It has to be considered a really disappointing start to the Cincinnati Masters with both selections barely threatening to return as winners.
The opening two Rounds at the tournament have plenty of matches scheduled, but it has not been easy to find selections that fit the criteria.
There have only been two selections so far at the tournament and there are two more on Sunday as the Second Round is concluded.
Cameron Norrie - 1.5 games v Roberto Bautista Agut: Two veteran players of the ATP Tour meet in the Second Round at the ATP Cincinnati Masters and both should have plenty of belief when it comes to beating the other.
Of course it is Cameron Norrie who has won all four previous Tour matches against Roberto Bautista Agut and so will be justified to have a bit more confidence and that includes a four set win at Wimbledon last month. However, that was a really competitive match and Bautista Agut may feel he was the better player on the day, although it was Cameron Norrie who was winning the bigger points.
Neither player has impressed on the hard courts in 2025- Roberto Bautista Agut had a 1-7 record on the surface prior to his First Round win and had just skipped the Canadian Masters, while an early loss in Toronto has seen Cameron Norrie's record slump to 9-11 after previously putting a couple of wins on the board in Washington.
Cameron Norrie may have done more winning on the surface this season, but the numbers are pretty close between the players and so the expectation is that another closely fought encounter is in the making.
You would have to favour the Norrie lefty serve, but the Roberto Bautista Agut return game is clearly one of his strengths, even if he has not been at his best on that side of his tennis over the last several months.
There has also felt like a longer-term decline in the tennis being produced by the Spaniard and that may show up in this Second Round match. Mentally he has to deal with facing an opponent that has regularly found a way to win the big points to edge the matches in his own favour and all of that suggests it may be a bit too challenging for Roberto Bautista Agut to overcome.
In the tight moments, Cameron Norrie does have some wins behind him to build the confidence, while the two victories in Washington will help after a decent, unexpected showing at Wimbledon.
Nothing ever seemingly comes easy for the British player, but he can overcome this spread even if it takes three sets get the better of Roberto Bautista Agut.
Jakub Mensik - 3.5 games v Ethan Quinn: There are two young players making their way on the Tour who represent Czechia, but Jakub Mensik may have moved a step ahead of Tomas Machac as the player with the most potential. He has already won a Masters event on the hard courts when upsetting Novak Djokovic in Miami earlier this year and Jakub Mensik will be heading to New York City with some real expectations of making an impact at the final Grand Slam of the season.
He is pretty solid on all surfaces, but Jakub Mensik has perhaps struggled for consistency since that success in Miami.
At 19 years old, so much more is yet to come from him though and his record on the hard courts this year will give him confidence, despite the early loss in Toronto. It was a defeat to Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, a player in a purple patch of form, and the Second Round match in Cincinnati should be more manageable.
However, overlooking Ethan Quinn would be a mistake.
This is something you would expect Jakub Mensik to avoid having been pushed by the American on the clay courts earlier this year, while Ethan Quinn has put a win on the board here in Cincinnati. It means he is happy enough with the conditions that will be faced and he has a game that can be dangerous if Ethan Quinn is at his best.
The real struggle for the World Number 82 has been on the return of serve when facing opponents Ranked in the top 100. That has built up some pressure on the serve, although Ethan Quinn will have the confidence of having a 5-5 record against top 100 Ranked opponents on the hard courts in 2025.
He had lost all four matches when the opponent has been Ranked in the top 50, but Ethan Quinn has managed to turn that around with the victory in the First Round. This is one that should aid the confidence ahead of another big test, and so Ethan Quinn deserves plenty of respect.
However, you do have to believe that Jakub Mensik can serve well enough to keep the home hope under some scoreboard pressure and ultimately that could pay off. It is key to his chances to serve well, but that has been a part of the Mensik game that has been pretty reliable and he may end up finding the breaks of serve to ultimately cover a line that perhaps would have felt more comfortable if set at 2.5 rather than 3.5 where it stands.
MY PICKS: Cameron Norrie - 1.5 Games @ 1.85 William Hill (1 Unit)
Jakub Mensik - 3.5 Games @ 2.20 William Hill (1 Unit)
Cincinnati Update: 0-2, - 2 Units (2 Units Staked, - 100% Yield)
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