Flavio Cobolli vs Ignacio Buse Prediction 5/19/2026 Today’s Tennis Picks

Defending champion Flavio Cobolli faces Peruvian qualifier Ignacio Buse in the first round of the 2026 Hamburg Open on Tuesday, May 19. Here’s our Flavio Cobolli vs Ignacio Buse prediction. This preview will also include a Flavio Cobolli vs Ignacio Buse pick.

Flavio Cobolli vs Ignacio Buse Preview

Flavio Cobolli is the defending champion of the Hamburg Open. Last year, he won this tournament on his second attempt, beating Andrey Rublev in the final in straight sets. Cobolli returns to Hamburg ranked a career high No. 12. He has compiled 19 wins and 11 losses in 2026.

His season began in Australia, competing at the United Cup. He picked up just one win during the Australian summer and was bundled out of the Australian Open in the opening round. It took Cobolli until mid-February to register his second win in a run to the semifinals of the Delray Open and less than two weeks later, he found momentum to bag the Acapulco Open title in Mexico, a result that was significant in his top 20 breakthrough.

On clay, Cobolli is 9-4 for the season. He reached the final of the Munich Open without dropping a set, but lost the title match to Ben Shelton. And his other best result on the dirt was in Madrid, where he reached the last eight. Last week, Cobolli suffered a shock third-round defeat at his home tournament in Rome, losing out to Thiago Agustin Tirante in straight sets.

Ignacio Buse needed to qualify for the main draw at the Hamburg Open. The Peruvian opened his account at the weekend with a 6-2, 6-0 win over German teenager Niels McDonald. In the second round of qualifying, Buse toppled Hugo Gaston 6-1, 6-2. Both of his two qualifying matches took about two and a half hours, meaning he’s got plenty left in the tank to play competitive tennis in the main draw.

Buse improves his record on clay this season to 11-9. His best result was undoubtedly the semifinal run in Rio de Janeiro back in February, where he beat Joao Fonseca and Matteo Berrettini. On the European clay, he was a quarterfinalist at the Aix-en-Provence Challenger at the start of May.

Flavio Cobolli vs Ignacio Buse Head-To-Head

Cobolli and Buse have never met before this, so this will be their first career meeting.

Flavio Cobolli vs Ignacio Buse Prediction

This is a tough opening match for the defending champion. Buse has pushed some top players this season on clay, as highlighted by that breakout run in Rio. I would expect him to drag Cobolli into plenty of energy-sapping points. The Peruvian is a hard worker on the baseline with a solid game to rally with Cobolli. And after a flat performance in Rome, this could turn awkward for Cobolli.

Nur Said's Pick: Buse in three sets