Indian Wells R2 previews and predictions: Medvedev vs. McDonald, Hurkacz vs. Popyrin

Daniil Medvedev will begin his Indian Wells title bid as the top seed on Saturday, when he faces Mackenzie McDonald. Hubert Hurkacz, who is looking to join Medvedev in Turin, will go up against Alexei Popyrin.

(1) Daniil Medvedev vs. Mackenzie McDonald

Surprisingly, Medvedev and McDonald have already gone head-to-head five times heading into their second-round contest at the BNP Paribas Open on Saturday. Unsurprisingly, Medvedev has won all five of their previous encounters. In fact, the second-ranked Russian has taken all 11 of their sets and only once has he been pushed to a tiebreaker–in their first-ever set at the 2018 Toronto Masters. They have squared off twice this season, with Medvedev dominating 6-4, 6-2, 6-3 at the Australian Open and 6-2, 6-2 at the Cincinnati Masters.

There is no reason to think anything will be different this time around. McDonald is in solid form (runner-up in Washington, D.C. and beat James Duckworth on Thursday), but it hardly matters what the 57th-ranked American brings to the table if Medvedev is playing well. And to say Medvedev is playing well right would be a gross understatement. The 25-year-old won the U.S. Open while surrendering only one set the entire fortnight and preceded that result with a title in Toronto. Medvedev has enjoyed plenty of rest following the biggest moment of his career, so he looks poised for more success in Indian Wells.

Pick: Medvedev in 2 losing 5-7 games

Alexei Popyrin vs. (8) Hubert Hurkacz

Hurkacz is currently in position to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals, occupying the No. 8 spot (not counting Rafael Nadal, who is out for the year). The Pole has captured three titles in 2021, including the Miami Masters this spring and another one last month in Metz. Hurkacz is 14-3 on U.S. soil, which is not too surprising since he likes hard courts and has spent a lot of time training in Tampa, Fla. In his only previous Indian Wells appearance, Hurkacz defeated three top-30 opponents before falling to Roger Federer in the quarterfinals.

Up first for the 24-year-old on Saturday is Popyrin, and they have never faced each other. Popyrin is also wrapping up the best season of his career; he has earned 19 of his 34 ATP-level match victories in 2021 and secured his first title in Singapore. The 71st-ranked Aussie opened in the desert on Thursday with a 6-3, 7-6(4) defeat of Miomir Kecmanovic, which was his first match since reaching round three of the U.S. Open (lost to Dan Evans in fifth-set tiebreaker). Popyrin is not an easy opponent, but Hurkacz will be motivated with Turin on the line and you can’t bet against the world No. 12 on American hard courts.

Pick: Hurkacz in 2