Tennis predictions, July 23, 2026: Molcan vs. Bublik, Udvardy vs. Badosa
By The Maiden Desk · July 23, 2026
Every pick below gets graded after the match — wins and misses both stay up.
15 matches are on Thursday's card across 4 events, and we have a pick for every one of them. The headline act: Alex Molcan against Alexander Bublik in the quarterfinal. Our calls: Bublik over Molcan, Badosa over Udvardy, Etcheverry over Buse, Halys over Navone, Busta over Assche, Oliynykova over Gormaz, and 9 more. As always, every pick below is graded after the fact and stays up, right or wrong.
The boldest call on the card: Timofeeva over Bejlek — the market disagrees with us there.
Alex Molcan and Alexander Bublik meet in the quarterfinal at Kitzbuhel on Thursday. Alexander Bublik has dropped 2 straight and sits at 6-4 over the last ten. Alex Molcan has won 5 of the last 10.
Alex Molcan leads the head-to-head 1-0, and history has a way of mattering in matchups like this one. On clay specifically it reads 1-0 Molcan — worth more than the overall number this week.
Hold strength tells the story — 77.8% versus 65.9% on first-serve points in Bublik's favor. Molcan comes in off a compressed schedule; Bublik comes in off a compressed schedule. A tiebreak or two would surprise nobody, with Bublik fractionally more likely to land the big points.
Pick: Bublik
Win probability: 51% Bublik · Sets: 2 (58%) · most likely score 2-0 (30%)
✓ Pick rightNailed it. We had Alexander Bublik at 51% before the match, and Alexander Bublik won 6-3 6-2.
A spot in the next round is at stake on Thursday, when Panna Udvardy goes up against Paula Badosa in the Hamburg round of 16. Paula Badosa has won 9 in a row and 9 of the last 10 overall. Panna Udvardy comes in at 4 wins from the last ten.
Paula Badosa has had the better of this rivalry, winning 1 of 1 against Panna Udvardy. On clay specifically it reads 1-0 Badosa — worth more than the overall number this week.
Badosa's 65.2% behind the first serve (against 61.9% for Udvardy) means break chances should be scarce in one direction. Badosa comes in off a compressed schedule. This one is close to a coin flip, and the lean toward Badosa is exactly that — a lean.
Pick: Badosa
Win probability: 54% Badosa · Sets: 2 (63%) · most likely score 2-0 (35%)
✓ Pick rightWe got this one right. Paula Badosa was our 54% pick, and won 6-4 6-1.
Thursday's Kitzbuhel quarterfinal pits Ignacio Buse against Tomas Martin Etcheverry on clay. Tomas Martin Etcheverry limps in on a 7-match losing skid, just 2 wins in 10. Ignacio Buse is 4-6 across recent matches.
There is no history here: this is their first tour-level meeting.
The underlying stats are tight across the board — this is a matchup decided by a handful of points. Buse comes in off a compressed schedule; Etcheverry comes in off a compressed schedule. Little separates them; Etcheverry gets the nod on the finest of margins.
Pick: Etcheverry
Win probability: 51% Etcheverry · Sets: 3 (49%) · most likely score 2-0 (26%)
✓ Pick rightThis one lands on the correct side of the ledger: 51% on Tomas Martin Etcheverry, who won 6-2 7-5.
Mariano Navone and Quentin Halys meet in the quarterfinal at Kitzbuhel on Thursday. Quentin Halys has won 5 of the last 10. Mariano Navone is 3-7 across recent matches.
There is no history here: this is their first tour-level meeting.
Halys's 77% behind the first serve (against 62.4% for Navone) means break chances should be scarce in one direction. Navone comes in off a compressed schedule; Halys comes in off a compressed schedule. Halys should have enough here, though Navone has the tools to make the scoreboard uncomfortable.
Pick: HalysUpset call
Upset call — the market makes Navone the favorite; our numbers say Halys.
Win probability: 60% Halys · Sets: 3 (44%) · most likely score 2-0 (35%)
✓ Pick rightNailed it. We had Quentin Halys at 60% before the match, and Quentin Halys won 7-5 6-3.
Thursday's Estoril round of 16 pits Luca Van Assche against Pablo Carreno Busta on clay. Pablo Carreno Busta has won 6 of the last 10. Luca Van Assche comes in at 8 wins from the last ten.
Luca Van Assche leads the head-to-head 1-0, and history has a way of mattering in matchups like this one.
On paper it's close: comparable ratings, comparable serve numbers, small margins everywhere. Busta comes in off a compressed schedule. Expect resistance, but the match-level math tilts clearly toward Busta.
Pick: Busta
Win probability: 65% Busta · Sets: 3 (44%) · most likely score 2-0 (38%)
✗ Pick wrongA miss: Pablo Carreno Busta at 65% lost to Luca Van Assche (6-3 4-6 6-2). It stays up, like every other miss.
Leyre Romero Gormaz and Oleksandra Oliynykova meet in the round of 16 at Hamburg on Thursday. Oleksandra Oliynykova is 6-4 across recent matches. Leyre Romero Gormaz is 8-2 across recent matches.
This is the first career meeting between the two, which means no head-to-head baggage on either side of the net.
On paper it's close: comparable ratings, comparable serve numbers, small margins everywhere. Little separates them; Oliynykova gets the nod on the finest of margins.
Pick: Oliynykova
Win probability: 54% Oliynykova · Sets: 3 (42%) · most likely score 2-0 (32%)
✓ Pick rightNailed it. We had Oleksandra Oliynykova at 54% before the match, and Oleksandra Oliynykova won 7-6 3-6 6-2.
Sebastian Baez and Yannick Hanfmann meet in the quarterfinal at Kitzbuhel on Thursday. Yannick Hanfmann has won 5 of the last 10. Sebastian Baez is 8-2 across recent matches.
The ledger favors Yannick Hanfmann, 1-0 across their 1 meetings with Sebastian Baez. On clay specifically it reads 1-0 Hanfmann — worth more than the overall number this week.
Hold strength tells the story — 70.2% versus 65.1% on first-serve points in Hanfmann's favor. Baez comes in off a compressed schedule; Hanfmann comes in off a compressed schedule. Hanfmann should have enough here, though Baez has the tools to make the scoreboard uncomfortable.
Pick: Hanfmann
Win probability: 71% Hanfmann · Sets: 2 (58%) · most likely score 2-0 (43%)
✓ Pick rightWe got this one right. Yannick Hanfmann was our 71% pick, and won 6-3 6-1.
Thursday's Livesport Prague Open round of 16 pits Maria Timofeeva against Sara Bejlek on clay. Maria Timofeeva is 7-3 across recent matches. Sara Bejlek is 4-6 across recent matches.
This is the first career meeting between the two, which means no head-to-head baggage on either side of the net.
On paper it's close: comparable ratings, comparable serve numbers, small margins everywhere. The edge belongs to Timofeeva — real, but not the kind you take for granted at this level.
Pick: TimofeevaUpset call
Upset call — the market makes Bejlek the favorite; our numbers say Timofeeva.
Win probability: 62% Timofeeva · Sets: 2 (59%) · most likely score 2-0 (38%)
✗ Pick wrongA miss: Maria Timofeeva at 62% lost to Sara Bejlek (6-1 6-1). It stays up, like every other miss.
Lilli Tagger and Mai Hontama meet in the round of 16 at Livesport Prague Open on Thursday. Lilli Tagger has won 3 of the last 10. Mai Hontama is 3-7 across recent matches.
There is no history here: this is their first tour-level meeting.
The serve is where this match separates: Tagger has been winning 66.4% of first-serve points to Hontama's 58.2%, and on clay that gap compounds fast. Little separates them; Tagger gets the nod on the finest of margins.
Pick: Tagger
Win probability: 52% Tagger · Sets: 2 (67%) · most likely score 2-0 (35%)
✓ Pick rightWe got this one right. Lilli Tagger was our 52% pick, and won 6-4 6-4.
A spot in the next round is at stake on Thursday, when Andrey Rublev goes up against Timofey Skatov in the Estoril round of 16. Andrey Rublev has won 4 in a row and 7 of the last 10 overall. Timofey Skatov has dropped 4 straight and sits at 4-6 over the last ten.
This is the first career meeting between the two, which means no head-to-head baggage on either side of the net.
Rublev's 74.2% behind the first serve (against 66.2% for Skatov) means break chances should be scarce in one direction. Skatov comes in off a compressed schedule. If Rublev plays anywhere close to a normal level, this ends in relatively comfortable fashion.
Pick: Rublev
Win probability: 83% Rublev · Sets: 2 (67%) · most likely score 2-0 (58%)
✓ Pick rightThis one lands on the correct side of the ledger: 83% on Andrey Rublev, who won 6-1 6-1.
A spot in the next round is at stake on Thursday, when Elina Avanesyan goes up against Yulia Putintseva in the Hamburg round of 16. Yulia Putintseva comes in at 6 wins from the last ten. Elina Avanesyan is 6-4 across recent matches.
Yulia Putintseva leads the head-to-head 1-0, and history has a way of mattering in matchups like this one.
Yulia Putintseva is clearly higher-rated on clay — our number puts Putintseva around 72%. Putintseva should have enough here, though Avanesyan has the tools to make the scoreboard uncomfortable.
Pick: Putintseva
Win probability: 72% Putintseva · Sets: 2 (64%) · most likely score 2-0 (48%)
✗ Pick wrongA miss: Yulia Putintseva at 72% lost to Elina Avanesyan (6-3 2-6 6-2). It stays up, like every other miss.
A spot in the next round is at stake on Thursday, when Lanlana Tararudee goes up against Nikola Bartunkova in the Livesport Prague Open round of 16. Lanlana Tararudee has won 7 of the last 10. Nikola Bartunkova has won 6 of the last 10.
The two have never played — a first meeting always adds a layer of uncertainty the numbers can't fully capture.
The underlying stats are tight across the board — this is a matchup decided by a handful of points. Little separates them; Tararudee gets the nod on the finest of margins.
Pick: TararudeeUpset call
Upset call — the market makes Bartunkova the favorite; our numbers say Tararudee.
Win probability: 55% Tararudee · Sets: 3 (48%) · most likely score 2-0 (29%)
✓ Pick rightThis one lands on the correct side of the ledger: 55% on Lanlana Tararudee, who won 7-6 3-6 7-6.
A spot in the next round is at stake on Thursday, when Luciano Darderi goes up against Pedro Martinez in the Estoril round of 16. Luciano Darderi is 6-4 across recent matches. Pedro Martinez comes in at 4 wins from the last ten.
Luciano Darderi leads the head-to-head 3-1, and history has a way of mattering in matchups like this one. On clay specifically it reads 1-0 Darderi — worth more than the overall number this week.
Darderi's 70.5% behind the first serve (against 64.9% for Martinez) means break chances should be scarce in one direction. If Darderi plays anywhere close to a normal level, this ends in relatively comfortable fashion.
Pick: Darderi
Win probability: 81% Darderi · Sets: 2 (65%) · most likely score 2-0 (56%)
✓ Pick rightWe got this one right. Luciano Darderi was our 81% pick, and won 6-0 6-1.
Thursday's Estoril round of 16 pits Gonzalo Bueno against Jaime Faria on clay. Jaime Faria has won 5 of the last 10. Gonzalo Bueno has won 5 of the last 10.
There is no history here: this is their first tour-level meeting.
Faria's 72.1% behind the first serve (against 62.4% for Bueno) means break chances should be scarce in one direction. Anything other than a Faria win would rank among the bigger surprises of the week.
Pick: Faria
Win probability: 78% Faria · Sets: 2 (58%) · most likely score 2-0 (47%)
✓ Pick rightThis one lands on the correct side of the ledger: 78% on Jaime Faria, who won 6-2 6-4.
Thursday's Hamburg round of 16 pits Elsa Jacquemot against Mayar Sherif on clay. Mayar Sherif is rolling — 9 straight wins, 9 of 10 in recent play. Elsa Jacquemot is 3-7 across recent matches.
There is no history here: this is their first tour-level meeting.
Mayar Sherif simply rates much higher on clay, and our number follows from it. Jacquemot comes in off a compressed schedule; Sherif comes in off a compressed schedule. Jacquemot needs several things to break right at once; the percentages say they usually don't.
Pick: Sherif
Win probability: 81% Sherif · Sets: 2 (63%) · most likely score 2-0 (53%)
✓ Pick rightNailed it. We had Mayar Sherif at 81% before the match, and Mayar Sherif won 6-2 6-3.