So close yet so far! Daniil Medvedev‘s 2024 season so far has been quite like this. He has appeared in two finals, two SFs, and one QF this year, but the former world number one is still searching for his first title this season. Medvedev is now all set to take on Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic in the second round of the 2024 French Open. Both of them are entering this match after a hard-fought victory in the first round. Can the Serb come up with a formidable challenge against the mighty Russian on Thursday (May 30)?

Miomir Kecmanovic’s best result this year came at the Mexican Open where he reached the QF. Having had a good game time on the court in his previous match, Kecmanovic will step onto the court with a lot of confidence. However, disrupting the equations of world number 5 on one of the bigger stages of the game is always going to be a mammoth task! But we have seen several unexpected results in the past, right?

Daniil Medvedev vs Miomir Kecmanovic: Preview

In his previous match, Daniil Medvedev defeated Germany’s Dominik Koepfer by 6-3,6-4,5-7,6-3. If we look at the stats from that first-round clash, Medvedev has hit just a single ace in the entire match and committed three double faults. His first serve win percentage was 77% while on the second serve, it was just around 47%. He converted seven of his eleven breakpoints against the German in that intriguing contest.

Medvedev has hit 171 aces this season and committed 130 double faults in total. He has won 79% of his service games and 28% of his return games so far this year. His numbers reflect his decent run in his previous tournaments this year, but how far can Daniil Medvedev go in the French Open this season?

Well, first he needs to overcome this Serbian hurdle in the second round to move further in this tournament. Miomir Kecmanovic recently took his revenge on Brazil’s Thiago Monteiro by defeating him in the first round of the tournament. She took four sets to topple the Brazilian who had defeated in the R32 of the Italian Open just a few weeks ago. Kecmanovic hammered a staggering eleven aces and committed three double faults in the entire match.

His first serve win percentage was 84% but on the second serve, it dropped to 66%. The 24-year-old Serbian tennis star converted six of his ten breakpoints in that match. Kecmanovic is fond of acing his aces and so far he has hit 113 aces this season but has committed 48 double faults. He has won 78% of his service games and 21% of his return games so far this season. Has Miomir Kecmanovic previously faced Daniil Medvedev on the Tour?

Medvedev vs Kecmanovic: Head-to-Head

Yes, they have in fact faced each other three times in their careers so far. Daniil Medvedev currently leads the H2H with a 3-0 margin. In fact, their first meeting was at the 2022 French Open and in that R32 clash the Russian outclassed the Serbian by a 6-2, 6-4,6-2 scoreline. Their next meeting was at the Los Cabos Open in the same year. This time Medvedev took two sets to topple Kecmanovic in the SF of the tournament. However, their latest meeting was in the R16 of the 2023 Adelaide International.

Even there, Daniil Medvedev had the last laugh! He defeated Miomir Kecmanovic by 6-0,6-3. The Russian tennis star hit seven aces and committed three double faults in that match. On the other hand, Kecmanovic failed to hit a single ace in the entire match, but he didn’t commit any double fault. Medvedev’s first-serve win percentage was 76% and his second-serve win percentage was 54%. It was 42% and 55% respectively for the Serbian tennis player. Daniil Medvedev successfully converted his single breakpoint in that match, while Miomir Kecmanovic converted just three out of his seven breakpoints.

Prediction: Medvedev to win in three sets

Daniil Medvedev’s current form will always keep him ahead of the number 57. His best record at the French Open came in 2021 when he reached the QF. However, Miomir Kecmanovic’s best record in this tournament is reaching the third round of the French Open in 2022. If we look at their win-loss record for this season, Medvedev has recorded 24-7 while it’s 12-14 for Kecmanovic.

Medvedev offers a defensive brand of tennis while Kecmanovic can combine both aggressiveness and defensive prowess pretty well in his game. The Russian tennis star is known for wearing down his opponents with lengthy baseline rallies. His biggest weapon is his ability to play consistently and he possesses one of the best backhands on the tour. But his forehand is generally one of his weaker shots. Kecmanovic on the other hand, loves to rely on his lethal double-handed backhand to seal the deal against his opponents. He uses a lot of spin on his forehand. But are these enough to outclass Medvedev’s resilience? Perhaps not!