The ATP St. Petersburg Open 2019 quarter-finals will be played on Friday, September 20 with Daniil Medvedev taking to court today again. Latest Daniil Medvedev v Andrey Rublev & Matteo Berrettini v Yahor Gerasimov tips and predictions with their previews along with others can be found below.
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Daniil Medvedev v Andrey Rublev Preview
‘Next Gen’ compatriots from Russia, Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev meet in the quarter-finals at St.Petersburg.
Medvedev was by far the star of the US hard court season, appearing in four consecutive finals, winning his first ever ATP Masters 1000 at Cincinnati, and playing the epic US Open final against Rafael Nadal. He returns to St.Petersburg with a first round bye and a convincing second round win against countryman Evgeny Donsky.
Rublev’s return to the tour after a dismal 2018 with injuries, has gone from strength to strength in the last two months. A promising US hard court season with noteworthy wins against top ten players has set him up well for the rest of the season. He had a difficult opener, but has come back well since and will look to avenge his Cincinnati loss to Medvedev this time around.
Expect an exciting match between the two young Russians. Medvedev begins as the favorite, solely based on his recent form, but this match can go either way. A tussle on the cards, with Medvedev in two tight sets seems the most likely outcome.
Tip: Medvedev to win in two sets: 17/20 with 888Sport
Matteo Berrettini v Yahor Gerasimov Preview
Italian rising star Mattero Berrettini plays little known Belarusian Yahor Gerasimov for the first time with a spot in the final four at stake.
Berrettini has had a consistently positive year, winning titles at Budapest and Stuttgart and being runner-up at Munich. A promising US Open semi-final run catapulted him in the rankings, and has put him in contention for the ATP Tour finals in London.
Young Yahor Gerasimov is ranked outside of the top 100 and his second round showing at this year’s US Open is his best performance thus far at a major. A qualifier here, he has surprised all with convincing victories over Lukas Rosol and Adrian Mannarino in the previous rounds.
Despite the promising run of Gerasimov, Berrettini is in good form and high on confidence and should win this comfortably in straight sets.
Tip: Berrettini to win in two sets: 10/11 (888Sport)
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Borna Coric v Casper Ruud Preview
Although this can be labelled as a ‘Battle of Next Gen’, between 20-year-old Casper Ruud and 22-year-old Borna Coric, one would associate Coric has having been on the tour for a considerably longer period of time.
Coric had a breakthrough 2018, winning the ATP 500 at Halle defeating Roger Federer, and also being runner-up to Novak Djokovic at the ATP Masters 1000 at Shanghai. 2019 has been marred with injuries and poor form and he will look to revive his season over the remainder of the year. An unfortunate retirement by Marton Fucsovics in the midst of a tight second round match with Coric, ensure that the Croat was in the final eight.
Casper Ruud had a strong start to the season with good runs at a number of tournaments on the clay. However, the grass and hard court seasons have not been kind to him and he will be encouraged by his win over Alexander Bublik earlier this week.
A battle of ‘grit’ awaits us between these two; expect Coric to make the final four in a tight three-setter
Tip: Coric to win in three sets: 33/10 (888Sport)
Mikhail Kukushkin v Joao Sousa Preview
Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin meets Portugal’s Joao Sousa for the fourth time in their careers. Kukushkin leads the head-to-head 2-1.
Both players have had an up and down season, with some similarities. Although neither has games that are suited to grass, both made the round of 16 at Wimbledon with some impressive victories. Neither was able to maintain their form through an indifferent US hard court season for either.
2010 St. Petersburg winner Kukushkin looked impressive in his win against 2017 winner Damir Dzumhur in the previous round, where as Sousa surprised all with a win against second seed and home favorite Karen Khachanov.
Kukushkin starts as the favorite, but Sousa’s confidence will be high after defeating Khachanov. A three-set battle with Kukushkin prevailing seems likely.
Tip: Kukushkin to win in three sets: 18/5 (888Sport)