Wimbledon 2023 men’s singles quarter finals preview
With the help of Craig O’Shannessy of Brain Game Tennis, Tennishead builds up to the four Wimbledon men’s singles quarter final matches identifying the key battle grounds and potential results
And then there were eight…
The men’s quarter-finals are set at Wimbledon, and the pointy end of the tournament has attracted some familiar faces and fresh blood.
Let’s take a quick look at the match-ups and identify what each player is doing well to reach the quarter-finals.
Carlos Alcaraz vs. Holger Rune
Both players are 20 years old and are the present and future of our sport. This is the marquee quarter-final, with these two players presenting the most challenging test for seven-time champion Novak Djokovic in a potential blockbuster final.
Breaking Alcaraz will be Rune’s most challenging assignment. Alcaraz has saved 80% (16/20) of break points he has faced, which is the best of the quarter-finalists (Rune 74%). Alcaraz also leads the quarter-finalists with return points won against first serves at 36% (122/337).
The pressure meter will always be high in Rune’s service games, which will take its toll mentally after a couple of hours of play.
Prediction: Alcaraz in four sets
Daniil Medvedev vs. Christopher Eubanks
This is an excellent draw for Eubanks as he is the biggest server left in the tournament, and Medvedev stands the deepest to return. That’s advantage Eubanks on grass. The 27-year-old American loves to serve and volley (won 50/81) and pressure the net (won 124/194). Passing shots on grass become extra tricky the further back you stand, so let’s see if Medvedev adjusts his court position to counter his 6’7” opponent.
Expect Eubanks to smother the net in this match and do everything possible to take advantage of Medvedev’s deep court position. Medvedev will want to get into baseline exchanges where he has won 52% for the tournament – far superior to Eubanks at 44% points won.
Eubanks has already taken out two Top 15 players in Stefanos Tsitsipas and Cameron Norrie. He is also a significant threat to attack second serves. Eubanks has struck 21 return winners this year, leading the tournament. I expect Eubanks to make the semi-finals with another upset here.
Prediction: Eubanks in five sets
Jannik Sinner vs Roman Safullin
Who in the world is Roman Safullin? The 25-year-old Russian is ranked 92 in the world and has only won two Grand Slam matches in his career. What is he doing so well at SW19 this year?
He is coming to the net and playing brilliant grass court tennis. Safiullin is the only player at Wimbledon this year to come to the net more than 200 times, at 218. He has won a very healthy 73% (159/218) of those points. He has also won 76% (32/42) of his serve and volley points.
The eighth-seed Sinner should prove too decisive off the ground in this match. Sinner has 53 forehand winners and 23 backhand winners to the quarters and has won a staggering 67% (96/144) of his second serve points. Safiullin has put 77% of his returns in play, which is the best of the quarter-finalists. He will need this return pressure to have any hope of worrying Sinner.
Prediction: Sinner in three sets
Andrey Rublev vs. Novak Djokovic
This is a bridge too far for Rublev. Djokovic is the prohibitive favorite to win the tournament, and Rublev has nothing special to upset him. Djokovic has only dropped serve twice from 69 service games, which is the best of the quarter-finalists. Rublev has been broken seven times.
Rublev hits with serious power off both wings (especially the forehand), but his groundstrokes will end up sitting right in Djokovic’s strike zone, where that power will be used right back against him. Djokovic has won 55% of his baseline points so far. Rublev is at 51%. Rublev will be lucky to win 40% of his baseline points in this match.
Prediction: Djokovic in three sets
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Craig O’Shannessy is the creator of Brain Game Tennis. For 20 years he’s been involved in tennis as a coach to players like Kevin Anderson and even Dustin Brown when he famously beat Rafa Nadal at Wimbledon. More recently Craig’s been working as a match analyst at Wimbledon and for the ATP Tour. He has also used the unique insights from his match analysis software dartfish to guide players such as Novak Djokovic with analysis of opponents and performances.
Visit BrainGameTennis.com to read the latest and best selling course ‘Getting Tight’ where Craig teams up with Jeff Greenwald to combine their specific skill sets to help you with the universal problem all players struggle with in matches.
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