Scouting Report: Medvedev leads Dubai, Zverev headlines Acapulco, Tabilo top seed in Santiago

The final two February ATP 500 events take place this week at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC, while there is ATP 250 action at the Movistar Chile Open.

Daniil Medvedev, Alex de Minaur and Andrey Rublev lead the field in Dubai, while Alexander Zverev and Casper Ruud take to court in Acapulco. Home favourite Alejandro Tabilo is the top seed at the clay-court event in Santiago.

ATPTour.com looks at five things to watch from each event.

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN DUBAI
1) Medvedev seeking return to form: It is fair to say things have not gone quite to plan for Daniil Medvedev in 2025. The World No. 6 arrives in Dubai holding 6-4 record on the year according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index, with his best result a semi-final run at the ATP 250 in Marseille. A champion in Dubai in 2023, will a return to the event bring the best out of Medvedev again?

2) Former champions Humbert & Rublev: Ugo Humbert returns to Dubai as the defending champion, having captured the biggest title of his career at the ATP 500. The Frenchman won in Marseille earlier this month and will be keen to bring that form this week. Andrey Rublev was a Dubai champion in 2020. The Top 10 star holds a 13-5 tournament record and arrives off title success at the ATP 500 in Doha.

3) De Minaur, Dimitrov, Tsitsipas in action: Alex de Minaur, Grigor Dimitrov and Stefanos Tsitsipas arrive in differing form. De Minaur reached the final in Rotterdam earlier this month and enjoyed a quarter-final run at the Australian Open. Dimitrov and Tsitsipas both lost in the first round in Doha last week. Dimitrov was competing for the first time since he retired from his Australian Open first-round match due to an adductor injury. Can one of the three find top gear this week and claim the trophy?

4) Stacked field: In a exciting field, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Jiri Lehecka and Arthur Fils pose threats. Auger-Aliassime and Lehecka both made the semi-finals in Doha last week, when Lehecka upset the No. 3 player in the PIF ATP Rankings Carlos Alcaraz. Fils has an impressive ATP 500 record, winning titles in Hamburg and Tokyo last year.

5) Arevalo/Pavic, Heliovaara/Patten in doubles action: Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic are the top seeds in Dubai, with Australian Open champions Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten also in action. Arevalo/Pavic are chasing their first title of the season as a team this week. Heliovaara/Patten are 10-3 on the year, winning the AO and reaching the semis in Adelaide and Doha.

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN ACAPULCO
1) Top seed Zverev: Alexander Zverev will headline the field at the ATP 500. The German has tasted success in Acapulco in the past, lifting the trophy in 2021 and reaching the final in 2019. The No. 2 player in the PIF ATP Rankings arrives from Rio de Janeiro and will face Matteo Arnaldi in the first round.

2) Can Ruud go one step further? Casper Ruud reached the title match in Mexico last year, falling short to De Minaur. The 26-year-old will be keen to go one step further this week and clinch his first title of the season. Ruud advanced to the final in Dallas earlier this month.

3) Paul leads American trio: Tommy Paul, Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe will all take to court in Acapulco. Paul is a former finalist, reaching the title match in 2023. Shelton’s best result came in 2024 when he advanced to the quarter-finals, while Tiafoe reached the last eight in 2023. All three are seeking their first title of the season.

4) #NextGenATP star Mensik looking to build: The 19-year-old Czech has enjoyed a strong start to the season. Jakub Mensik advanced to quarter-finals in Brisbane and Auckland and then reached the third round at the Australian Open. He is making his Acapulco debut and begins against countryman Tomas Machac, who is playing doubles with Mensik.

5) Withrow/Zeballos doubles top seeds: Jackson Withrow and Horacio Zeballos lead the field as the top seeds and are teaming for the second time (Delray Beach). They will face competition from second seeds Sander Gille and Jan Zielinski, third seeds Hugo Nys and Edouard Roger-Vasselin and fourth seeds Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul. Shelton plays with Rinky Hijikata and Americans Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram team.

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN SANTIAGO
1) Tabilo top seed: Home star Alejandro Tabilo is the top seed in Santiago. The Chilean, who advanced to the final at the ATP 250 12 months ago, will seek his first win of the season when he takes to court at the clay-court event.

2) Argentina's Baez & Cerundolo compete: Sebastian Baez is the defending champion in Santiago. The 24-year-old will seek his eighth tour-level title and second in as many weeks after winning in Rio de Janeiro. Francisco Cerundolo has never been beyond the second round in Santiago but will hope to change that this week. The 26-year-old has won two of his three titles on clay.

3) Home favourite Jarry: Chilean Nicolas Jarry soared to the crown in Santiago in 2023. Holding a 3-4 record this year, the 29-year-old will aim to rediscover his winning form in front of his home fans.

4) South American surge: Alongside Tabilo, Baez, Cerundolo and Jarry, other South American stars to watch include Tomas Martin Etcheverry, Mariano Navone, Facundo Diaz Acosta, Thiago Seyboth Wild and Francisco Comesana. Seyboth Wild has achieved the best result in Santiago from this group, winning the title in 2020.

5) Europeans in action: Former champion Pedro Martinez and Italian Luciano Darderi headline the European names in action. Spaniard Martinez won the title in 2022, while Darderi was a quarter-finalist last year.