David Kirouac-USA TODAY Sports/Sipa USA

Sebastian Korda vs Pablo Carreno Busta: ATP Cincinnati – First round

American Sebastian Korda will face off Pablo Carreno Busta in the opening round of ATP Cincinnati.

Sebastian Korda Profile

Sebastian Korda has the highest ranking in his career being No. 15 in the world. The American is 30-18 for the season and 16-7 on hard surface.

Korda is coming off a 7-6, 6-3 loss to Alexei Popyrin in the semifinals in Montreal. The week before, Korda won the title in Washington defeating Flavio Cobolli in the final.

This is his fifth appearance in Cincinnati and his best result was the round of 16 in 2022.

Pablo Carreno Busta Profile

The former world No. 10 Pablo Carreno Busta is currently 513th in the rankings. The Spaniard is 2-5 for the season and 1-1 on hard surface.

He is coming off a 6-1, 6-3 loss to Holger Rune in the second round in Montreal. His only two wins this season came against Fabian Marozsan in Montreal and Dmitry Popko in Poznan.

Carreno Busta made his debut in Cincinnati in 2016 and his best result were the quarterfinals in 2018 and 2021.

Head-to-Head Carreno Busta leads 2-0

• Carreno Busta vs Korda 6-4, 0-6, 6-3 (2022 ATP Halle, round of 16)
• Carreno Busta vs Korda 6-4, 7-5, 6-7, 6-3 (2022 Australian Open, third round)

Prediction and Conclusion

Pablo Carreno Busta is still looking for his top form after returning from an injury that kept him away from the court for almost a year. He is back in Cincinnati, where he has had solid results in the past, but will have to face Korda, who is in Greek form. Korda himself had injury issues recently but has proved that he is back at 100% by winning the title in Washington. Carreno Busta will definitely give his best, but that will not be enough, and Korda will win this one.