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Fixture: (5) Andrey Rublev vs Stan Wawrinka
Date: Friday, April 28
Tournament: Madrid Masters 2023
Round: Second Round (Round of 64)
Venue: Caja Magica, Madrid, Spain
Category: Masters 1000
Surface: Outdoor clay
Prize money: €7,705,780
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video
Andrey Rublev vs Stan Wawrinka preview
Fifth seed Andrey Rublev gets his Madrid Masters campaign underway against Stan Wawrinka.
World No. 25 Rublev fell to 21-9 on the season after his eight-match win streak was snapped by Dusan Lajovic in the inaugural Srpska Open final last week. A week earlier, Rublev had won his first Masters 1000 title - and first title of the year - at Monte-Carlo. He beat Holger Rune in a three-set final.
Before that, the Russian was having a steady, if not spectacular, season. After consecutive defeats, Rublev lost to eventual winner Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals. Following two more early exits, the 25-year-old reached his first final of the season in Dubai but lost to compatriot Daniil Medvedev.
Rublev is 3-2 in Madrid, with two of those wins coming during his run to the quarterfinals last year. However, the Russian is 8-1 on clay this season.
Meanwhile, the 84th-ranked Wawrinka improved to 11-8 in 2023 with a hard-fought third-set tiebreak win over American Maxime Cressy in his opener on Wednesday. The Swiss was coming off an opening-round loss in Banja Luka and a Round of 32 exit at Monte-Carlo. He's now 17-12 in Madrid, reaching the final a decade ago.
Wawrinka has struggled on clay this year but has had a decent run on the hardcourt. He reached the quarterfinals at Rotterdam and Marseille and the Round of 16 at Indian Wells.
Andrey Rublev vs Stan Wawrinka head-to-head
Rublev has won only one of his three meetings with Wawrinka, losing their last clash in the Round of 16 at the 2020 Paris Masters. They have never met on clay.
Andrey Rublev vs Stan Wawrinka odds
(All odds as per BETMGM)
Andrey Rublev vs Stan Wawrinka prediction
Both Rublev and Wawrinka are quintessential baseliners and have similar games - serving and hitting big and moving well.
Wawrinka will be buoyed by his fabulous win over Cressy. He won an impressive 46 out of 54 first-serve points and sent down 19 aces for win no. 188 on clay. Meanwhile, Rublev will play his first match of the tournament.
The Swiss is a fabulous player on red dirt, winning seven titles, including Roland Garros. Rublev is no slouch on the surface either, going 56-30 and winning four titles. Moreover, he's the more in-form player.
Wawrinka may have had Rublev's number but could be exhausted following his efforts against Cressy. The Russian, meanwhile, hasn't played since the Srpska final on Sunday, so expect him to prevail.
Pick: Rublev in three sets
