Defending champion Novak Djokovic will take the court against Aussie Alexei Popyrin after a slight stutter in the first round. Fellow Australian Alex de Minaur will also be in action against Matteo Arnaldi.
(1) Novak Djokovic vs. Alexei Popyrin
Overwhelming tournament favorite Novak Djokovic had a surprisingly competitive first round match against the world No. 178 qualifier Dominic Prizmic. The Serb, who won 3 majors in 2023, dropped the second set before he righted the ship to close out the match in 4. Expect to see an improved Djokovic on Wednesday. Alexei Popyrin is a known quantity and he doesn’t have the kind of weapons that tend to bother Djokovic.
Popyrin, from Australia, had a brief warm up in Brisbane. The Aussie won his first round match over countryman Christopher O’Connell, but he lost a heartbreaker in the second to Roman Safiullin in a third set breaker. Popyrin is currently ranked 43 in the world. He had a straight set first round win over countryman Marc Polmans.
Anything other than a win for Djokovic would be a shocker. Even for the Serb to drop a set would be a surprise. Look for a routine straight-set victory for the world No. 1.
Cheryl pick – Djokovic in 3
How many games will Popyrin win?
(10) Alex de Minaur vs. Matteo Arnaldi
Australia’s Alex de Minaur had a great run-up to the Australian Open. The 24 year-old played for Team Australia in the United Cup and pocketed huge wins over Novak Djokovic, Alexander Zverev and Taylor Fritz. De Minaur dropped the first set of his first round match over Milos Raonic, but he rebounded in the second set before the Canadian withdrew at 0-2 in the third.
De Minaur’s second round opponent is the up-and-coming Matteo Arnaldi from Italy. The Italian world No. 41 played 2 tournaments coming into Melbourne in Brisbane and Adelaide. He had a solid quarterfinal result in Brisbane. He defeated another Aussie, Adam Walton in the first round this week.
This will be the first meeting between de Minaur and Arnaldi. But with the Aussie’s form and the fact that he’ll be playing in front of an enthusiastic home crowd, this should go comfortably to the world No. 10.
Cheryl pick – de Minaur in 3
WWW: De Minaur vs. Arnaldi?
The post Australian Open R2 previews and predictions: Djokovic vs. Popyrin, de Minaur vs. Arnaldi appeared first on The Grandstand.
