Andy Murray in the second round of the 2022 Qatar ExxonMobil Open, Doha | (Photo by Colin McPhedran/MB Media/Getty Images)

Tennis | ATP Dubai 2022 | Murray looks to bounce back from Doha disappointment, faces O’Connell in opening match

Tony Fairbairn

Tennis

February 20, 2022

Andy Murray [WC] v Christopher O’Connell [Q]
H2H: First Meeting

DUBAI, UAE – Andy Murray will look to bounce back from a disappointing week in Doha when he takes on Christopher O’Connell in the first round of Dubai.

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H2H & Match Fundamentals

Andy Murray [WC] v Christopher O’Connell [Q]	H2H: First Meeting
ATP Dubai	Dubai, UAE
Hard (O)	Prize Money: $21,800
3^rd on Centre Court (Not before 15:00 GMT)	Amazon Prime Video <– Sign up for trial

After winning only one game in his second round match in Doha against Roberto Bautista Agut, Andy Murray will look to turn things around in Dubai as he begins against Australian qualifier Christopher O’Connell.

Tale of the Tape – Key Stats (2022 – Hard)

Embed from Getty Images

H2H:	Andy Murray (WR 87)	Christopher O’Connell (WR 148)
Tournament Previous Best	Winner (2017)	R1 (2021)
1^st Serve %	60.3	63.4
Service Games Won %	78.7	83.8
Break Points Saved %	50	63.2
2^nd Serve Return Points Won %	52.5	54.1
Break Points Converted %	31.5	43

O’Connell has produced good serving and returning stats this season but has only beaten two top 100 players this season. On the other hand Murray will be looking to improve his break point conversion rate.

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Playing styles and prediction

O’Connell had a good Australian Open tournament beating Hugo Gaston and Diego Schwartzman before losing to Maxime Cressy. The Australian has a big serve and likes to finish points off at the net and has proved tricky for top 100 players on the ATP tour.

Murray will need to have a good day on return if he wants to win here, the Brit will look to use his experience to grind out the rallies and make things tricky for the Australian. A defeat here will be seen as a couple of steps backwards in Murray’s bid for consistency and progress. Consistency will be the key and usually that is at a high level for the Brit when it comes to the first match of the tournament.

Prediction: Murray in straight sets.