Match Details
Fixture: (7) Andrey Rublev vs Max Purcell
Date: July 3, 2023
Tournament: Wimbledon 2023
Round: First round (Round of 128)
Venue: London, United Kingdom
Category: Grand Slam
Surface: Grass
Prize money: £44,700,000
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel & ESPN | Canada - TSN & RDS | UK - BBC & Eurosport | India - Star Sports
Andrey Rublev vs Max Purcell preview
World No. 7 Andrey Rublev will square off against Max Purcell in the first round of the 2023 Wimbledon on Monday.
Rublev has performed quite well so far this year. During the early hardcourt season, he reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open and finished as the runner-up at the Dubai Tennis Championships.
Rublev captured the biggest title of his career during the clay swing by winning the Monte-Carlo Masters. He also reached the final of the Srpska Open and won the doubles title at the Madrid Open alongside Karen Khachanov. However, the Russian was dumped out of the French Open in the third round.
Rublev participated in just one tournament on grass in the lead-up to Wimbledon, which was the Halle Open. He made it all the way to the final, but lost to Alexander Bublik in three sets.
Purcell, meanwhile, reached a new career high of No. 62 this year, mainly due to his strong performances on the Challenger circuit. He bagged three titles and posted another three runner-up finishes. However, the Australian hasn't tasted similar success in singles on the ATP Tour.
Both of Purcell's wins at the ATP level this season have been on clay. He participated in the Mallorca Open last week, but lost to Feliciano Lopez in the first round in straight sets.
Andrey Rublev vs Max Purcell head-to-head
The two have not crossed paths on the ATP tour prior to this, so the head-to-head stands at 0-0 for now.
Andrey Rublev vs Max Purcell odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Andrey Rublev vs Max Purcell prediction
Rublev has been rather consistent all year round, while Purcell has only shined at lower levels of the competition. The latter has struggled to keep up with his peers on the main tour. As the defending champion in men's doubles at Wimbledon, he's no slouch on grass, but his recent form suggests otherwise.
Rublev will look to take charge of the points from the get go. He likes to dictate play from the baseline and unleash his monstrous forehand at the opportune moment. Purcell is likely to counter that with some frequent trips to the next, which should be easy for him due to his doubles experience.
Rublev's the better server out of the two, further tilting the contest in his favor. The Russian generally makes it out of the early rounds at the Majors. Since the start of 2020, he has fallen at the first hurdle just once, which was at the 2021 French Open.
Given their respective results, the World No. 7 is likely to advance to the next round.
Pick: Andrey Rublev to win in four sets.