Wimbledon 2021: Matteo Berrettini vs Aljaz Bedene preview, head-to-head & prediction

Match details

Fixture: Matteo Berrettini (7) vs Aljaz Bedene

Date: 3 July 2021

Tournament: The Championships, Wimbledon

Round: Third round (Round of 32)

Venue: London, Great Britain

Category: Grand Slam

Surface: Grass

Prize money: £17,066,000

Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel & ESPN | UK - BBC TV & Radio | India - Star Sports / Disney+ Hotstar VIP

Matteo Berrettini vs Aljaz Bedene preview

Seeded seventh at Wimbledon 2021, Matteo Berrettini is as big a favorite for the title here as he has ever been at a Grand Slam. When you combine his recent growth as a player with his prowess on grass, you are likely to pick him over anybody else in the draw except Novak Djokovic.

But the Italian hasn't had everything his way this week. In his first-round match against Guido Pella, Berrettini dropped the second set through a host of untimely errors. But he finished strong, closing out the match with a bagel in the fourth set.

While Pella did have a reputation for being a giant-killer at SW19, Berrettini's second-round opponent was making his Wimbledon debut.

Botic Van de Zandschulp was 5-5 for his entire career when he took the court against the Italian on Thursday. But he displayed calm beyond his experience, starting out the stronger of the two on serve.

Berrettini had to remain patient and resilient to manufacture a break of serve and clinch the set. The second set saw a similar story, following which the Dutchman mounted an even bigger challenge in the third.

But Berrettini escaped with some huge first serves on the most important points, and eventually won the tiebreak to close out the match in straight sets.

Aljaz Bedene

Aljaz Bedene, meanwhile, isn't somebody you would have expected to come through a section of the draw that featured John Isner. But by wrapping up his second-round match on Thursday in straight sets, Bedene became only the third player to reach the Round of 32 without dropping a set - after Dan Evans and Frances Tiafoe.

Grass isn't Bedene's strongest suit; the Slovenian wins only 36.7% of his matches on the surface, as compared to his 51.7% win-rate on clay and 46.2% on hardcourt. However, this is the first time in his career that Bedene has made the third round of a Grand Slam without losing a single set.

In his second-round match, the 31-year-old was up against Yoshihito Nishioka - the man who had taken out the big-serving John Isner in the first round. But Bedene paid little heed to that as he allowed the Japanese just three games in total.

The also saw the Slovenian's second bagel set of the tournament, following the one he delivered against Corentin Moutet in the first round.

Matteo Berrettini vs Aljaz Bedene head-to-head

Matteo Berrettini and Aljaz Bedene have met thrice previously on the tour, with the Italian leading the head-to-head 2-1 overall and 1-0 on grass.

The pair's last meeting was their only encounter on grass - in the first round of Wimbledon 2019. Berrettini dropped the opening set of the match but went on to seal victory in four sets.

Matteo Berrettini vs Aljaz Bedene prediction

Matteo Berrettini hasn't had the most comfortable start to his Wimbledon campaign. Rather than blowing his opponents away, the Italian has had to be patient and wait for his chances to assume control.

Aljaz Bedene, on the other hand, is riding a huge wave of confidence right now. And that might give him an early advantage in this third-round encounter.

All things considered, however, Berrettini has a lot more firepower than Bedene. The Italian is likely to outhit his opponent the moment he gets into his groove.

Prediction: Matteo Berrettini to win in four sets.