This match has character!

Can Cerundolo tame Bublik's creative madness?

I had a bit of doubt about Bublik’s level in this R1 after a weaker end to the Chinese swing, but he clearly proved me wrong and was very good, especially on serve. He’s really enjoying being back indoors and his attitude was impeccable.

He was helped by a pretty disastrous Tabilo, but on his end he really got the job done.

A similar kind of match for Cerundolo, who dispatched a Michelsen who was frankly way off, but he himself played a good match—solid, serious, with a good attitude.

As for the H2H, it’s 1–0 Cerundolo at the AO, but Bublik wasn’t yet the player he’s become this year at that point, so I don’t really take it into account.

In this matchup, we’re really on Bublik’s playground, so it’s normal to see him as the favorite. Cerundolo is a player who needs rhythm and can be quite inconsistent, so I don’t really see him having the game to handle Bublik’s very particular style properly. Still, could the rather slow conditions give the Argentine hope and reasons to believe?