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Match Details
Fixture: (1) Daniil Medvedev vs Denis Shapovalov
Date: August 18, 2022
Tournament: Cincinnati Open 2022
Round: Third round (Round of 16)
Venue: Cincinnati, United States
Category: ATP Masters 1000
Surface: Hard
Prize money: $6,280,880
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | Canada - TSN | UK - Amazon Prime Video | Australian – beIN Sports
Daniil Medvedev vs Denis Shapovalov preview
World No. 1 Daniil Medvedev will face Denis Shapovalov in the third round of the Cincinnati Open on Thursday.
Medvedev entered the tournament after going down to Nick Kyrgios in his opening encounter in Montreal. He found some good fortune after, dismissing the tenacious Botic van de Zandschulp 6-4, 7-5 in the second round in Cincinnati.
The Russian has had a standout year, reaching World No. 1 in the ATP rankings. However, his results haven’t matched up to his rankings so far. He reached the final of the Australian Open for the second year in a row, this time losing 2-6, 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-4, 7-5 to Rafael Nadal in arguably the worst defeat of his career.
The 26-year-old, who was hadn't won a title this season until recently, made it to the semifinals of the Mexican Open where he faced another loss at the hands of the Spaniard. He later saw himself in the quarterfinals of the Miami Open and Mallorca Open.
He also reached the finals of the Libema Open and Halle Open but only found success at the Los Cabos Open against Cameron Norrie 7-5, 6-0, ending the title drought.
Shapovalov, meanwhile, has faced a substantial slide down the rankings. Earlier in the year, the Canadian was placed at World No. 12 but now sees himself at 21st. He has registered a mere 19 wins from 36 matches this season.
He started his year well, winning the ATP Cup for Canada and reaching the quarterfinals at the Australian Open, where he pushed eventual champion Nadal to five sets.
The 23-year-old also reached the semifinals at the Dubai Tennis Championships and the quarterfinals of the Qatar Open and the Italian Open, but hasn’t had much success in other tournaments.
Shapovalov entered Cincinnati on the back of an unfortunate first-round defeat to Alex de Minaur in his home country. He seems to be finding his footing in the USA, with victories over Grigor Dimitrov in the first round and Tommy Paul in the second round.
Daniil Medvedev vs Denis Shapovalov head-to-head
Medvedev and Shapovalov are tied at 2-2 in their head-to-head. The latter has gotten the better of the Russian at the 2017 US Open and the 2018 Citi Open, while Medvedev has outplayed the Canadian at the 2018 Japan Open and recently at the 2021 Laver Cup.
Daniil Medvedev vs Denis Shapovalov odds
(All odds are sourced from bet365)
Daniil Medvedev vs Denis Shapovalov prediction
Medvedev has previously won the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati in 2019 and finished as a semifinalist in 2021. The World No. 1 is popular for his unconventional playing style. He is comfortable attacking all corners of the court and has a great serve.
The Russian is exceptional in tricking his opponents and making them work hard to earn points. He has been described as a ‘complete player’ and can overpower any competitor with his high tennis intellect.
Shapovalov, meanwhile, is a heavy hitter. The left-hander partakes in risky groundstroke battles to quash his opponents. He has a very appealing serve, but has endured 10 double faults in his previous encounter against Tommy Paul.
The upcoming contest doesn’t have a clear favorite since the duo have had moments of doubt in their respective recent clashes. However, Medvedev should be able to bank on his experience to get through to the quarterfinals.
Pick: Medvedev to win in three sets.
