U.S. Open champion Daniil Medvedev kicks off his Paris Masters campaign against Ilya Ivashka on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Andrey Rublev faces a red-hot Taylor Fritz as second-round action wraps up.
(2) Daniil Medvedev vs. Ilya Ivashka
Daniil Medvedev has carved out a spot as the player to beat during the summer North American hard court swing. This year, he managed to snag the title in Toronto, made the semis in Cincy and added his first Major title at the U.S. Open, where he capped off his tournament with a shocker straight-set victory over Novak Djokovic in the final.
Since then, however, the Russian has played few matches. He won a couple of matches in Indian Wells weeks ago, but he hasn’t played since. His Paris Bercy results have been a mixed bag. In 2019, he failed to win a single match, in 2020 he won the title.
Ilya Ivashka of Belarus is having a good season. He won his first-ever ATP tour title in Winston-Salem this summer and at world No. 46, he sits near his career high ranking of No. 43. He had a decent run to the third round at the U.S. Open, and made the semifinal at the 250 event in Nur-Sultan.
Ivashka defeated Albert Ramos-Vinolas in the first round a few days ago, but that’s likely where his Paris run will stop. Medvedev is playing some of the best tennis of his career and he comes into this event, not just as the defending champion, but also well-rested.
Cheryl pick: Medvedev in 2
Ricky pick: Medvedev in 2
(5) Andrey Rublev vs. Taylor Fritz
American Taylor Fritz has been on an absolute tear since his second round ouster at the U.S. Open. The world No. 26 came out of nowhere in Indian Wells a few weeks ago to reach the semi-finals. The run was all the more impressive because he knocked out three top 15 players in a row, including Alexander Zverev. He followed that result up with a run to the final in St. Petersburg last week. He is certainly not the most ideal first opponent at a Masters event.
Andrey Rublev has actually been limping along since his disappointing third round showing in New York. The Russian hasn’t won more than a handful of matches, including a stunner of a loss at home in Moscow at the hands of Adrian Mannarino.
The Russian has definitely been off-kilter for the past few months. The tour-leading consistency that saw Rublev rocket to the top of the rankings in 2020 seems to have abandoned him at the moment. He might get lucky because Fritz is almost certainly fatigued from his recent success, but if the American pulled off the win, it would hardly be the upset their rankings would suggest.
Cheryl pick: Fritz in 3
Ricky pick: Fritz in 3
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