Kuhn celebrates his Grand Slam debut

For the very first time in his still young career, Nicola Kuhn is in the main round of a Grand Slam tournament. The now 22-year-old, who has been competing under the German flag again since 2021, has fought his way through the arduous qualifying process and will now face another up-and-coming talent on the tour in the first main draw round.

The US American Brandon Nakashima is already several steps ahead of his opponent, who is two years older. This became clear, among other things, in his preparation for the most prestigious tennis tournament of the season. The world number 54 is in good shape on grass and is therefore treated as the heavy favourite according to the odds before the first-round duel between Nakashima and Kuhn.

For the outsider, who was once considered a future top ten player in his youth but has yet to make his breakthrough in the pros, the stakes are high at the All England Club. Admittedly, it would be a surprise if the German-Spanish player were to take a set from his opening opponent. However, we do not necessarily expect that to happen, so we are focusing on a prediction of an outright three-set victory for the American between Brandon Nakashima and Nicola Kuhn.

Brandon Nakashima – Statistics & current form

Silently, Brandon Nakashima has worked his way to the top of the world in recent months. In 2021, the 20-year-old, who once reached the semi-finals of the US Open during his junior career, made his first real appearance as he battled his way into the world’s top 100 thanks to a positive record of 45 wins against 25 losses. Before the start of Wimbledon, the American from San Diego is already ranked 54th, and the trend is upwards.

While the youngster already mastered the qualification for the most important grass court tournament of the year last year, but failed in the first main round against Taylor Fritz, everything now speaks in favour of him winning a match in the main draw in London for the first time. It is not for nothing that the odds on the American with Asian roots between Nakashima and Kuhn are only in the range of 1.10.

Nakashima impresses with solidity even at a young age

In preparation for the third Grand Slam of the year, Nakashima flashed his potential several times. In both s’Hertogenbosch and Eastbourne, the 20-year-old knocked former Wimbledon semi-finalist Sam Querrey out of the tournament. The end of the line was against good opponents in all three tournaments he played. The experience of Adrian Mannarino, the flexibility of Andy Murray and the straightforwardness of Cameron Norrie were no match for him. Nicola Kuhn, however, can in no way keep up with these calibres.

That’s one of the reasons why we expect the man from California, who has a 7-3 record on grass in 2022 and can also look back on more wins than losses over the year (18:16), to set the pace of the match. The first serve is solid, but by no means a regular ace generator. Instead, it is the baseline game as well as the safe volleys at the net that distinguish the youngster. So if the rally goes over three shots, Nakashima has all the trumps in his own hands.

Nicola Kuhn – Statistics & current form

For a long time, it was unthinkable that we would report on Nicola Kuhn as a German player at a Grand Slam. On the one hand, due to the fact that the Austrian-born player was active for the Spanish tennis federation from 2016 to 2021 and has only been travelling the world with the black-red-gold flag again for a good year. On the other hand, however, also because of the faltering development that has set the top talent back in the recent past.

In 2020 and 2021, the 22-year-old had a negative record, even though he played almost exclusively in ITF or Challenger tournaments. Kuhn, who was once regarded as Germany’s greatest tennis prospect, failed several times at the opening hurdle, so that he simply did not get off the ground in the world rankings either. He is currently only ranked 261. His best ranking of 174 dates back to 2019.

Kuhn wants to surprise as a glaring underdog

It is all the more surprising now that the right-hander has made it into the main draw of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time. In the qualifiers, however, he also benefited from opponents who were not really well-known.

With Mate Valkusz, his German compatriot Cedrik-Marcel Stebe as well as the young American Rinky Hijikata, three feasible opponents were eliminated. The blond only dropped one set and is now looking forward to his first appearance on the big tennis stage.

Admittedly, we are sceptical that the debutant will make it through the first main round. Before the duel between Nakashima and Kuhn, a bet on the American promises a far more exciting value. Especially because the 22-year-old cannot necessarily be described as a grass court specialist despite his successful qualification. In the first qualifying round for the preparatory tournament in Halle, for example, he failed in two sets against Peter Gojowczyk, who is also not in good form. Even a set win on Tuesday would be a huge thing from the point of view of the German-Spanish born in Innsbruck, but we don’t think he can do it.

Brandon Nakashima – Nicola Kuhn Direct comparison / H2H balance

Of course, this is the first time the two pros have faced each other on tour. While Nakashima, who is 20 years old, needed virtually no time to get used to the game and immediately caused a sensation with great results, his opponent, who is two years older, is still in the breakthrough phase.

As things stand, this will continue for a while, unless he manages an unexpected run at this tournament. In the world rankings, however, a positive result would not help him much, because, as is well known, no points are awarded for the world rankings at the third Grand Slam of the year in London this year.

Brandon Nakashima – Nicola Kuhn Tip

For many German tennis fans, Nicola Kuhn might still be a largely blank slate. The 22-year-old made the biggest headlines in the recent past when he was even considered for a coaching engagement or mentoring by Boris Becker. It is possible that the former Wimbledon winner could have given the talent, who was born in Innsbruck, played for Spain for a long time and is now active again for the German Tennis Federation, some important tips along the way.

So the breakthrough of the right-hander, who is currently even beyond the top 250 in the world rankings, is still dragging on. Nevertheless, it is absolutely positive that the blond has qualified for the main draw of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time. But the stakes are extremely high right from the start, because the betting odds imply that the American is the clear favourite in the Nakashima vs.

The top talent, who is only 20 years old, has been quite busy in the run-up to Wimbledon and honed his skills on grass at three preparatory tournaments. Among others, he was able to defeat the former semi-finalist Sam Querrey or the strong Tommy Paul. If he can continue his performance on Tuesday, he should have a relatively easy start to the tournament. In all respects, the man with the Asian roots is stronger than his opponent.

We have therefore decided to play a bet between Nakashima and Kuhn on the 3:0 set victory of the favourite.