Russian seeds Daniil Medvedev and Karen Khachanov will go up against unseeded opponents in the Halle quarterfinals on Friday. Medvedev awaits Alex Michelsen, while Khachanov meets Tomas Martin Etcheverry.
Alex Michelsen vs. (3) Daniil Medvedev
This could have been another chapter in the Medvedev vs. Stefanos Tsitsipas rivalry, but it’s no surprise that it will instead be Michelsen on the other side of the net from the Russian on Friday. An effective grass-court player, Michelsen took care of a struggling Tsitsipas in straight sets on Wednesday. The 20-year-old American should not be much of an underdog in this matchup, either, given Medvedev’s current woes. Having not won a title in more than two years (2023 Rome Masters), the 29-year-old is now outside the top 10 at No. 11 in the world.
This amounts as their first-ever meeting, since the only previous one ended after just two games (Michelsen was already injured going into their Indian Wells showdown a few months ago). It should be a fun one, too. Although Medvedev may not be in peak form, he has at least looked good this week with straight-set victories over Daniel Altmaier and Quentin Halys. Michelsen preceded his defeat of Tsitsipas with a three-set upset of No. 5 seed Francisco Cerundolo for a run that has locked up seeding at Wimbledon. Although Medvedev is plenty accomplished on grass, his forehand really does not work well on it. The most impactful shot in this matchup will likely be Michelsen’s down-the-line backhand directed to his opponent’s forehand.
Pick: Michelsen in 3
Tomas Martin Etcheverry vs. (8) Karen Khachanov
Etcheverry is on his second life in Halle. After destroying Pedro Martinez 6-1, 6-3, the Argentine went up against Andrey Rublev on Thursday and the Russian had a match point on his own serve at 6-5 in the final-set tiebreaker. It was a disaster from there for Rublev, however, as he double-faulted, missed an easy forehand, and then netted an overhead to hand Etcheverry a 6-3, 6-7(4), 7-6(6) victory. The world No. 63 needed three hours and one minute to advance, so he will be making a quick turnaround to face Khachanov on Friday.
This marks just their second meeting, with Khachanov taking the first one 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 at the 2023 Miami Masters. It should be a more significant mismatch on grass, as Etcheverry is a mere 5-9 lifetime on this surface compared to Khachanov’s 29-18 record. The 22nd-ranked Russian has impressed in Halle with a straight-set defeat of an in-form Zizou Bergs and a three-set success against dangerous grass-courter Felix Auger-Aliassime. All signs point to Khachanov reaching the semifinals.
Pick: Khachanov in 2
WWW?
Mson in 3; Knov in 2
What Meddy-Tsitsi rivalry, Meddy owns it lately, Michelsen is a pretty big dog here and Meddy is far superior on the surface, he might go out to big bombers like Opelka on it, but not a Michelsen, though Michelsen will likely be the more confident, Meddy is just a class above, Meddy in 3.
Etcheverry has just gotten a massive confidence boost taking out Rublev and announcing himself as a factor on grass, the turnaround won’t be that quick since it’s the last match of the day, this is now far from a mismatch, Etcheverry to ride the wave he’s on and get this done in 3.