America’s Reilly Opelka had spent most of the previous two seasons on the sidelines due to injuries, but what a start he had this season! He stunned his “hero“, Novak Djokovic, in the QF of the 2025 Brisbane International. Shortly after securing one of the biggest wins of his career, Opelka said, “I’ve got a long way to go to get my ranking back where I’d like it, and my endurance back where I can compete at this level week in, week out.” He reached the final over there, and then after that, he came up with a strong performance in Dallas as well, but now he needs to get a good start at the Indian Wells Masters as well. Can he beat Russia’s Roman Safiullin in the R128 clash?
Reilly Opelka vs Roman Safiullin: Preview
Reilly Opelka will be entering this contest against Safiullin following his hard-fought defeat against his compatriot Brandon Nakashima in the R16 of the Delray Beach Open. The 23-year-old tennis star defeated Opelka by 3-6,7-5,6-2 in that match. Can Opelka now make a strong comeback from that R16 loss and make a winning start at the BNP Paribas Open?
Sep 26, 2021; Boston, MA, USA; Reilly Opelka hits a forehand. Team Europe (Rublev and Zverev beat Team World (Opelka and Shapovalov) 6-2,7-6, 10-3 tie break to win the Laver Cup at the TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Richard Cashin-USA TODAY Sports
His opponent in this match, Roman Safiullin, has had a horrid start to his season this year. He has made early exits in each of his tournaments in 2025. Safiullin was defeated by the Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor in the R32 of the Dubai Tennis Championships by a 7-5,6(4)-7,6(1)-7. So, he’ll also be eyeing to make a bounce back to winning his tracks. Who has the edge in the H2H record, though?
Opelka vs Safiullin: Head-to-Head
Well, no one has the edge at the moment in the H2H record. Reilly Opelka has never faced Roman Safiullin in his career before, so currently, the H2H record is 0-0.
Prediction: Opelka will win this match in straight sets
Considering their form this season, we don’t think it’d be difficult for Reilly Opelka to wrap up this match pretty quickly. Opelka (114) has looked quite impressive so far, and he currently has a win-loss record of 8-4. On the other hand, Roman Safiullin (69) has looked pretty ordinary this year, and hence, his numbers are also very poor at the moment (0-5)! Apart from that, playing in home conditions with the support of the home crowd could also help Opelka put pressure on his opponent in this match.
Now, if we shift our focus to their playing styles, Safiullin has an aggressive style of play. He’s known for his strong serve, forehands, and solid baseline play. He loves combining his baseline rallies with net play. However, he’s not among the fastest servers around in the men’s Tour.
Talking about fast servers, the 6ft 11 inches tall Reilly Opelka can use his height incredibly well to generate some real power behind his serves. He has already hit 215 aces this season! His consistency and precision are key to his high success rate on the serves. Other than that, Reilly Opelka also has a good volley and even has an incredible reach on the courts, which often helps him secure points from extraordinary positions. Even his backhand down the line is quite praiseworthy! So, keeping all these things in mind, we feel Reilly Opelka has a higher chance to proceed to the next round at the Indian Wells Masters.
The post Indian Wells 2025: Reilly Opelka vs Roman Safiullin; Preview, Head-to-Head, and Prediction appeared first on EssentiallySports.