Medvedev rolls past Struff in Dubai, Berrettini continues impressive form

Top seed Daniil Medvedev ensured he did not fall at the first hurdle on a day of upsets on Tuesday at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

The 29-year-old earned a hard-fought 6-4, 7-6(4) win over Jan-Lennard Struff to advance to the second round at the ATP 500. The 2023 Dubai champion, Medvedev came up clutch behind his serve, saving all four break points he faced, en route to improving to 8-1 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with the German.

“The results don’t matter in the big picture,” said Medvedev when asked of the first-round exits of second seed Alex de Minaur and 2022 Dubai champion Andrey Rublev earlier in the day. “You just need to play well and win your matches. I like tennis, I like to watch the matches, but [there was] no stress before coming on the court.”

Top seed, top form 🐙@DaniilMedwed kicks off his Dubai campaign with a straight-sets win over Struff 6-4 7-6(4)! 🫡@DDFTennis | #DDFTennis pic.twitter.com/HBOMPSsq1w

— ATP Tour (@atptour) February 25, 2025

Medvedev was forced to retire from his quarter-final at the ATP 500 in Doha last week through illness, but there were few signs of discomfort upon his return to action. Against Struff, the top seed carved out 10 break points, according to Infosys ATP Stats, before commanding the second-set tie-break and racing to a 5/0 lead, which ultimately proved to be unassailable.

“I think Jan’s biggest weapon is the serve, and somehow I managed to read,” said Medvedev. “It just happens. Even with me, I’m serving quite well and there are some players who I cannot make an ace against. I’m happy with my level, because he is still a strong opponent, and I’m happy to be in the second round.

“The flu in Doha was not the best ending to the tournament, but I hope to try and get what I have been building since the start of the season here in Dubai or later. It was a good start.”

In the second round, Medvedev will face another big server in France’s Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard. The No. 6 in the PIF ATP Rankings is this week chasing his first title since he won the ATP Masters 1000 in Rome in 2023.

In other action at the ATP 500, Matteo Berrettini marked his return to Dubai with a 7-5, 6-4 victory over Gael Monfils in 83 minutes. The Italian reignited some of his best tennis last week in Doha, where he defeated Novak Djokovic en route to the quarter-finals, and he does not appear to have let that momentum slip.

“It was a great tournament, great matches, great fights,” said Berrettini when asked of his week in Doha. “It gave me a lot of confidence coming here. It’s been a long time since I played here. I’m feeling the energy and hopefully it’s going to be a long week.”

Against Monfils, Berrettini twice squandered a break lead in the opening set, but he raised his level in the second, dropping just two points behind his serve. The Italian fired 26 winners overall, including 13 off the forehand wing, as he improved to 4-0 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with the Frenchman.

“It was a great match, I felt like I played really good,” said Berrettini, who is competing in Dubai for the first time since 2019. “I’m really happy with how I won the first set. It was really tough mentally after twice being a break up. At the end, the roar was because I am happy, I’m feeling good and enjoying my time on court.”

Berrettini, who this week returned to the Top 30 in the PIF ATP Rankings for the first time since June 2023, will next face qualifier Christopher O’Connell. The Australian advanced past Grigor Dimitrov after the Bulgarian was forced to retire after dropping the first set 6-0.