Daniil Medvedev vs Borna Coric Prediction: Daniil will get another win in Dubai

The next opponent for Daniil Medvedev at the tournament in Dubai will be the Croatian Borna Coric, the 20th racket of the world. Please note that Borna is not the most comfortable opponent for Daniil. The Balkan has an advantage over the Russian in head-to-head encounters. Still, despite the statistics, Medvedev is the big favorite for the upcoming meeting.

As we anticipated, Medvedev had no problem overcoming Alexander Bublik in the last 16. In court play, Alexander is noticeably inferior to Daniil: in stability, accuracy, and speed. Bublik's only trump card was his serve, which, on that night, was not that it wasn't working, but it wasn't killer. The match lasted one hour and six minutes, 6-4, 6-2 in Medvedev's favor. This is Medvedev's second win in Dubai, and the Russian was stronger than Arnaldi in the first round. Medvedev has an 11-match winning streak in total, winning tournaments in Rotterdam and Doha before the UAE. Medvedev is ranked seventh in the ATP and second in Russia. Medvedev needs to play better than Rublev in Dubai to regain his number one ranking.

The Croatian crashed out of the Australian Open, losing in the first round to Czech Lehecka in three sets. The Balkan then played two Davis Cup matches against the Austrians, earning his team two points. Then an unsuccessful tournament in Montpellier, losing in the second round to Cressy. Then there was Dubai, where Borna knocked out Evans and Kokkinakis. Or rather, Evans was not quite knocked out by Coric; the Brit withdrew with the score 2:2 in the first set. But the match against the Australian lasted almost three hours, 6-7, 6-3, 7-5 in favor of the Croatian.

Daniil and Borna have played each other six times, 4-2 in favor of the Balkan. Medvedev beat Coric at Wimbledon in 2018 and at the tournament in St Petersburg in 2019. Borna beat Daniil at Next Gen in Cincinnati, the US Open, and the Masters in Paris. The most recent face-to-face meeting between the tennis players dates back to 2019.

It's been almost four years since the last face-off between Medvedev and Coric in 2019, and a lot has changed in that time. Coric never became a top player, although the Croatian is back in the top 20, which is not bad either. But Medvedev is a real top player now. Not so long ago, Daniil was number one in the ATP rankings, although at the moment, Medvedev is not even number one in his own country, although he may well regain his top spot after the Dubai tournament. If Medvedev advances to the semi-finals, he will probably face Djokovic, and he needs to be as fresh as possible to beat the Serb. We will be expecting Daniil to defeat Borna Coric.

• W1 + Total Under (21.5) for 1.97;
• H1 (-4.5) for 1.73.

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