Hubert Hurkacz and Jack Draper are already familiar foes; they will face each other once again as second-round action gets underway in Madrid. Ugo Humbert and Botic van de Zandschulp are also on the Friday schedule.
(8) Hubert Hurkacz vs. Jack Draper
Hurkacz and Draper will be meeting for the fifth time in their careers and for the second time during this clay-court swing when they battle for a place in round three of the Mutua Madrid Open on Friday. The head-to-head series stands at 3-1 in favor of Hurkacz, who most recently prevailed 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(2) at the Monte-Carlo Masters. Their only other clay-court encounter came at the same Monte-Carlo event in 2023, when Hurkacz won 6-3, 6-7(3), 7-5.
Although clay is not an ideal surface for Hurkacz’s big-serving game, he is without question an all-court player. In fact, his current clay-court season already includes a title in Estoril followed by a pair of victories in Monte-Carlo. Draper, who is also better on faster surfaces, scraped past Thanasi Kokkinakis 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 in the opening round. The 43rd-ranked Brit is coming off a quarterfinal showing in Munich, where all three of his matches required three sets–including a final-set tiebreaker loss to Taylor Fritz. Even though Hurkacz is more rested, leads the head-to-head series, and is slightly superior on clay, the margins between these two guys are always small. Expect at least one tiebreaker and perhaps even two.
Pick: Hurkacz in 2
(13) Ugo Humbert vs. Botic van de Zandschulp
The 2024 campaign has been outstanding for Humbert, who has pretty much been on fire dating back to last summer. He wrapped up 2023 with a title in Metz and has already lifted trophies this year in Marseille and Dubai. The 14th-ranked Frenchman may not be at his best on clay, but he did well to reach the Monte-Carlo quarterfinals two weeks ago before losing right away in Barcelona to eventual semifinalist Dusan Lajovic.
Up first for Humbert is Van de Zandschulp, who trails the head-to-head series 3-0 (2-0 on the main tour). They faced each other earlier this spring in Miami, where Humbert won 6-4, 6-3. It’s hard to expect anything different in Madrid, as Van de Zandschulp is decent but unspectacular on clay and overall has been in terrible form over the past 12 months. Quick conditions in Madrid will also help Humbert to a greater extent than other clay-court tournaments, so this should be one-way traffic.
Pick: Humbert in 2
