Medvedev leads the head to head!
2023 Rome champion Daniil Medvedev returns to Foro Italico for the Italian Open Round of 64 on Friday. The Russian will face British southpaw Cameron Norrie in his opening bout. It will be a slow-paced contest between two players who have faced challenges on the red dirt in the past. The winner of this will take on either Alexei Popyrin or qualifier Carlos Taberner in Round-3.
Coming into the Italian Open as the No. 10 seed, Daniil Medvedev is looking to regain his lost crown. The 29-year-old reached the quarterfinals in Madrid last week, losing to eventual champion Casper Ruud. Medvedev defeated Holger Rune in the 2023 final here at the Italian capital, before losing in the Round of 16 after being seeded 2nd last year. Having recently stated that he wishes to retire with no regrets, the former US Open champion will enter the draw with renewed hopes and aspirations.
Like his opponent on Friday, Cameron Norrie has also witnessed a drop in form and rankings this year. Not too long ago, the 2022 Wimbledon semifinalist was a constant in the Top-10 of the ATP Rankings. But in 2025, Norrie has failed to go past the last eight stage at a single tournament thus far. After being ousted in the qualifiers in Monte Carlo, he reached the Round of 32 in Barcelona and Madrid. Coming into the Rome Masters as a lucky loser, Norrie beat Christopher O’Connell 6-3 6-2 in Round-1.
Daniil Medvedev leads the head to head duel against Cameron Norrie by 3-0. This will be their fourth meeting, and the first on clay.
All the Medvedev-Norrie clashes so far have been in outdoor hard courts. The Brit is yet to win a set against his Russian counterpart. In their first meeting at the Shanghai Rolex Masters in 2019, Medvedev humbled Norrie 6-3 6-1. They met a year later in the final of Los Cabos, where ‘Meddy’ emerged a comfortable victor yet again. The 2024 Miami Masters was the third chapter in this one-sided rivalry.
| Event | Round | Winner | Score |
| 2024 Miami | Round of 32 | Daniil Medvedev | 7-5 6-1 |
| 2022 Los Cabos | Final | Daniil Medvedev | 7-5 6-0 |
| 2019 Shanghai | Round of 32 | Daniil Medvedev | 6-3 6-1 |
| Daniil Medvedev | Category | Cameron Norrie |
| 1 | Grand Slams | 0 |
| 20 | ATP Singles Titles | 5 |
| 0 | ATP Doubles Titles | 1 |
| 6 | Masters-1000 Titles | 1 |
| 4 | ATP-500 Titles | 1 |
| QF (Tokyo 2020) | Olympics Best Performance | – |
| No. 11 | Current World Ranking | No. 91 |
In his Round-1 battle, Cameron Norrie used the classic tactic of engaging in cross-court exchanges before targeting the single-handed backhand of O’Connell to take control of rallies. With Medvedev however, a similar ploy could prove to be costly. The Russian will force Norrie to run around the court and attack – something that the counterpunch specialist isn’t comfortable doing. Provided Medvedev serves well enough, he is the favourite.
Prediction: Daniil Medvedev in straight sets.
Daniil Medvedev Win: 1/3
Cameron Norrie Win: 9/4
