The two best players of the season Down Under, Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev will meet in the finals of the 2021 Australian Open tennis championships on Sunday, February 21st. The match is scheduled for 0730 pm local time (0830am BST, 0330 am EST). Get the live streaming options of this Novak Djokovic v Daniil Medvedev match along with its preview, head to head, and tips here.
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Novak Djokovic v Daniil Medvedev Head to Head
This will be the eighth meeting between the players, with Djokovic leading the head-to-head 4-3. However, Medvedev has won three of the last four meetings, including a straight sets win in the round robin stages of the 2020 ATP Tour Finals in London.
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Major Title #18, Aussie Open #9 In Sight For Djokovic
World number one and eight time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic is in a ninth Australian Open final with his unbeaten record in finals at this venue and the total major title count of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal on the line. It has been an eventful Australian Open for the Serb to say the least, although here he is again in the finals with a 8-0 unbeaten record in Australia this season, including the ATP Cup.
It was a difficult second and third round for the defending champion against young Americans Frances Tiafoe and Taylor Fritz pushing him to four and five sets respectively. An injury mid-match against Fritz even made him doubt his continuation in the tournament, but he has since recovered with every match. His movements looked somewhat limited in his fourth round win against Milos Raonic, where he won in four sets.
It was a grueling quarterfinal encounter against Alexander Zverev where after being tied at a set apiece, the Serb had to come back from breaks down in both the third and the fourth set to finally prevail. Although he looked like he was getting better physically, the movements still looked compromised somewhat. The world number one was at his clinical best in his semi-final against the surprise of the tournament from Russia, Aslan Karatsev, with a convincing straight sets win.
Djokovic has spoken about feeling the best he has felt all fortnight long in his last match, and is definitely focused on continuing the reign at Melbourne Park and ensuring that the Next Gen is still a step away from Grand Slam glory.
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Medvedev Looking For First Major Title
Medvedev ended 2020 on a strong note with victories at the Paris Masters and the ATP Tour Finals In London. This was followed by an unbeaten run earlier this month at the ATP Cup. The Russian cruised through his first two rounds here, looking every bit the pre-tournament favorite that he was billed to be, before he ran into a five set tussle with Filip Krajinovic of Serbia, but prevailed convincingly at the end with a 6-0 fifth set.
Going into his fourth round against Mackenzie McDonald, the Russian was wary of avoiding a similar setback after a strong start and carried the form through the match, prevailing in three sets setting himself for the final eight of the tournament with Andrey Rublev, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Rafael Nadal in the fray.
Against compatriot and childhood friend Andrey Rublev, the Russian looked clinical. A tight first set went 7-5, but it was all one way traffic thereafter, extending his head-to-head to 4-0 in the match-up.
A lot was expected of his semi-final clash against Stefanos Tsitsipas, who was coming off a spectacular win against Rafa Nadal in the previous round. While Tsitsipas looked a little tired, Medvedev looked like a man with a mission, and was up 6-4, 6-2 in no time.
A Tsitsipas fightback looked like getting into motion in the third, but Medvedev upped his level at 5-5 and closed the set at 7-5 for another clinical win.
The Russian is in a second major final eyeing his maiden slam title and up against the best there has been on this court. But, a 20 match winning record with 12 wins against eight different top ten players will give him all the self-belief he needs as the season’s first slam heads for a dream ending.
Djokovic v Medvedev Prediction and Tip
This is probably the most fitting final of them all, given hard court game, mental strength, current form and everything else. While an 8-0 record in finals at the Rod Laver Arena makes Djokovic the favorite, he is up against someone who has done all but beaten him on this stage. It promises to be a thrilling finale, with the better player on the bigger moments winning eventually.
Picking Djokovic to win a nail-biting five setter.
Tip: Djokovic to win in five sets: 5/1 (odds courtesy bet365, click to sign up here)
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The 2021 Australian Open will be played from February 8 to 21. You can watch & bet on the these matches here. Get your latest premium tennis predictions here.
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