Dubai Tennis Championships preview: Andrey Rublev to reclaim Dubai crown

The ATP Tour heads to the United Arab Emirates for the Dubai Tennis Championship and a fascinating tournament is in store at the Aviation Club Tennis Centre.

While the top three in the world - Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner - won't be in attendance, there is still a stellar line-up headed by defending champion Daniil Medvedev.

The world number four has not been in competitive action since losing the Australian Open final in January, when he gave up a two-set lead to Italian star Sinner but he will be hoping to put that Grand Slam disappointment behind him with a successful defence of the Dubai Tennis Championships.

Top seed worth opposing

Medvedev may be the defending champion, but there is enough doubt about how sharp he will be having not played since losing Down Under in the Australian Open final.

The 28-year-old, who has lost in the final of the last two Grand Slams, has been drawn in arguably the tougher top half of the draw that includes Hubert Hurkacz, Ugo Humbert, Gael Monfils and Andy Murray.

Highly-rated Czech Jakub Mensik, 18, is a potential quarter-final opponent and he came desperately close to breaking his ATP Tour duck when losing in the final of the recent Qatar Open.

Medvedev is the 13/8 favourite to lift the trophy for the second year in a row and given his lack of preparation for this event, he could be worth swerving.

Rublev can enjoy strong run

While Medvedev can be overlooked, the 9/2 on Andrey Rublev to go all the way is hard to ignore and it would be no surprise to see him continue his strong Dubai form.

The 26-year-old started off 2024 with victory at the Hong Kong Open, before reaching the quarter-finals of the Australian Open, where he bumped into eventual champion Sinner.

Since Melbourne, the Russian has reached back-to-back quarter-finals in Rotterdam and Qatar and there have been enough positives from recent performances to suggest he can go far.

Rublev won this event in 2022, before reaching the final 12 months later, losing out to Medvedev on that occasion, so a second Dubai title may not be far away.

Keep an eye on Mensik

As mentioned earlier, Mensik is on a potential collision course with Medvedev in the quarter-finals and the anticipation is building ahead of that possible meeting.

The 18-year-old Czech has enjoyed a solid start to 2024, reaching the final of the Canberra Challenger before going down in the second round of the Australian Open on his Melbourne debut.

A semi-final loss in the Manama Challenger followed, before Mensik came close to landing his first ATP Tour title when falling at the last hurdle at the Qatar Open, beating the likes of Murray, Rublev and Monfils en route to the final.

It is a tricky draw for Mensik, who will likely have to get past both Medvedev and Hurkacz to reach the final, but he has shown plenty of promise and is a tempting each-way shout at 50/1.

Frenchman worth a look

Another player to keep an eye on is Frenchman Adrian Mannarino, who has been housed in the bottom half of the draw and looks a big priced at 28/1 to claim the spoils.

The 35-year-old will likely have to get past Rublev in the quarter-finals, but he has beaten the Russian on a hard surface before and that should give him some confidence if they meet again.

Mannarino made it to the quarter-finals of the Australian Open, going down to Djokovic, before he then reached the semi-finals of the Dallas Open on his next outing.

The left-hander's last two ATP titles have come on a hard court and, if he can replicate the types of performances that helped him enjoy a solid run in Melbourne, then he could spring a surprise in the UAE.

This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.