Jiri Lehecka vs Dominic Thiem Prediction & Betting Tips - Umag, Croatia

Prediction published on 26/07/2023, 04:00  by Devesh Jaganath | Modified on 27/07/2023 at 02:30 in Tennis Predictions

World number 34 Jiri Lehecka will take on 113th-ranked Dominic Thiem in the second round of the ATP Umag Open on Wednesday. The winner of this match will face either Flavio Cobolli or Matteo Arnaldi in the quarter-finals. This will be Lehecka’s first match in the tournament, as he received a buy in the first round as the number one seed. The Czech will be returning to the court after retiring hurt in his fourth-round match at Wimbledon against Daniil Medvedev. Lehecka has delivered mixed results on the clay surface this year, currently 9-7, while his overall record for the year stands at 28-18. He has played five ATP tournaments on the clay and is 5-5, though he has suffered two first-round exits at the Madrid and Rome Masters, as well as a second-round defeat at Roland Garros. This is his first appearance here at Umag, and he will need to find his rhythm quite quickly against Thiem, who is a tricky opponent on his day. 

Meanwhile, Thiem comes into this match off the back of a win over Facundo Bagnis, who is a proper clay court competitor, though he has fallen in the rankings in recent times. Thiem lived up to his favourite tag in the match and took a little over two hours to overcome the Argentine 6-4 7-5 while saving six break points in the match. The Austrian reached the second round in Gstaad last week, losing to qualifier Hamad Medjedovic in three sets. His record is now 14-21 for the year, though it is worth noting that all 14 of his wins have come on the clay, where his record currently reads as 14-13. The Austrian will likely rely on his service, which was immense against Bagnis and will hope that he can emulate his 84% first serve win percentage from that match in this one.