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Jannik Sinner made a statement in front of his home fans in Turin on Tuesday. He dominated Hubert Hurkacz 6-2, 6-2, in his first match as an alternate. He’ll now have the pleasure of facing Daniil Medvedev, who survived a tough test against Alexander Zverev 6-3, 6-7 (3), 7-6 (6).

Sinner was unbelievable in his destruction of Hurkacz, demoralizing the pole with his unrelenting power. Sinner was painting lines and hitting clean winners off the Pole’s 1st serve, but never once overextended his incredible ball-striking ability. He hit big balls to big targets and Hurkacz had no answer.

According to the oddsmakers, Medvedev is listed as a solid -278 favorite and projected to win by 3.5 games. Medvedev does not need to win this match, so please bet on the small side, but he should still be able to defeat Sinner by at least one break of serve per set.

Jannik Sinner has had no answer for Jannik Sinner in the past.

Jannik Sinner has had no answer for Jannik Sinner in the past. 

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Medvedev is in fantastic form. He dropped a set to an on-fire Hurkacz in the first round but then quickly turned things around and won easily. Against Zverev, he was steamrolling until a horrific foot-fault call derailed his progress in the tiebreak, but he ultimately outlasted Zverev in the third set with constant aggression. Medvedev wanted to be the one to decide the outcome of the match, which is admirable given the high stakes.

While Sinner was seriously impressive on Tuesday, it’s unlike Medvedev to throw away a match, and there is a serious prize money bonus for going undefeated this week in Turin. If Sinner plays as well as he did on Tuesday, he could certainly push the world No. 2, but Medvedev is too good to pass up a -3.5 game spread on a quick indoor court with no real pressure. Expect the Russian to put on a show.

The Pick: Daniil Medvedev -3.5