Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports/Sipa USA

Sebastian Baez vs Borna Coric: ATP Winston Salem – Second round

Borna Coric will be looking for his first win over the defending champion Sebastian Baez when the two meet in the second round of ATP Winston Salem.

Sebastian Baez Profile

The ATP Winston Salem defending champion Sebastian Baez is 21st in the ATP rankings, three spots lower than his career high. The Argentinian is 30-22 for the season and 4-6 on hard surface.

Baez is coming off a 6-2, 6-4 loss to Jordan Thompson in the second round in Cincinnati after he moved past Marcos Giron in the opener.

Baez won two titles this season in Santiago and Rio de Janeiro on clay. His best results on hard surface were the third round at the Australian Open and in Indian Wells.

Borna Coric Profile

Former world No. 12 Borna Coric is currently 87th in the ATP rankings. The Croat is 18-20 for the season and 6-8 on hard surface.

Coric is coming off a 6-4, 6-2 win over Sumit Nagal in the first round of the tournament. Last week he failed to qualify for the tournament in Cincinnati after losing to Lorenzo Sonego in the qualifiers.

Coric reached two finals early in the season but lost on both occasions in Montpellier and the Challenger in Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve.

This is his fourth appearance in Winston Salem and last year he reached the semifinal.

Head-to-Head Baez 2-0

• Baez vs Coric 7-5, 7-5, 6-1 (2023 US Open, first round)
• Baez vs Coric 6-3, 6-7, 7-6 (2023 ATP Winston Salem, semifinal)

Prediction and Conclusion

Last year, these two met in the semifinals at Winston Salem, where Baez won the decisive tiebreak and later won the title. The Argentinian prefers playing on clay but is also a threat on hard surfaces as well, and Coric knows that. The Croatian was within reach of the top 10 players in the world not that long ago, but a shoulder injury has taken a huge toll on his performance. Baez is the favorite to win this match, but Coric will give his best, and this match should go over 22.5 games in total.