Miami Masters 2023: Daniel vs Rinderknech Prediction & Pick

TennisSection previews the 2023 Miami Masters first-round match featuring Taro Daniel vs Arthur Rinderknech on Wednesday, March 22, 2023.

Taro Daniel vs Arthur Rinderknech Match Preview

Taro Daniel has enjoyed an incredible start to March. Can he keep it up at the Miami Masters when he plays France’s Arthur Rinderknech?

Taro Daniel has been a monster in the past couple of weeks leading up to the Miami Masters. Considering the off-court tragedy (lost his mother) last September and taking an extended offseason, Daniel’s turnaround deserved a massive round of applause. Last month he was bedridden for nearly a week due to flu and scored his second win of the season towards the end of February at the Monterrey Challenger. But it was in Acapulpco who came full circle, reaching the quarterfinals as a qualifier and beating the likes of J.J. Wolf and Casper Ruud en route. The Japanese man kept up that good spell running in Indian Wells where he advanced into the third round after stunning Matteo Berrettini.

Arthur Rinderknech, for his part, enters the Miami Masters looking to arrest his poor run of form at Tour level. The Frenchman has tallied two wins this season and has seen his ranking take a massive hit (dropped outside the top 70). A return to the Challenger Tour earned him a few wins under his belt, but normal service resumed in Indian Wells, where Rinderknech lost for the eighth time.

Taro Daniel vs Arthur Rinderknech Prediction and Pick

Taro Daniel and Arthur Rinderknech are tied at 1-1 in their head-to-head. But unsurprisingly, Daniel comes into this first-round match as the colossal favorite to win. He’s been playing some of the best tennis this late in his career in the past couple of weeks. And if he can maintain that level he displayed in Acapulco and Indian Wells, Rinderknech is unlikely to hit through the Japanese.