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Match Details
Fixture: (1) Novak Djokovic vs Roman Safiullin
Date: October 1, 2022
Tournament: Tel Aviv Open 2022.
Round: Semifinals.
Venue: Tel Aviv, Israel.
Category: ATP 250.
Surface: Hard.
Prize money: €949,475.
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | Canada - TSN | Australia - beIN Sports.
Novak Djokovic vs Roman Safiullin preview
Top seed Novak Djokovic will face Roman Safiullin in the semifinals of the Tel Aviv Open on Saturday.
The Serb received a bye to the second round and faced Pablo Andujar. Djokovic was in splendid form and demolished him 6-0, 6-3 to set up a quarterfinal clash against Canada's Vasek Pospisil.
The first set between the two was tightly contested and went to a tiebreak. Djokovic took a 5-1 lead but Pospisil bounced back to level the score 5-5. However, the Serb won the next two points to win the opening set.
Djokovic made an early break in the second set but Pospisil broke him back. However, the Serb broke the Canadian in the penultimate game of the set before holding his serve to win the match and book his place in the semifinals of the Tel Aviv Open.
Safiullin, on the other hand, faced Hugo Grenier in the first round of the Tel Aviv Open and won 3-6, 6-4, 6-2. He then defeated Tomas Marco Etcheverry 6-1, 6-4 to set up a quarterfinal clash against Arthur Rinderknech.
The Russian registered another straight-sets win over the Frenchman to reach his second semifinal of the season, having previously made it to the final four of the Open 13 in Marseille.
Novak Djokovic vs Roman Safiullin head-to-head
The head-to-head between Djokovic and Safiullin is 0-0 and they will face each other for the very first time.
Novak Djokovic vs Roman Safiullin odds
All odds are sourced from bet365
Novak Djokovic vs Roman Safiullin prediction
Djokovic will enter the match as the overwhelming favorite to win. The Serb has been out of action for a significant stretch of the season and will look to get as much game match time as he can in Tel Aviv.
Djokovic has dominated his serve in the tournament, winning 54 out of 70 points on his first serve. The Serb's return of serve along with his precise and powerful shotmaking will also put pressure on his opponent.
Safiullin has a pretty efficient serve that can fetch him some free points but he needs to ensure not to serve too many double-faults, especially against some of Djokovic's skill on return. The Russian will look to make the most out of his service games and cannot afford to make too many mistakes if he is to stand a chance against the Serb.
Djokovic is gradually finding his rhythm, but he should have little trouble beating Safiullin and reaching the final of the Tel Aviv Open.
Pick: Djokovic to win in straight sets.
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