Fresh off a first career victory Matteo Berrettini in the Masters of Paris first round, Alexei Popyrin aims to disrupt Daniil Medvedev in Wednesday’s second round.

The Australian player recorded a tight two-set success and set up a fourth ATP tour match with the former champion in Paris.

Match example

© Image

Popyrin’s indifferent form heading into his opening match against Berrettini saw the Italian backed to triumph in the pair’s third tour-level meeting.

However, the Canadian Masters champion enjoyed a 7-5, 7-6(2) success over the 28-year-old, taking him to 27-21 for the season after entering the competition and losing three of his previous four matches on the tour.

He wants to continue that momentum against Medvedev, but he needs to play peak tennis to record a first win against the Russian and improve on his 0-3 record against the six-time Masters champion.

For that result, Popyrin will need to improve his breakpoint conversion – he put away two of 13 chances against Berrettini – and be more adept at second deliveries, following his 58% success in Tuesday’s first-round win.

© Image

It remains to be seen which version of Medvedev will go to trial on Wednesday, given the former Paris champion and one-time runner-up finish in 2024.

The Russian has struggled on serve this year, striking double faults with reckless abandon in multiple matches this season, with number 270 going into his first match at the ATP 1000 tournament.

The world number 5, still seeking his first title of the season, has hit 61% of first serves and won 73% of points on those deliveries, but has won 49% of second serves before his first match in the French tournament.

Regardless of the serve mishaps, the 20-time title winner has avoided opening tournament losses in his previous three tournaments and will be hoping to extend that streak against Popyrin.

After putting behind early eliminations in Canada and Cincinnati with a quarter-final in Shanghai, Medvedev is aiming for another deep run in the final Masters event this year.

With participation in the ATP Finals confirmed, ending the trophy drought is at the top of his priority list in Paris.

Tournament so far

Alexei Popyrin:

First round: vs. Matteo Berrettini 7-5 7-6(2)

Daniil Medvedev:

First round: Bye

Head to head

Miami Masters (2021) – Round of 32: Medvedev 7-6(3) 6-7(7) 6-4

Australian Open (2020) – Third round: Medvedev 6-4 6-3 6-2

Wimbledon (2019) – Second round: Medvedev 6-7 6-1 6-4 6-4

Medvedev leads his clash with Popyrin as he looks to earn his fourth straight victory against the Australian.

The 25-year-old has a mixed record against top-10 players, recording 10 wins in 15 matches, including victories against Grigor Dimitrov, Hubert Hurkacz And Andrei Rublev during his successful Canadian Masters run before recording a stunning four-set victory Novak Djokovic at the US Open.

We say: Medvedev wins in three sets

While Medvedev may be a little rusty, having not played competitive tennis for two weeks since leaving Shanghai, we expect the Russian to pull off a victory despite Popyrin’s motivation to win his 11th match against elite opposition.

ID:556781:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect5817:

Previews by email