World number 12 Denis Shapovalov has a task on his hand when he faces Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz in the third round of the 2021 ATP Dubai on Wednesday, March 17. The match is yet to be scheduled. Get the live streaming options of this Denis Shapovalov v Hubert Hurkacz match along with its preview, head to head, and tips here.
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Denis Shapovalov v Hubert Hurkacz Head to Head
Despite the difference in the ranking, the world number 35 Hurkacz has defeated the 12th-ranked Shapovalov in both of their previous two meetings. The first came at the Indian Wells Masters of 2019, where Hurkacz won a three-setter to proceed to the quarterfinal while this was followed by a Winston-Salem Open semifinal victory that very season.
Hurkacz went on to win that title in Winston-Salem, which was his maiden one on the tour.
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Shapovalov Stalls Struff Run
For a player ranked so high on the charts and to still possess a badly losing record against Jan-Lennard Struff was an anomaly that Shapovalov would have loved to sort out. And he did it in fine style in his second round match at the ATP Dubai, crushing his opponent 6-1, 6-3 to move into the round of 16.
And it wasn’t just about straightening a poor record. Shapovalov is also looking to turn things around when it comes to his own form, having lost both the ATP Cup matches, gone out in the third round at the Australian Open and then fallen in the second match in Doha last week.
For Shapovalov to then win in straight sets, in a mere hour and three minutes, would give the Canadian a lot of confidence. Shapovalov broke his opponent’s serve four times in the entire match while facing and saving two break-points in turn.
Question is whether he can continue with that same form against another player who has a winning record against the Canadian?
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Hurkacz Hits Bit of a Rut
It was the kind of start to the season that Hurkacz would have dreamed of, starting out with a title win at the Delray Beach Open by beating Sebastian Korda in the final. Unfortunately for the Pole, things went a tad sideways after that, with a quarterfinal at the Great Ocean Road Open being the only performance of any note since then.
Opening round exits at the Australian Open and Montpellier Open and a second round loss at Rotterdam meant Hurkacz needed to rebuild to get back to the Delray Beach momentum.
He has started off well here in Dubai. The world number 35, who had a first round bye as well, crashed into Richard Gasquet’s party with a 6-3, 6-4 victory in a mere hour and nine minutes. In a cagey affair, Hurkacz broke his opponent twice in the match but more importantly faced no break-points of his own in the entire match.
It might not be as easy in this third round encounter but Hurkacz will know he has a good record against this opponent.
Shapovalov v Hurkacz Prediction and Tip
Shapovalov looks to be a tad too short at 1/2 to win this, and we think Hurkacz could give the Canadian a run for his money.
Tip: Three sets in the match: 6/4 (bet365)
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The 2021 ATP Dubai Open will be played from March 14-21. You can watch & bet on these matches here. Get your latest premium tennis predictions here.
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