Medvedev vs Isner Odds & Prediction – ATP National Bank Open Semifinals

• Unseeded John Isner battles top-seeded Daniil Medvedev in the semifinals at the National Bank Cup
• Medvedev survived a quarterfinal scare vs 7th-seeded Hubert Hurkacz
• Read below for odds, analysis and our betting prediction

It’s been a renaissance sort of summer for John Isner. We’ll see just how far he’s come Saturday night.

Isner will be seeking his 10th straight win as he battles top-seeded Daniil Medvedev at the National Bank Cup in Toronto for a berth in the championship final.

Medvedev, the 2nd-ranked player in the world, is the overwhelming favorite in this one, but is he the best bet?

Daniil Medvedev vs John Isner Odds

Odds as of Aug. 13 at FanDuel.

How They Got Here

It hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing for Medvedev in Toronto.

After getting a first-round bye, the Russian has dropped the first set in two of three matches on his path to the Final Four in Toronto.

One of those matches was in Friday’s quarterfinal against 7th-seeded Hubert Hurkacz, who jumped all over Medvedev to take the first set 6-2. But the tourney’s top seed gutted it out, needing to win back-to-back tiebreaks to put away his opponent.

Medvedev’s serve was a big weapon, blasting 23 aces in the win. But this was an eke-out all the way, as he didn’t win a single break point — in fact, Medvedev only had two break serve chances all match.

Isner, meanwhile, needed to get through a tough opening-set tiebreak against 11th-seeded Frenchman Gael Monfils en route to a quarterfinal victory.

Monfils challenged Isner with plenty of antics, including bouncing side to side awaiting Isner’s serve.

To the 9s! @JohnIsner makes it nine consecutive wins, notching a 7-6 6-4 victory over Gael Monfils to reach the semis in Toronto. #NBO21 pic.twitter.com/eSmwOPhdbK

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) August 14, 2021

But he hurt his right ankle in the first set and tweaked it several other times, eventually needing to get it taped leading 4-3 with Isner serving in the second set.

He proceeded to drop the next three games in the row, as Isner improved his all-time mark against Monfils to 6-7.

How They’ve Been Playing

There’s no denying Medvedev has had a strong campaign: he’s won twice on tour, most recently at Mallorca in June, and made the final of the Aussie Open, losing to world #1 Novak Djokovic.

"INCREDIBLE !" 🔥🔥#Medvedev #Mallorca #HomeOFTennis #TennisExtra

(🎥 @TennisTV)pic.twitter.com/pA1bM8BmSj

— Tennis_MajorsFR (@tennismajorsfr) June 25, 2021

But he’s coming off a quarterfinal loss to Pablo Carreno Busta in the blistering heat of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games and prior to that, was bounced in the 4th Round at Wimbledon … by Hurkacz.

Medvedev vs Isner Head-to-Head Stats

Isner’s 2021 season looks modest at 16-9, but he’s been lights out recently. He entered Toronto coming off a tourney win in Atlanta, and prior to that he made it to the semifinal at the Mifel Open in Los Cabos.

At the National Bank, Isner has bounced three straight seeded players, looking to make it four on Saturday.

What’s the Best Bet?

This will only be the second meeting between these two all-time, with Medvedev beating Isner at the ATP Cup in Australia, winning 6-3, 6-1.

While both men will rely heavily on their serve, perhaps it’s how they handle  serve that will be the difference. In their 2020 matchup, Isner could only muster 11 points off Medvedev’s serve. Compare that to his match against Monfils, where he scored 25 points.

Now John Isner is positive again, knocked off Monfils
76 64. To face Medvedev, the strong hitter. JI: “I’m going to have to change up some tactics. He’s full of confidence. He’s going to stand on the fence, he’s going to make a lot of returns, he’s going to run”

— Matt Cronin (@TennisReporters) August 14, 2021

Medvedev, meanwhile, couldn’t muster much against his Hurkacz’s serve on Friday night, getting outscored 35-22 in that category.

If Isner can get out in front in the first set, the 36-year-old may be able to use his savvy to close out the Russian and make it to his second straight final appearance.

Tallest Men's Semi Finals in National Bank Open/Rogers Cup/Canadian Open history…
Opelka 6'11
Isner 6'10
Medvedev 6'6
Tsitsipas 6'4#ATP #NBO21

— John Horn (@SportsHorn) August 14, 2021

But Medvedev showed his own ability to weather the storm when not playing his best. His final two sets against Hurkacz were a master class in winning the right points at the right time.

With Medvedev’s inconsistency and Isner’s confidence level clashing, I like the odds this match gets to a third set. If you do want to take it a step further,  take the world’s second-ranked player to advance to the Sunday final.

The pick:  Over 23 games (+102), Medvedev -2.5 (-146)