By Tony Fairbairn
- Cameron Norrie [11] v Yosuke Watanuki [Q]
- H2H: First Meeting
MADRID, SPAIN – Cameron Norrie aims for clay court consistency when he takes on Yosuke Watanuki in his opening match in Madrid.
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H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Cameron Norrie [11] v Yosuke Watanuki [Q] | H2H: First Meeting |
| Madrid Open 2023 | Madrid, Spain |
| Clay (O) | Prize Money: €27,045 |
| Fifth on Stadium Three (16:00 BST) | Amazon Prime Video <– Sign up for trial |
Cameron Norrie is aiming for clay court consistency after losing to Lorenzo Musetti in Barcelona and first up for the Brit in Madrid is qualifier Yosuke Watanuki.
Tale of the Tape – Key Stats (2023)
| H2H: | Cameron Norrie (WR 13) | Yosuke Watanuki (WR 117) |
| Tournament Previous Best | R3 (2022) | N/A |
| 1st Serve % | 64.8 | 55.1 |
| Service Games Won % | 78.9 | 82.8 |
| Break Points Saved % | 59 | 58.3 |
| 2nd Serve Return Points Won % | 53.7 | 51.3 |
| Break Points Converted % | 40.9 | 35.4 |
Norrie will need to watch out for Watanuki’s effective serving as he looks to continue his efficient returning in Madrid.
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Playing styles and prediction
Watanuki had a good start to the season by reaching a challenger semi-final before qualifying for the Australian Open. The Japanese star has since produced consistent form on the challenger tour and has now qualified for a second Masters 1000 event this season. Now Watanuki looks for a good run in Madrid as he targets a place in the world’s top 100.
Norrie will need to serve well in the quick conditions of Madrid and look to be aggressive at every opportunity to prevent Watanuki from gaining confidence. The Japanese qualifier will look to be consistent on serve and use the angles to make Norrie hit a lot of errors from different areas of the court. This is a potential banana skin match for Norrie but one he should edge through in three sets.
Prediction: Norrie in three sets.
Dominic Thiem [WC] def Kyle Edmund [PR] 6-4 6-1; Andrea Vavassori [Q] def Andy Murray 6-2 7-6(7)
As Norrie thinks about the second round of Madrid, Kyle Edmund and Andy Murray reflect on disappointing opening round exits. Edmund held much of his own in the opening set against former finalist Dominic Thiem. However after being broken in the ninth game, Edmund lost seven of the next eight games as he fell to a rapid exit from the Spanish capital.
As for Murray, the former champion continued his poor form on clay losing in straight sets to Italian qualifier Andrea Vavassori. The Italian dominated a vulnerable looking Murray as the Italian broke as he broke on two occasions to seal a 33 minute opening set. The Brit looked to be heading for the exit as he was broken in the third game of the second set to love.
However Murray found his resilient former self as he broke in the eighth game and found some efficient serving to force a second set tiebreak. Murray kept fighting off the power of Vavassori as he saved four match points, constantly venting his frustration at his poor level of play. However Murray produced two poor volleys as he crashed out of Madrid in the opening round.
Murray will now play the Aix-en-Provence challenger which starts on Monday as he looks to improve his form ahead of Roland Garros.
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