David Kirouac-USA TODAY Sports/Sipa USA
Daniil Medvedev vs Dusan Lajovic: US Open – First round
The 2021 champion Daniil Medvedev will face off Dusan Lajovic in the first round of the US Open.
Daniil Medvedev Profile
Former world No. 1 Daniil Medvedev is currently fifth in the rankings. The Russian is 35-13 for the season and 18-6 on hard surface.
Medvedev is coming off a second round loss to Jiri Lehecka in Cincinnati. Previously, he also lost his first match in Montreal to Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.
Medvedev has yet to win a title this season as he lost both finals at the Australian Open and in Indian Wells.
Medvedev won the US Open in 2021 defeating Novak Djokovic in the final and last year lost in the final to the Serb.
Dusan Lajovic Profile
Dusan Lajovic is currently 66th in the rankings and his career high was No. 23 in the world. The Serb is 16-20 for the season and 3-6 on hard surface.
Lajovic is coming off a loss to Brandon Holt in the first qualifying round in Cincinnati.
His best result of the season was the semifinal in Barcelona where he lost to Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Lajovic’s best result at the US Open is the third round in 2018 when he lost to John Isner. Last year, he lost the opener to Yibing Wu.
Head-to-Head Lajovic leads 2-1
- Lajovic vs Medvedev 7-6, 6-4 (2021 ATP Rotterdam, first round)
- Lajovic vs Medvedev 7-5, 6-1 (2019 ATP Monte Carlo, semifinal)
- Medvedev vs Lajovic 6-2, 6-1 (2018 ATP Moscow, round of 16)
Prediction and Conclusion
After winning five titles in 2023, Daniil Medvedev is still empty-handed this season. The 2021 US Open champion is coming to New York after losing the last two matches and will face an opponent against whom he has a losing record. Dusan Lajovic is at his usual level and definitely sees an opportunity in this match. All the pressure will be on Medvedev, and Lajovic will not go down easy. The game spread is set at -8.5 for Medvedev, which is simply too much, so we go with Lajovic to stay close enough to cover that.
