Tomas Machac vs Karen Khachanov Prediction: Karen will be closer to victory

In the Australian Open, Czech Tomas Machac, the 75th ranked player in the world, will face Russian Karen Khachanov, currently No. 15 in the world rankings. The guys have not crossed paths on Tour before, and bookmakers are on the side of the Russian in the pairing, believing that Karen will be closer to victory.

For Machac, the current tournament is his third in 2024. Before the Australian Open, the Czech played tournaments in Brisbane and Adelaide. In Melbourne, the Czech has two wins in two games, both 3:0. First, Machac beat Mochizuki of Japan, then Tiafoe of the USA. The match against Tiafoe lasted two hours and 38 minutes, with the score 6:4, 6:4, 7:6. During the game, Machac made ten aces with one double fault, winning 76% of points on the first and 48% on the second serve.

Khachanov played another 4-set match, knocking out world No. 101 Aleksandar Kovacevic. The match's score was 6:4, 6:3, 4:6, 6:3, and lasted two hours and 32 minutes. During the game, Karen made 22 aces without double faults and won 75% of points on the first serve and 63% on the second. Before defeating Kovacevic, Karen knocked Germany's Altmaier out of the AO-2024 draw.

We don't think we should overvalue Machac. The victory over Tiafoe is good, but we doubt that the Czech will be able to play as confidently as he did against the Americans against the Russians. It is obvious that at the tournament in Melbourne, Karen is gaining tone and improving from game to game, and in terms of experience and class, the Czech is not a competitor for Karen. The maximum that Machac can do in the upcoming game is to win a set.