Fabio Fognini vs Sebastian Baez Prediction & Betting Tips - ATP Indian Wells

Prediction published on 08/03/2024, 12:27  by Steve Ashfield | Modified on 08/03/2024 at 13:27 in ATP Indian Wells Predictions

19th seed Sebastian Baez has shown good form on both hard and clay courts this year. He takes on wild card Fabio Fognini in round two at Indian Wells after being given a first round bye. Whoever wins this match could face 12th seed Taylor Fritz in round three. Baez is sixth in the Live ATP Race, mainly because of his recent clay court form. In the lead up to this Masters 1000 tournament, he's won two clay events in a row in Santiago and Rio. He's unbeaten in his last nine matches but isn't a one-trick pony. Baez reached the third round of the Australian Open this year but then lost to eventual champion Jannik Sinner. He got to the third round at Indian Wells last year.

Fabio Fognini has been as high as ninth in the rankings but that was five years ago. He's had plenty of injury problems since then and was down at 108th in the rankings when this tournament began. He had problems in the first round and had to come from behind to beat Bernabe Zapata Miralles. His best performance in Indian Wells was getting to the fourth round ten years ago. He's struggled here since and only got past round two once in his last five visits and never into the fourth round. This is only his second ATP Tour event of the year, the other being in Doha where he lost in the first qualifying round. Before that he played in two Challenger Tour events with a 2-2 record. His only match against Baez was lost but that was on clay. We tip Baez to win their first match on a hard court.