Daniil Medvedev continues his bid for a first Grand Slam title as he takes on Australian’s own Alexei Popyrin on Saturday in Melbourne. Alexander Zverev continues his campaign against Fernando Verdasco.
(4) Daniil Medvedev vs. Alexei Popyrin
Medvedev got awfully close to his first Grand Slam title in New York last year. In his own words, he “fought like hell” in a five-set final against Rafael Nadal, but in the end it was Nadal who added a 19th Slam trophy to his record. But in the process, Medvedev made a name for himself–not just as a part-time villain, but as a legitimate threat at the majors.
The Russian has had a relatively routine first week in Melbourne. He dropped a set to formidable first round opponent Frances Tiafoe, but he was on cruise control in his second round match against feisty qualifier Pedro Martinez.
Popyrin has already run into Medvedev in his young career. The two men met at Wimbledon last year, which the Russian won in four sets. Popyrin, who sits at No. 96 in the world has done well to get to the third round. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, his first-round opponent, was forced to retire after the third set, and he faced world No. 90 Jaume Munar in the second.
Anything other than a straight-set win for the fourth seed would be surprising. Medvedev is in good, if not spectacular form, and he surely knows he’s capable of making a successful slam run given how close he was during the last one.
Cheryl pick: Medvedev in 3
Ricky pick: Medvedev in 4
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(7) Alexander Zverev vs. Fernando Verdasco
Zverev has spent much of the last six months chasing his first serve – and sometimes his second one, too. The German, who failed to win a single match at the ATP Cup a couple of weeks ago, found his form at just the right time. He hasn’t dropped a set so far this week, and more importantly for him, he has been serving well.
Zverev’s third-round opponent is familiar foe Verdasco. This will be the fifth meeting between them and they have split previous wins at 2 each. Still, they’ve only played once in the past year, last year in Paris. Zverev gave Verdasco a shellacking, 6-1, 6-3.
Given Zverev’s current form, this is a perfectly winnable match for the German. Of course, his performance in majors has been notably weak given his ranking, but he seems to have found himself in Melbourne. Verdasco is ranked 51 in the world and well past the kind of form that saw him to No. 7 in the world.
Expect Verdasco to put up a fight, but Zverev should find his way into the fourth round.
Cheryl pick: Zverev in 4
Ricky pick: Verdasco in 4
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Med in 3; Vco in a hard fought 4.
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Med in three, Zverev in another five setter with plenty of racquet smashing