Indian Wells 2022: Daniil Medvedev vs Tomas Machac preview, head-to-head and prediction | BNP Paribas Open
Match Details
Fixture: (1) Daniil Medvedev vs (Q) Tomas Machac.
Date: 12 March 2022.
Tournament: BNP Paribas Open.
Round: Second round (Round of 64).
Venue: Indian Wells, California, USA.
Category: ATP Masters 1000.
Surface: Outdoor Hardcourt.
Prize money: $8,369,455.
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel & ESPN | UK - Amazon Prime Video | India - Voot
Daniil Medvedev vs Tomas Machac preview
Top seed Daniil Medvedev will take on Czech qualifier Tomas Machac in the second round of the Indian Wells Masters on Saturday. The Russian is competing in his first tournament since becoming the new World No. 1.
Medvedev started 2022 at the ATP Cup where he helped Russia reach the semifinals by winning three out of four singles matches. He then competed at the Australian Open as the second seed. Medvedev beat Henri Laaksonen, Nick Kyrgios, Botic van de Zandschulp and Maxime Cressy to reach the quarterfinals.
Medvedev saved a match point and defeated Felix Auger-Aliassime in five sets to advance to the semifinals. The Russian then prevailed over Stefanos Tsitsipas in four sets to reach his second Australian Open final, where he took on Rafael Nadal.
Medvedev took the first two sets in the final and had three break points while being 3-2 up in the third. However, Nadal scripted a marvelous comeback to beat the Russian and win his 21st Grand Slam title.
The Russian then entered the Mexican Open in Acapulco as the top seed and reached the semifinals after beating Benoit Paire, Pablo Andujar and Yoshihito Nishioka. He also became the new World No. 1 following Novak Djokovic's exit in the quarterfinals of the Dubai Tennis Championships.
However, Medvedev once again lost to eventual champion Nadal in the semifinals.
No wonder the fans are on their feet🔥
After an impressive match, @RafaelNadal wins the battle against Daniil Medvedev 6-3, 6-3 in Acapulco.
@AbiertoTelcel | #AMT2022 https://t.co/srm9ny3Drs
Meanwhile, 21-year-old Machac started 2022 by qualifying for the main draw of the Australian Open. He won his first-ever Grand Slam match by defeating Juan Manuel Cerundolo in four sets but was beaten by Maxime Cressy in the second round.
Machac also qualified for the main draw of the Open 13 Provence and reached the second round after eliminating Damir Dzumhur. The Czech lost to eventual semifinalist Roman Safiullin in a three-set thriller that lasted two hours and 45 minutes.
He then qualified for the main draw of the Indian Wells Masters and beat Australia's Alexei Popyrin 6-3, 7-5 in the first round.
Qualifier Tomas Machac comes back from 1-3 in the 2nd to beat Popyrin, 63 75.
Daniil Medvedev vs Tomas Machac head-to-head
Saturday's match at Indian Wells will be the very first meeting between Medvedev and Machac, so the head-to-head currently stands at 0-0. The winner will take on either Gael Monfils or Filip Krajinovic in the third round of the tournament.
Daniil Medvedev vs Tomas Machac prediction
Medvedev will be the overwhelming favorite to win the match, given his quality and form. The Russian is one of the best hardcourt players in the world, having won 63 out of 74 matches on the surface since the start of 2021.
Medvedev's strong serve and groundstrokes, particularly his backhand, will be hard for Machac to handle. The Russian also has a solid return game which will be tested given that his opponent is capable of serving a number of aces.
Machac is a promising player who should be able to rise up the rankings this year. However, Medvedev is likely to face little trouble getting the better of the Czech.
Prediction: Daniil Medvedev to win in straight sets.