Madrid Open 2023: Taylor Fritz vs Christopher O'Connell preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds, and pick

Fixture: (8) Taylor Fritz vs Christopher O'Connell

Date: Saturday, April 29

Tournament:Madrid Masters 2023

Round: Second Round (Round of 64)

Venue: Caja Magica, Madrid, Spain

Surface: Outdoor clay

Prize money: €7,705,780

Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video

Taylor Fritz vs Christopher O'Connell preview

Eighth seed Taylor Fritz opens his Madrid Masters campaign against Australian Christopher O'Connell on Saturday.

World No. 10 Fritz is 25-8 this season and is in the midst of a strong European claycourt swing, having reached the semifinals in Munich last week and Monte-Carlo the week before that.

The 25-year-old American has had a solid campaign overall, opening the year with four wins in five matches in Team USA's successful campaign at the inaugural United Cup Down Under. After an early exit at the Australian Open, Fritz played some exquisite tennis on the North American hardcourts.

The American won his first title of the year at Delray Beach and reached the semifinals at Dallas and Acapulco. He then made the last eight at both Indian Wells and Miami. Fritz will look to improve on his 1-2 Madrid record, with that win coming in 2019.

Meanwhile, the 81st-ranked O'Connell improved to 9-8 on the season by seeing off Filip Krajinovic in his opener. The 28-year-old Australian is having a strong run on European clay, making the semifinals in Munich and the Split Challenger and the last eight in Marrakech.

After making a 1-4 start to the season, O'Connell reached the Doha quarterfinals and the Dubai second round before exiting early in Miami. He's making his Madrid Open debut.

Taylor Fritz vs Christopher O'Connell head-to-head

The two players haven't clashed before, so their head-to-head record stands at 0-0.

Taylor Fritz vs Christopher O'Connell odds

(All odds as per BETMGM)

Taylor Fritz vs Christopher O'Connell prediction

Both Fritz and O'Connell look to dominate opponents from the baseline, but the American takes the edge in terms of his superior consistency and experience.

Both players tend to play their best tennis on hardcourt - where their big serves, strong groundstrokes and good movement - pay rich dividends. However, Fritz has found a way to be successful on clay and has come close to reaching a maiden final on the surface.

Fritz is 30-26 on clay, with five of these wins coming this month across his last two tournaments. Meanwhile, O'Connell is only 7-6 and could struggle against the in-form American.