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Match details
Fixture: (3) Casper Ruud vs (Q) Cristian Garin
Date: March 12, 2023
Tournament: BNP Paribas Open
Round: Third round (Round of 32)
Venue: Indian Wells, California, USA
Category: ATP Masters 1000
Surface: Outdoor hardcourt
Prize money: $8,800,000
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video
Casper Ruud vs Cristian Garin preview
Third seed Casper Ruud will lock horns with World No. 97 Cristian Garin in the third round of the 2023 BNP Paribas Open on Sunday.
After a first-round bye, Ruud faced Diego Schwartzman in the second round. The Norwegian was off to a fast start as he raced to a 4-1 lead in the opening set. He broke his opponent's serve yet again towards the end to claim the set.
Ruud was the better player in the second set as well, despite some pushback from Schwartzman. The World No. 4 nabbed the decisive break in the sixth game of the set to go 4-2 up. He wrapped up the proceedings soon after to start his Indian Wells campaign with a 6-2, 6-3 victory.
Garin, meanwhile, knocked out Learner Tien and Filip Misolic to qualify for the main draw at Indian Wells. Following a straight-sets win over Daniel Elahi Galan, he took on 29th seed Yoshihito Nishioka in the second round.
The two were evenly matched for most of the first set. Nishioka crumbled towards the end while serving to stay in the set at 5-4. Garin broke the Japanese's serve to clinch the opener. The second set was one-way traffic as the Chilean dished out a bagel to win the match 6-4, 6-0.
Casper Ruud vs Cristian Garin head-to-head
Garin leads Ruud 2-1 in the head-to-head. The latter won their previous encounter at the 2022 ATP Cup in straight sets.
Casper Ruud vs Cristian Garin odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Casper Ruud vs Cristian Garin prediction
Garin's second-round win over Nishioka marked the first time he has won two main-draw matches in a row since last year's Wimbledon Championships. After a close first set, he completely steamrolled his opponent. The 26-year-old ended the match with 20 winners and 14 unforced errors.
Ruud played a pretty decent match himself and never allowed Schwartzman a chance to settle into their second-round encounter. The relatively slow conditions, coupled with a high bounce, further enhanced his game.
While Garin does have a winning record against Ruud, both of those wins came during a period when the latter was finding his footing on the tour. Now, the Norwegian has accomplished a lot more than the Chilean, who has fallen down the rankings as well.
Ruud has had a rough season so far, but looked like his former self in the previous round. Garin, too, is having a good week here so far. The World No. 4 is likely to encounter some stiff resistance, but should be able to prevail in the end.
Pick: Casper Ruud to win in straight sets.
