Vienna 2020: Borna Coric vs Taylor Fritz preview, head-to-head & prediction | ATP Erste Bank Open
Match Details
Fixture: Borna Coric vs Taylor Fritz
Date: 26 October 2020
Tournament: ATP Erste Bank Open
Round: First round (Round of 32)
Venue: Vienna, Austria
Category: ATP 500
Surface: Indoor Hardcourt
Prize money: €1,409,510
Match timing: 2 pm local time, 6.30 pm IST
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel; India - Sony ESPN
Borna Coric vs Taylor Fritz preview
Borna Coric may only be 23 years old, but it seems like he has been around for a very long time. The former junior World No. 1 has not yet been able to live up to the great expectations that he arrived with on the tour as a teenager, but he has peaked at No. 12 in the rankings and won two career titles.
Coric's progress has been interrupted by knee surgery and a back injury, among other things, but his fans would be hoping he is moving in the right direction now. The Croat reached his first Grand Slam quarterfinal at the US Open in September, following which he made the final of the St. Petersburg Open earlier this month.
The 22-year-old Taylor Fritz is also a former junior World No. 1, and has been steadily climbing up the ranking ladder over the past few seasons. Fritz has one ATP title to his credit, and he reached his first ATP 500 final earlier this year in Acapulco - where he went down to Rafael Nadal.
That said, the American is yet to make the second week at a Grand Slam. He has fallen in the third round on five occasions - including all the three Slams this year.
Borna Coric vs Taylor Fritz head-to-head
Borna Coric leads the head-to-head 3-0 against Taylor Fritz.
The Croat's wins over Fritz have come in the first round of Roland Garros 2016, the round of 16 at Indian Wells 2018, and the round of 16 at 's-Hertogenbosch in 2019.
Borna Coric vs Taylor Fritz prediction
In a recent interview, Borna Coric admitted that being hyped up as a teenager did make things difficult for him.
“But still, you get used to hearing that you are the best, that you are the next Novak Djokovic or the next Roger Federer. Then my expectations have become unrealistic thinking I was going to be top 10 quickly, but it doesn’t work that way. The only pressure I feel is when I look at myself in the mirror, I need to know that I have done everything in my power to be the best that I can be," he said.
Coric seems more self-assured now though, playing without the burden of other people's expectations. With his solid groundstrokes and a renewed focus on his fitness, he certainly has the potential to make it into the top 10, if not further.
Taylor Frtiz, on the other hand, possesses a huge serve and powerful groundstrokes off both wings. But although the two players are only one year apart in age, Fritz doesn't have as much big-match experience as Coric.
Since the resumption of the tour in August following the pandemic-induced shutdown, Fritz has posted a 6-7 record. He will need to do better than that if he hopes to go deep in Vienna, particularly ensuring that his serve is on point.
Given their head-to-head and Coric's improved form in recent weeks, the Croat should be expected to win this match.
Prediction: Borna Coric to win in straight sets.