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Andrey Rublev vs Nuno Borges: ATP Basel – first round
Andrey Rublev will take on Nuno Borges in the opening round of ATP Basel.
Andrey Rublev Profile
Andrey Rublev is currently seventh in the ATP rankings, and his career high was No. 5 in the world. The Russian is 42-21 for the season and 3-2 in indoor matches.
Rublev is coming off a 7-6, 7-6 quarterfinal loss to Stan Wawrinka in Stockholm.
He won the titles in Hong Kong and Madrid this season.
This will be his first appearance in Basel.
Nuno Borges Profile
Nuno Borges is 33rd in the ATP rankings, three spots lower than his career high. The Portuguese is 34-23 for the season and this will be his first indoor match of the year.
This is his first match since the US Open where he lost 6-0, 6-1, 6-3 to Daniil Medvedev in the round of 16.
Borges won the tournaments in Bastad and Phoenix this season.
This will be his first appearance in Basel.
Head-to-Head
This will be the first match between Andrey Rublev and Nuno Borges.
Prediction and Conclusion
Andrey Rublev is still hanging on in the top 10 of the ATP list, but unless he goes deep in some tournaments by the end of the season, he may see himself drop in the rankings. The Russian is definitely in some sort of crisis after losing more than two matches in a tournament in the last couple of months. Nuno Borges has not even played in the last period, and it is questionable how ready he is for the tournament in Basel. He has yet to play indoors this season. Given the current state of both players, we go with Rublev to win this match in straight sets.