Taylor Fritz vs Mackenzie McDonald 9/28/22 Korea Open Tennis Picks, Predictions, Odds

Taylor Fritz will meet Mackenzie McDonald in the Round of 16 of the 2022 Korea Open in Seoul. The match is scheduled to be played on Wednesday September 28th, 2022.

Taylor Fritz is the third seed here at the Korea Open and is ranked 12th on the ATP Tour. The American has been having a stellar season in which he won his first ever Masters-1000 title in Indian Wells, and was recently selected to compete for Team World at the Laver Cup. However, despite all of the strides that he has made this season he was bundled out in the First Round at the US Open to fellow American Brandon Holt. Fritz would have had fancied his chances to go deep into the draw at his home slam, and that loss will undoubtedly still be bothering him. He is one of the major favorites to bounce back and win the title here in Seoul, but first he will have to overcome the challenge from another countryman in Mackenzie McDonald.

Mackenzie McDonald is unseeded here at the Korea Open and is ranked 82nd in the world. The American has a huge baseline game despite his small stature and is known to be a real handful as an opponent. He has been having a very tough time lately, struggling to win consecutive matches over the past few months. His talent cannot be ignored, but expecting him to defeat a premier hard court player like Taylor Fritz might be too much to hope for. McDonald had a real struggle in the First Round here, defeating Pedro Martinez in two tight sets. He has the type of aggressive game to trouble Fritz who likes to be in control of the rallies, but his lack of a major weapon is really going to work against him here.

Assuming Taylor Fritz is healthy, this should be a comfortable win for him. Mackenzie McDonald is a very talented player that I like a lot, but as mentioned before, he does not really have an avenue to win many free points, and against a big server like Fritz he is likely to struggle. Fritz has really stepped up his game this season and despite the hiccup at the US Open, I like him to bounce back here and possibly go all the way in Korea. Back him in straight sets with confidence.