China Open 2023: Daniil Medvedev vs Ugo Humbert preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds and pick
Match Details
Fixture: (2) Daniil Medvedev vs Ugo Humbert
Tournament: China Open 2023.
Date: October 2, 2023.
Round: Quarterfinals
Venue: National Tennis Center, Beijing, China.
Category: ATP 500.
Surface: Hard.
Prize money: $3,633,875.
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime | Canada - TSN.
Daniil Medvedev vs Ugo Humbert preview
Second seed Daniil Medvedev will face Ugo Humbert in the quarterfinals of the China Open.
The Russian entered the ATP 500 event after losing the US Open final to Novak Djokovic. He was drawn against Tommy Paul in the first round and produced a dominant display to beat him 6-2, 6-1 and set up a second-round clash against Alex de Minaur.
The first set of the match was tightly contested but Medvedev managed to win 7-6(3) to take the lead. He then did well to win the second set 6-3 and book his place in the quarterfinals in Beijing.
The ATP 500 tournament was Humbert's first event after the US Open as well, and he faced Lorenzo Sonego in the opening round. The Frenchman showed alot of resilience to beat the Italian 7-5, 3-6, 6-0 and book his place in the second round.
Here, he was up against fifth seed Andrey Rublev and entered the match as the underdog. The opening set was closely fought but Rublev managed to win it 7-5 to take the lead in the match.
However, Humbert bounced back in the second set and won it 6-3 to level the match and force it into a decider. He then edged out Rublev 7-6(3) in the final set to seal his spot in the quarterfinals.
Daniil Medvedev vs Ugo Humbert head-to-head
Humbert leads 2-0 in the head-to-head against Medvedev. The last meeting between the two came during the group stage of the 2022 ATP Cup, with the Frenchman winning 6-7(5), 7-5, 7-6(2).
Daniil Medvedev vs Ugo Humbert odds
All odds are sourced from BETMGM
Daniil Medvedev vs Ugo Humbert prediction
Medvedev's hard-court quality and recent run of form makes him the firm favorite on paper. However, Humbert's perfect record against the Russian should not be taken lightly.
Medvedev has never been the most elegant tennis player but he manages to get the job done more often than not. Efficiency has been a key aspect of the Russian's game and his blend of defense and offense makes things difficult for even the toughest of opponents.
Apart from his counterpunching and swift transitions from defense to offense, Medvedev's court coverage and serve will also be very crucial for him.
Humbert served 11 aces in his last match and will look to fetch more free points as they could be very crucial against someone like Medvedev. However, the Russian's return game is bound to put his serve to the test.
Humbert loves to play aggressively and will have to take the initiative to put pressure on Medvedev from the start if he is to come out on top. The Frenchman will no doubt be high on confidence after beating a top player like Andrey Rublev and we could see him put up a tough fight against Medvedev.
However, the Russian's quality might just about see him grind out a win and reach the semifinals of the China Open.
Pick: Medvedev to win in three sets.