Andrey Rublev will try to forget a bad outing in Doha with a good one at the 2024 Dubai Championships, but his first opponent will be Zhizhen Zhang.
The Russian had a really shaky outing at the Qatar Open because he was beaten by rising prodigy Jakub Mensik. The youngster is a really good server with a powerful forehand and that may be a good combination to beat Rublev.
His next opponent is Zhizhen Zhang, who too is a player with a powerful serve and a very good forehand. Zhang isn't certainly a player afraid of the big names, as he's taken a couple of them down in the past.
Head-to-head:
Rublev and Zhang have played against each other in the past, though only once. The Chinese player wasn't able to do much damage in that match as Rublev cruised in two sets. The courts in Astana are quite a bit different than in Dubai, and that's a good chance for Zhang.
Much will depend on how he serves in the match. If he serves well and keeps Rublev away from the rallies, he'll have a chance. He should get a few short balls, which could be punished with the forehand, but everything depends on the serve.
| Andrey Rublev | Zhizhen Zhang | |
| 1 | H2H | 0 |
| 5 | Rank | 48 |
| 26 | Age | 27 |
| 10-2 | 2024 W/L | 4-5 |
| 302-160 | Career W/L | 34-35 |
Prediction:
I think Rublev will do a good job at extending rallies because he must. The longer the rally goes on, the higher the chance that Zhang will make a mistake. He's not the most stable player in rallies and tends to overhit quite often.
He's not afraid of it either, so expect Zhang to be aggressive, but I think Rublev will weather the storm, especially after losing early last week.
Prediction: Andrey Rublev to win in two sets.
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