3rd seed Taylor Fritz takes on 7th seed Tommy Paul in the semifinals of the 2023 Mexican Open on Friday.
The world No. 5 has reached his third consecutive semifinal. He began with a come-from-behind win against compatriot John Isner. The match ended 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in favor of Fritz. He went on to beat Denis Shapovalov in straight sets 6-4, 6-4 with a solid display. He served very well throughout the match. A win percentage of 97 on the first serve supports the same.
In the quarterfinals, Fritz faced compatriot and friend, Frances Tiafoe. This turned out to be a rather one-sided affair as Fritz convincingly won 6-3, 6-4. His serve wasn’t broken in the entire match and he converted 2 out of 3 break points to sail into the semifinals.
The 25-year-old began with a solid win against Emilio Gomez in the first round. The first set was lopsided but Paul had to dig deep in the second set to eventually win the match 6-1, 7-6 (7-4). In the second round, Paul played compact tennis to take the first set against Michael Mmoh. The second set was tied at 2-2 when Mmoh pulled out. Paul wasn’t broken in this match and had a win percentage of 79 on the first serve.
In the quarterfinals, Paul made light work of another American player, Mackenzie McDonald. The match ended 6-2, 6-2 as Paul’s serve wasn’t broken for the second-straight match. He once again had a win percentage of 79 on the first serve.
The two players have faced each other thrice with Fritz having a 2-1 lead in the head-to-head scoreline. He defeated Paul 7-6, 6-4 in their most recent encounter in the 2022 Miami Open.
Prediction: Taylor Fritz to win in three sets.
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