A surprising pair of ATP 250 finals will take place on Saturday in Belgrade and Metz. The former pits Denis Shapovalov against Hamad Medjedovic, while the latter will see Cameron Norrie battle Benjamin Bonzi.
Belgrade Open: (WC) Hamad Medjedovic vs. (Q) Denis Shapovalov
It will be a qualifier versus a wild card when Shapovalov and Medjedovic square off in the Belgrade final on Saturday. Medjedovic is trying to wrap up this year just like did 2023–with a title. The 21-year-old capped off last season by triumphing at the NextGen ATP Finals, presumably setting the stage for what would be a big 2024. However, that has not come to fruition–due to both injuries and general poor play. From basically out of nowhere, though, Medjedovic has put it all together in Belgrade with victories over Brandon Nakashima, Aleksandar Kovacevic, Francisco Cerundolo, and Laslo Djere.
Shapovalov has advanced with defeats of Marton Fucsovics, Nuno Borges, Christopher O’Connell, and Jiri Lehecka. The 78th-ranked Canadian has won eight consecutive sets without even being pushed to a tiebreaker since losing the first set of his opening main-draw match to Fucsovics in a ‘breaker. Amazingly, Shapovalov has won just a single ATP title in his career; he is 1-5 lifetime finals, with the lone success coming on the indoor hard courts of Stockholm in 2019. Still, any experience is good experience for the most part–and he will have the edge in that department against a first-time ATP finalist in Medjedovic. The Serb may have home-court advantage, but Shapovalov is simply on an absolute roll.
Pick: Shapovalov in 3
Moselle Open: Cameron Norrie vs. (Q) Benjamin Bonzi
There is not a single seed in either of the two finals on Saturday, as the Metz festivities feature Norrie and Bonzi. They will also be going head-to-head for the first time in their careers and this is also a match that pits an underdog from the host nation against a left-hander who has been around for a long time.
Norrie booked his spot in the title tilt by beating Roberto Carballes Baena, Luca Van Assche, Zizou Bergs, and Corentini Moutet. Meanwhile, Bonzi has been on fire in recent weeks. The 124th-ranked Frenchman played three Challenger tournaments in October and reached the final at all of them, winning two. He has not slowed down since making the move to the main tour, picking up Metz victories over Marc-Andrea Huesler (qualies), Manuel Guinard (qualies), Roberto Bautista Agut, Casper Ruud, Quentin Halys, and Alex Michelsen. If Bonzi was ever going to slow down in the midst of having played so many matches, it probably would have already happened. Now he can see the finish line–and he should be able to get there in front of the home crowd.
Pick: Bonzi in 3
