It’s a stacked Wednesday schedule at the ATP 500 in Halle with No. 2 seed Alexander Zverev (2016, 2017 runner-up) and No. 3 seed Daniil Medvedev (2022 runner-up) both taking the court in their second-round matches. Zverev will take on Lorenzo Sonego in their fourth head-to-head meeting, while Medvedev is facing Zhizhen Zhang. Who do you think will come out on top?
ATP Halle Day 3 Predictions
Jan-Lennard Struff vs Luciano Darderi
Head-to-head: First meeting
The Halle organizers scheduling this match for Wednesday (even before the rain delays) seems like a courtesy towards Luciano Darderi, who’s coming off the title at the Perugia Challenger on clay. The Italian obliterated the field there and has been enjoying a wonderful season, but his grass experience is more than limited. It seems quite unlikely for him to take down Jan-Lennard Struff here and it’s a very nice draw for the German.
Prediction: Struff in 2
Christopher Eubanks vs Alexander Bublik
Head-to-head: First meeting
Any win is worth so much for Christopher Eubanks right now as he’ll be defending 610 points in the upcoming weeks (Mallorca title and Wimbledon quarterfinals). His form this year doesn’t suggest he’ll be able to save most of these, but maybe he can fire up on the grass again. A servebotting contest against Alexander Bublik can be quite random, improving Eubanks’ chances. But it’s tough to go against the defending champion here.
Prediction: Bublik in 3
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Lorenzo Sonego vs Alexander Zverev
Head-to-head: Zverev 3-0
The first match on grass this year was pretty tough for Alexander Zverev with Oscar Otte forcing him to work hard for the win. Things don’t even need to get easier from here as Lorenzo Sonego is a very capable grass-courter. Zverev has never felt that comfortable on this surface, but of course as a player of his caliber, he still posted some excellent results on it. Sonego will still need to play excellent to take the win, but it’s the best shot he’s had at the recent Roland Garros finalist.
Prediction: Zverev in 3
Dominik Koepfer vs Arthur Fils
Head-to-head: First meeting
Grass is far from the perfect surface for Arthur Fils’s spin-heavy forehand, but sometimes good things come at unexpected times and the Frenchman has so much talent. He can definitely be rushed here though and might struggle to keep his error count in check if there’s pressure on his groundstrokes. Dominik Koepfer’s lefty game can produce it and the German is an extremely gritty competitor. Fils winning would require a very mature performance from him.
Prediction: Koepfer in 3
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Daniil Medvedev vs Zhizhen Zhang
Head-to-head: Medvedev 1-0
Daniil Medvedev might not own a Wimbledon title, but his grass game is still one of the best on the circuit. It’s worth mentioning though that it only really applies when the Russian is on top of his serving powers. That was an issue recently with the shoulder problems and we’re not sure yet if these are completely in the past. Nonetheless, he’s probably going to be fine here with his flat-hitting and excellent defense making it tough for Zhang to blast his way through.
Prediction: Medvedev in 2
Main Photo Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports