Second-round competition at the Australian Open begins on Wednesday, when seeds Alexander Bublik and Daniil Medvedev take the court. They are going up against Marton Fucsovics and Quentin Halys, respectively.
(10) Alexander Bublik vs. Marton Fucsovics
The new and improved version of Bublik that was on display for most of the 2025 looks like it isn’t going anywhere in 2026. Bublik opened the season with a title in Hong Kong that propelled him into the top 10 of the rankings for the first time in his career. The 28-year-old maintained momentum with a 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 whitewash of Jenson Brooksby on Sunday.
Up next for Bublik on Wednesday is what has been an extremely favorable matchup for him against Fucsovics, who trails the head-to-head series 5-1 (4-0 at the ATP level). They have faced each other only once since 2022, when Bublik prevailed 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 at the 2024 Doha tournament. Fucsovics beat clay-court specialist Camilo Ugo Carabelli in round one, but he had previously been 3-8 in his last 11 matches since winning last year’s Winston-Salem title. Although the 54th-ranked Hungarian is solid, this match will be entirely in Bublik’s racket. That used to be a bad thing for the Kazakh, who was once his own worst enemy. Now it’s a great thing.
Pick: Bublik in 3
(11) Daniil Medvedev vs. Quentin Halys
Medvedev and Halys will be squaring off for the fourth time in their careers on Wednesday. Both of their previous main-tour encounters have gone Medvedev’s way — 6-4, 6-2 at the 2023 Miami Masters and 6-2, 7-5 at the 2025 Halle event. Halys at least managed to score a 7-6(7), 6-4 victory at the Futures level back in 2015.
That the Frenchman lost in straight sets last summer — when Medvedev was not playing well — is not a good sign for his upset chances. Now the 29-year-old Russian is playing great, with a 20-4 record in his last 24 matches — including titles in Almaty and Brisbane. Medvedev trounced Jesper de Jong on Monday, while Halys made quick work of Alejandro Tabilo. The world No. 83 has the weapons to be dangerous, but he couldn’t hit through Medvedev on the grass courts of Halle and he certainly won’t be able to do it on the medium-paced hard courts of Melbourne.
Pick: Medvedev in 3
