America’s Frances Tiafoe and Tomas Machac of the Czech Republic are set to lock horns in the group stage of the 2023 United Cup on Friday.
The 24-year-old enjoyed his best season so far on the tour in 2022. He won accolades for his sensational performance at the US Open. He reached the semifinals of the final Grand Slam event of the year and also defeated the mighty Rafael Nadal in the process. Tiafoe gave eventual champion and current world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz a really tough fight in the semis but eventually lost in five sets.
Overall, the world No. 19 managed to win 35 singles matches on the tour in 2022 and ended up losing 25. During his Canadian Open campaign, Tiafoe became the American No. 2. His campaign ended in Montreal with a loss against American No. 1 Taylor Fritz in the round of 32.
The current Czech No. 2 will have to fight for every point and also find ways to counter the attacking prowess of his upcoming opponent. Machac turned pro in 2017. He made his Masters 1000 debut at the BNP Paribas Open. He recorded his first victory at this level in the first round against Alexei Popyrin before losing to then world No. 1, Daniil Medvedev, in the following round.
The 21-year-old will also remember 2022 fondly as he made his US Open debut this year. He also made it to the top 100 for the first time in his career on 21 November 2022.
The head-to-head scoreline currently stands at 0-0 as the two players have not faced each other as yet.
Prediction: Frances Tiafoe to win in straight sets.
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