Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev could have an early season showdown after they both landed in the top half of the draw at the Adelaide International 1. Top-seeded Djokovic and third-seeded Medvedev could meet in the ATP 250 semi-finals , which features four Top 10 players. Medvedev has lost all three meetings with Djokovic since he denied the Serb a calendar-year Grand Slam in the 2021 US Open final, but all three matches have been close. In fact, ‘Nole’ scored a victory in the third set tiebreaker in the group stage of the Nitto ATP Finals last November. In the bottom half in Adelaide, which contains four players from the Top 15 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, second seed Felix Auger-Aliassime could play in the quarterfinals against Rolex Paris Masters champion Holger Rune of Denmark. The fourth seed Andrey Rublev or the Italian Jannik Sinner also appear as potential rivals of the Canadian in the semifinals. In the first round, Djokovic faces World No. 65 Frenchman Constant Lestienne for the first time, with the winner facing Australian Jordan Thompson or Frenchman Quentin Halys in the second round. The first seed Djokovic could face is Canadian Denis Shapovalov, seeded seventh and opening against a qualifier. Medvedev will meet world No. 45 Italian Lorenzo Sonego for the first time in the first round. Auger-Aliassime, who begins the season as world No. 6, will open against a qualifier and could face American Marcos Giron or French veteran Richard Gasquet in the second round. Rublev will have a tough first match against Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut, with whom he has a 4-3 record. The victor will name the winner of an intriguing first-round clash between American Sebastian Korda, who missed last year’s Adelaide event due to COVID-19, and former world world No.1 in the world and three times Grand Slam champion, Andy Murray.
Sinner on Nole Djokovic
During an interview at the Adelelaide International, Sinner conveyed his feelings on Novak Djokovic’s return to Australia after a year’s break. “I practised with Novak [on Friday] and he’s in shape. You can see that he wants to win and is determined. It’s very nice to have him back here in Australia and having him also at the Australian Open because I think he is one of the best players in the world, if not the best,” the 21-year-old said according to The Age. “He will try to win every match he plays, every tournament he plays, but I think physically he is very, very good and moving very well. To win against him, you have to play your best tennis,” he added.
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