The second round action in Vienna ends on Thursday, when seeds Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Bublik return to the field. They have intriguing matchups in hand with Corentin Moutet and Francisco Cerundolo respectively.
(6) Daniil Medvedev vs. Corentin Moutet
Medvedev and Moutet will add a new chapter to their rivalry in 2025 when they meet again in the second round of the Erste Bank Open on Thursday. They split two recent meetings; Moutet inflicted a 1-6, 6-4, 6-4 defeat in Washington, DC before Medvedev triumphed 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 in the Almaty final last Sunday. The 29-year-old Russian leads the overall head-to-head series 2-1, after also prevailing 6-4 and 6-2 on the grass courts of Mallorca in 2021.
Medvedev’s title in Almaty was – shockingly – his first since the spring of 2023 in Rome. Despite that drought, the world number 14 has played decent tennis this season and a coaching change seems to have done him good (he left Gilles Cervara after the US Open and hired Thomas Johansson). Medvedev opened in Vienna on Wednesday with a 6-4, 6-7(7), 6-2 victory over Nuno Borges, while Moutet eliminated Damir Dzumhur 6-3, 6-0. The 36th-ranked Frenchman is always a tough player, but Medvedev is a fantastic indoor hard-court player and should have the edge again on Thursday.
Choice: Medvedev in 3
Francisco Cerundolo vs. (8) Alexander Bublik
Bublik is having his best and certainly most consistent season on tour. The 16th-ranked Kazakh has captured four titles (all since the start of the grass-court swing), in addition to a quarterfinal at Roland Garros and a fourth-round appearance at the US Open. Bublik started his week in Vienna by sailing past Alejandro Tabilo 6-4, 6-4.
Next up for the eighth seed is a second meeting with Cerundolo, who dominated their only previous meeting 7-6(1), 6-3, 6-2 at this year’s Australian Open. Although that was long before Bublik caught fire, it is still an advantage for Cerundolo to know that he is able to handle his opponent’s huge serves. The 21st-ranked Argentine is an underrated player on faster surfaces, which he showed again on Tuesday by beating Alex Michelson 6-3, 6-1. Don’t be surprised if a little disruption is in the cards.
Choice: Cerundolo in 3
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