Rublev A. vs Djokovic N. Preview and Betting Tips

🥎 ATP Singles Wimbledon Predictions

⏰ 11 July 2023 - 23:59 AEST

🌿 Surface - Grass

🏟 Location - London, United Kingdom

Novak Djokovic dropped a set for the first time at this year's Wimbledon, but it took Hubert Hurkacz delivering his best performance of the year for that to happen. In a rain-interrupted match that was suspended overnight, the Polish player served with great power, hitting 33 aces, and unleashed an impressive number of winners (64). Nevertheless, the Serbian proved to be strong enough to handle these challenges without encountering any significant difficulties, ultimately winning the match with a score of 7-6, 7-6, 5-7, 6-4.

Big servers like Hubert Hurkacz seem to be the only plausible threat for the former world #1 at Wimbledon this fortnight. Therefore, Djokovic must be relieved after witnessing Andrey Rublev narrowly defeat Alexander Bublik in the other round-of-16 clash. While Bublik himself is not a particularly challenging opponent for the Serbian, his unpredictability factor could catch any player off guard in these conditions. However, with Bublik eliminated from the tournament, the defending champion already appears to have one foot in the semifinals.

The 36-year-old surpassed his arch-rival Rafael Nadal's record for the most Grand Slam victories after triumphing at the French Open last month. Now, his focus is set on achieving another significant milestone by surpassing Roger Federer's remaining major record, which is winning eight Wimbledon titles. The former world #1 currently holds a better win/loss percentage (90%) compared to Federer (88.24%) in this tournament, and he is currently aiming to equal the record of winning eight Wimbledon titles.

Since 2016, he has maintained an unblemished record in completed matches at Wimbledon, and his last loss on the centre court at Wimbledon dates back to 2013. Additionally, he is currently on a remarkable 25-match winning streak at the Grand Slam level. This is the fifth instance in which he has accomplished such an impressive consecutive winning run at this level, a feat that no other player in the Open era has achieved more than twice.

Andrey Rublev has made significant progress on the mental side of his game over the last eight months or so, and a loss in the round of 16 against Alexander Bublik would have undone much of that good work, as he struggled after being in a comfortable position. He wasted multiple match points at 5-4 in the fourth set and later squandered a 5-3 lead in the tiebreaker before ultimately securing the victory in the decider, with a scoreline of 7-5, 6-3, 6-7, 6-7, 6-4.

The Russians have responded to their ban from last year's Wimbledon by occupying three quarterfinal berths in this year's edition, marking a historic achievement for their country in this tournament. Importantly, none of these three players (Andrey Rublev, Daniil Medvedev, and Roman Safiullin) had previously reached the quarterfinal stage at the grass-court Grand Slam.

He has struggled to advance beyond the quarterfinals in Grand Slam tournaments and faces a significant mental barrier when playing against top players like Novak Djokovic. As a result, he will be confronted with two formidable opponents on Tuesday. With a record of 0-7 in slam quarterfinals, he has yet to secure a victory at this stage. Additionally, his only win against Djokovic, out of four attempts, came during a period when the Serbian was lacking match time, confidence, and fitness in the early stages of the 2022 season.

📋 Head-to-head: Novak Djokovic leads 3-1. Andrey Rublev was once regarded as a player with immense potential and a forehand that had the capability to topple top players. However, he has experienced several disappointments and has failed to consistently deliver results. As a result, it is challenging to have complete confidence in him during matches of this magnitude, unless he manages to unexpectedly turn things around and achieve remarkable victories regularly.