Medvedev Back On Track In Halle

Daniil Medvedev got back on track Monday in Halle, where he defeated Marcos Giron 6-4, 6-3 to reach the second round of the Terra Wortmann Open.

The top seed suffered an opening-round exit last week in Stuttgart, but was never in danger in his first match inside Owl Arena. Medvedev saved all three break points he faced to triumph after 71 minutes.

“It was a really tough match. It was definitely not the best match of my life,” Medvedev said in his on-court interview. “I was still lacking the rhythm a little bit. But [regardless of] that, he played very well.”

The 27-year-old showed no fear of coming forward and won several fun exchanges with the American. He will next play Serbian Laslo Djere, who eliminated home favourite Oscar Otte 7-6(3), 6-3.

“I’m happy to win because sometimes grass is like this. You need to break one time in a set and serve well, and the match is yours,” Medvedev said. “And that’s what I managed to do… I think I had only three games where I had chances on his serve. I managed to take two of them, amazing, and I saved all of the tough moments I had on my serve.”

One year ago, Medvedev advanced to the final in Halle, where he won all eight sets he played en route to the championship match. Once there, he fell to Hubert Hurkacz in straight sets.

Medvedev has enjoyed success on grass before, having lifted an ATP 250 trophy two years ago in Mallorca. The World No. 3 owns a 65.4 winning percentage on the surface (34-18).

Did You Know?
According to Infosys ATP Stats, Medvedev on Monday became the first player to reach 40 tour-level wins in 2023. He is now 40-7 on the season and five wins clear of Carlos Alcaraz (35-4), who is second on the list.