St. Petersburg Open 2020: Andrey Rublev vs Ugo Humbert preview, head-to-head & prediction
Match details
Fixture: (3) Andrey Rublev vs Ugo Humbert
Date: 15 October 2020
Tournament: St. Petersburg Open 2020
Round: Second round (Round of 16)
Venue: St. Petersburg, Russia
Category: ATP 500 Series
Surface: Indoor hard courts
Prize money: USD 1,243,790
Match timing: Approx. 3 pm Moscow Standard Time, 6.30 pm IST
Live telecast: USA - ESPN / Tennis Channel | India - Sony Six
Andrey Rublev vs Ugo Humbert preview
Andrey Rublev has carried his fantastic form from Roland Garros 2020 to Russia, taming Vasek Pospisil easily in the first round of the St. Petersburg Open. The local star defeated his Canadian rival 6-4, 6-2 to set up a clash with the unseeded Ugo Humbert in the pre-quarterfinals.
Rublev has performed very well on European clay this year. Although he exited the Italian Open in the second round itself, the World No. 10 claimed the trophy in Hamburg with a memorable win over Stefanos Tsitsipas in the summit clash.
Sam Querrey gave Rublev a run for his money in the first round of the French Open, but the Russian prevailed in five sets. He dropped only two more sets before locking horns with Tsitsipas again in the last eight.
Unfortunately for Rublev he couldn't replicate his previous performance against the Greek player, as he lost in straight sets.
French tennis star Ugo Humbert also had a decent clay season as he made it to the Rome Masters pre-quarterfinals. He then knocked out Daniil Medvedev in Hamburg, but couldn't make it past the opening round at Roland Garros 2020.
Unlike Andrey Rublev, Humbert had to work hard to beat his first-round opponent Pavel Kotov. He lost the first set 4-6, but the World No. 38 bounced back and won the match 4-6, 6-2, 6-3.
Andrey Rublev vs Ugo Humbert head-to-head
Andrey Rublev has never battled Ugo Humbert on the ATP Tour so their head-to-head record currently stands at 0-0. The two players had crossed paths in the qualifying round of the Monte Carlo Masters last year, where Rublev emerged victorious 6-4, 6-4.
Andrey Rublev vs Ugo Humbert prediction
Andrey Rublev starts as the favorite to win this match. His recent form has been terrific and in his last encounter against Pospisil he conceded just one break point. Besides, the Russian star also had an impressive 80% success rate on the first serve.
On the other hand, Ugo Humbert struggled big time against Pavel Kotov in the opening round. All things considered, Rublev can be expected to get past the unseeded Frenchman in the second round.
Prediction: Andrey Rublev to win in straight sets.