Novak Djokovic v Alexei Popyrin | US Open preview, betting tips and H2H

Novak Djokovic and Alexei Popyrin renew their Grand Slam rivalry when they face off in the US Open third round on Friday.

The pair are set for their third major meeting of 2024, having also collided at the Australian Open and Wimbledon with Djokovic prevailing on both occasions.

The Serb is yet to drop a set in his opening two matches at Flushing Meadows, where he began with victory over Radu Albot before Laslo Djere retired injured in the third set of their second-round encounter.

That took the 24-time major champion onto 90 match wins at the US Open – moving past Roger Federer – with only Jimmy Connors (98) registering more.

Meanwhile, Popyrin has reeled off six sets without reply while defeating Kwon Soon-woo and Pedro Martinez.

The Australian has built on the momentum from his triumph earlier this month at the National Bank Open, where he overcame the likes of Grigor Dimitrov, Hubert Hurkacz, Sebastian Korda and Andrey Rublev on the way to glory.

An American opponent – Ben Shelton or Frances Tiafoe – awaits the winner of this clash in the US Open fourth round.

The match gets under way at around 12am BST (7pm local time) on Friday and will be contested over the best of five sets in Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Novak Djokovic v Alexei Popyrin prediction

Popyrin is aiming to break new ground at major tournaments by reaching round four for the first time.

Although, there is no denying the severity of his task at hand against Djokovic, who only failed to progress beyond round three at Flushing Meadows in his first two appearances in 2005 and 2006.

Not only that, but the Serb is on a run of 17 wins from 18 matches, with that sole defeat coming against Carlos Alcaraz in last month’s Wimbledon final.

Therefore, you would expect him to have too much for the Australian, who has endured a generally modest campaign aside from his National Bank Open success and run to the semi-finals in Doha.

Novak Djokovic v Alexei Popyrin betting tip

Novak Djokovic to win 3-1 @ 9/4 with Bet365

Novak Djokovic v Alexei Popyrin match odds

18+ | Please Gamble Responsibly | All odds correct at time of publication

How to watch Djokovic v Popyrin live online

All matches at the 2024 US Open are available to watch live via the Bet365 live streaming service.

To access live streaming of tennis, simply:

1. Go to Bet365.com via this special link
2. Register an account, make a first deposit and bet £10 to receive £30 in Bet Credits*
3. Once registered, go to the sports homepage and select ‘Tennis’ from the left-hand menu
4. Select the play icon next to the match in progress and the stream window will appear

*18+ only. New Customers only. Bet £10* & Get £30* in Free Bets. Sign up, deposit between £5* and £10* to your account and bet365 will give you three times that value in Free Bets when you place qualifying bets to the same value and they are settled. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits. Min odds/bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. T&Cs, time limits & exclusions apply. Registration required. GambleAware.org. *or currency equivalent

Novak Djokovic v Alexei Popyrin head-to-head

This will be the fourth meeting between the players on the ATP Tour, with Djokovic winning each of the previous three.