ATP Masters in Miami, quarter-finals, Thursday, 31/03/2021
From the start, Daniil Medvedev was considered the absolute top favourite at the Miami Open 2022, but will he be able to prevail in the end? In the quarter-finals, the Russian will be presented with his first really strong opponent.
On Thursday evening he will play: The defending champion! No easy task for the world No. 2 and yet he is clearly ahead at the bookmakers. Read in my Medvedev Hurkacz tip why I can still imagine a close battle
Andy Murray, Pedro Martinez and Jenson Brooksby? Admittedly, Daniil Medvedev did have a bit of luck with the tournament branch in Miami. The second-best tennis player in the world hasn’t really had to exert himself yet.
For him, this might have been just the right approach to recover a little from the last few tournaments. Starting with the Australian Open, which he lost to Rafael Nadal after leading 2:0.
In Acapulco, the semi-final, again against Nadal, was the end of the road, and in Indian Wells he even had to leave after the 3rd round against Gael Monfils. In Miami, however, he had his relatively easy opponents under control.
He won 6-4, 6-2 against Andy Murray, and his 6-3, 6-4 win over Pedro Martinez was just as commanding. Jenson Brooksby annoyed Medvedev only briefly, in the end a 7-5, 6-1 was on the scoreboard.
2nd round, round of 16, quarterfinals – these rankings are recognisable for Medvedev in Miami. Year after year he has improved at the Masters, he really can’t help but make the semi-finals in 2022.
And that despite being a world class player himself and the defending champion in Miami to boot! Hubert Hurkacz has a great chance to win the Masters twice in a row.
Did the Pole have the tougher opponents? He started his tournament with a 7-6, 6-2 win over Arthur Rinderknecht, then he had some trouble with a 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 win over Aslan Karatsev.
All the more sovereign was his round of 16 match against Llody Harris, who had been very strong before. Hurkacz won 7-6, 6-2. So in all three matches, you could see that he played his best tennis in the last set.
He only allowed two breaks against him in three rounds, which is something Medvedev will also have to work on. Of course, Hurkacz will have fond memories of last year, when he outplayed the entire world elite in Miami.
Shapovalov, Raonic, Tsitsipas, Rublev and Sinner, nobody stood a chance against him. He won four tiebreaks back then, and the close sets suit him in 2022 as well. Close? A good keyword when it comes to the three direct duels with Medvedev.
Twice the Russian won, once his opponent, but above all always the neutral spectator. In Wimbledon 2021, Hurkacz triumphed in five sets. Also this year, in Canada and at the ATP Finals, it was Medvedev.
Both matches went three sets and included three tiebreaks, so when these two meet, anything is on offer, but definitely not boredom! The Miami crowd will be hoping for a similarly intense exchange of blows on Thursday.
My Medvedev Hurkacz Tip
For the bookmakers Daniil Medvedev is ahead, but in my eyes a little too clearly. The Russian has weakened in recent weeks, in Miami he also benefited from easy opponents.
Therefore my tip for this duel is:
We see more than 20.5 games!
