Simon Dalton presents his prediction for the ATP Miami match.
The Spaniard and the Czech are very close in the rankings: Bautista Agut is 50th, while Mensik is 54th. However, their performances in the first quarter of the season have left entirely different impressions.
Roberto Bautista Agut
Age is also a factor here. The Spanish veteran is almost twice as old as the Czech—he is about to turn 37, while his opponent is just 19. Roberto has entered six tournaments this year but has only managed to win his opening match in one of them. That happened in Dubai, where he barely scraped past Hungarian Fabian Marozsan (55) in a third-set tiebreak. In five of his six tournaments, Bautista Agut lost to players ranked lower than him.
Jakub Mensik
The Czech has also played six ATP tournaments before Miami. Last week, he combined business with pleasure by competing at a Challenger event in the Dominican Republic while enjoying the warm ocean. Mensik found the right balance and reached the semi-finals. In the main tour, he has secured eight wins. His last three defeats have come only against top-30 players: Alex de Minaur (8) in the Rotterdam last 16, compatriot Tomas Machac (25) in the first round of Acapulco, and Karen Khachanov (23) in the second round of Indian Wells.
Roberto Bautista Agut vs Jakub Mensik Prediction
Given their age difference, it would have been surprising if they had faced each other before—after all, the young Czech only broke into the top 100 last year. Experience is important, but so is endurance, and at just 19, Jakub Mensik undoubtedly has the edge in that department. That’s why we are confident he will win convincingly.
