Michael Mmoh vs Max Purcell Prediction & Betting Tips - ATP Houston

Prediction published on 03/04/2024, 09:30  by Steve Ashfield | Modified on 03/04/2024 at 10:30 in Tennis Predictions

After a tough first round match, eighth seed Max Purcell faces wild card Michael Mmoh. This is a second round match in the  US Clay Court Championships in Houston. Whoever gets through faces a quarter final against either fourth seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry or unseeded Daniel Elahi Galan. Purcell had to go to three sets to beat Alex Michelsen in round one, losing the middle one. After that win he's 79th in the live rankings but was as high as 40th in 2023. The Australian had lost his last four matches before beating Michelsen. So far this year he's failed to win two successive matches in any tournament. On clay, Purcell won a Futures tournament six years ago and made it to the second round at Roland Garros last year. The last five years have seen him lose more matches than he's won on this surface.

Michael Mmoh is 123rd in the latest rankings but up ten places in the live list. That's because he beat Juan Pablo Virallas in the first round of this clay court tournament. He's met Purcell on two previous occasions and won the one played on clay. That was six years ago though and this is their first match since 2019. He needed that first round win as it ended a losing run of four successive matches, all on hard courts. His best performance this year was reaching the last eight of the indoor hard court tournament held in Montpellier. Mmoh has played six times at Roland Garros and is yet to win a match there. He did reach a clay court Challenger Tour final two years ago though. This could be a tight match and we go for Mmoh to edge the win.