Daniil Medvedev Brushes off Head-to-Head Lead Before Halle Final as He’s Wary of Alexander Bublik’s Recent Performances

Daniil Medvedev knocked out Alexander Zverev to schedule his first match against Alexander Bublik on grass.

Daniil Medvedev Brushes off Head-to-Head Lead Before Halle Final as He’s Wary of Alexander Bublik’s Recent Performances

Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Bublik (Image via X/We Are Tennis, Univers Tennis)

Daniil Medvedev has a 6-0 head-to-head lead over his Halle Open final opponent Alexander Bublik, but he knows that stat doesn’t matter much if a player is enjoying good form. Medvedev booked a spot in the final of the ATP 500 tournament on grass after overcoming his longtime rival Alexander Zverev.

Bublik too booked a spot in the final after a tough match. He came from a set down to knock out Karen Khachanov. The 28-year-old was the champion in Halle in 2023 (his first and only title on grass). Medvedev, the winner of 20 singles titles, has lifted just one grass-court title, in the 2021 Mallorca Open.

The Russian ace will be meeting Bublik for the first time since last year’s Madrid Open fourth round and the final will also be their first match on grass. Although the 2021 US Open champion will be entering the final as the favorite to win, he is wary of Bublik’s recent performances and he hopes to play nothing but his best tennis.

For instance, if we talk about Alexander Bublik, he obviously comes after having the best tournament of his career at Roland Garros, and we know that clay is not his favorite surface, so it won’t change my mindset much if I have to face him.

Daniil Medvedev said at the press conference

The Kazakh ace started his campaign on the grass swing after producing his best performance in a Grand Slam tournament. At the French Open, he progressed to the quarterfinal, losing in straight sets to eventual runner-up Jannik Sinner. The World No.1 was the defending champion in Halle, but his campaign was ended by Bublik in the second round.

Bublik is bidding to win his first title of the season and his first since the 2024 Open Sud de France. Medvedev, who last year reached two finals (at the Australian Open and the Indian Wells in 2024), is searching for his first title since winning his career’s first clay-court trophy at the 2023 Italian Open.

Jack Draper is not concerned about Jannik Sinner’s defeat to Alexander Bublik at the Halle Open

Jannik Sinner was chasing his second title of the season and his second grass court trophy of his career at the Halle Open. He entered the tournament to defend his title and kick-started his campaign with a straight-set win over home favorite Yannick Hanfmann.

Jannik Sinner
Jannik Sinner (Image via X/The Tennis Letter)

But against Bublik in the second round, Sinner couldn’t capitalize on his first set win lead, losing a match without progressing to the quarterfinal for the first time since his defeat to Ben Shelton at the 2023 Shanghai Masters. Sinner’s friend, Jack Draper, however, was not shocked that the Italian lost the match.

Playing on a greasy grass court against Bublik, someone I know full well from the French Open, he can come up with some amazing tennis from the serve and off the ground. So if he was locked in, I’m not surprised that that troubled Jannik, because it is his first tournament on grass, and it is difficult to start off playing great tennis.

Jack Draper said at the press conference at the Queen’s

Bublik has become the first player since Andrey Rublev at the Canadian Open in August last year to beat the three-time Grand Slam champion after Carlos Alcaraz, who was also the reason behind his defeat in this year’s Italian Open and French Open finals. Sinner, for the first time since that Canadian Open, couldn’t progress to a final.

According to Draper, Sinner is not a “superhuman“, backing him to win Wimbledon where he was the semifinalist in 2023 and lost to Daniil Medvedev last year. Draper didn’t play in Halle as he was chasing his second grass-court title at the Queen’s Club Championships. But his campaign was ended by Jiri Lehecka in the semifinals.

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