Daniil Medvedev arrived in Indian Wells with a 3-3 record at the BNP Paribas Open. But on Saturday evening the Russian star consolidated his status as tournament favourite with a resounding 6-4, 6-2 win against American Mackenzie McDonald to reach the third round.
“I’m actually really pleased, because usually I haven’t played well in Indian Wells and I haven’t been playing that well in practices before [the tournament],” Medvedev said in his on-court interview. “[I am] really happy with my performance. That’s the most important [thing] no matter how I played before the tournament.”
The recent US Open champion has been in dominant form lately, winning 17 of his past 18 matches and 38 of his past 41 sets. Medvedev will next play American Marcos Giron or Serbian Filip Krajinovic.
The top seed put his wide array of skills on display in front of the evening crowd inside Stadium 1, from playing stout defence to producing jaw-dropping winners. He did not face a break point against the World No. 57, and broke McDonald’s serve three times to triumph in one hour and 13 minutes.
“Mackenzie is a really strong opponent, he can put pressure on everybody,” Medvedev said. “I’m happy to be through quite fast.”
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Medvedev is not just winning, he is doing so convincingly. Of the past 38 sets he has won, the Russian has been extended further than 6-4 just four times. He will next try to move past the third round at this event for the first time.
Did You Know?
The World No. 2 now leads McDonald 5-0 in their ATP Head2Head series and 11-0 in sets.