-serve points. Such numbers are not a regular occurance for the Norwegian. He was solid from the baseline as well, with some judicious shot selection.
Eubanks' comeback win over Hanfmann marked just his third victory since the start of August. The American rained down 14 aces and a total of 37 winners, in contrast to just 10 unforced errors.
Eubanks has been unable to replicate the form he showed during the grass swing, which concluded with a quarterfinal run at Wimbledon. Ruud's recent results have been quite average too, but a quarterfinal finish at last week's China Open was a step in the right direction.
Ruud needs a good week here in order to boost his chances of qualifying for the ATP Finals. Eubanks' big serve and forehand combo could keep the Norwegian on his toes, but the latter should be able to survive the challenge to advance further.
Pick: Casper Ruud to win in straight sets.