Stakhovsky v Istomin

Stakhovsky is a fast surface player with powerful serve and good volleys. He likes to finish points fast and should do well on hard, but he plays better indoors as he needs less bounce and more speed for his game. He played here last season and failed to qualify. He beat Gasquet in Toronto this season, but then lost to Berdych there and to Roddick in Cincinnati. Istomin is a powerful server with aggressive ground game and good movement on court. He plays well on all surfaces, but he has done better on the faster ones this season. He started playing more on the ATP tour this season and did relatively well especially after the clay court spell. He is 10-3 on US hard this summer, but four of the victories are in qualifying. He lost to Federer last week as he hurt his ankle and had to retire, but he should be fit to play now. The Match – These two were unlikely winners from yesterday, but they deserved their final. Stakhovsky beat the better opponents, but they were less motivated and still he served very well and used the surface very well. Istomin continued his good run this summer and he is in great form at the moment. Stakhovsky has won all three finals he participated in and he will rely on his serve and aggressive baseline game. istomin also has the serve to trouble his opponent and he is also a bit more solid on the ground, but he looked a bit tired and shaky against Troicki. The match looks like a tight one, but Stakhovsky has been better throughout the week and he has the better record in finals which gives him the slight edge. The Verdict – Stakhovsky in three sets.

With this being a Slam there are a few who can be considered favorites for the victory. The usual suspects include Federer, Nadal, Murray, Djokovic - the top 4 players at the moment who come here in different form. Federer has picked up his game and although he is far from his best he actually does not need to play his best to win the Slam on this surface as almost no other player is used to it and has the talents to defeat the Swiss man. Nadal is in the best form of the four, but he does not fare well on this fast and low bouncing surface and he has never gone to the final here. Murray looked in top form in Toronto, but lost to Fish in Cincinnati and he had some ankle injury that bothered him last week. Added to his generally poor fitness level in Slam that might ruin his chances for the title. Djokovic showed sparks of brilliance in Cincinnati, but he is not consistent and he has some fitness issues too with asthma and heat so he might not be able to stay on his best level for two weeks.

Apart from the big four there are guys who look in form on this surface and should be considered - Gulbis, Nalbandian, Querrey, Isner, Fish, Berdych, Roddick, Baghdatis, Soderling. Fish is the most dangerous of the local guys as he is in great form and has great skills for the surface. However, his game revolves too much around the serve and he is too limited on the ground to be considered. Roddick is not in shape to last the two weeks after the mild mono he had and Querrey is actually in bad form. Isner is hurt and expected to withdraw before the event. That leaves us with power hitters Gulbis, Berdych and Soderling and technical baseliners Baghdatis and Nalbandian. Gulbis is in the best form of his life, but he is still too shaky and inconsistent to be trusted. Soderling is actually not in good form now and he is far from his best that he played last season. Berdych is in great form as well as Baghdatis and Nalbandian. All of them have good weapons for hard courts and all of them have the skills and talents to do well here. Baghdatis is in the third quarter with Djokovic, Roddick, Davydenko and Fish and he can overcome any of them, but he has to be focused and prepared to beat them and then face Federer and Nadal or Murray in the last two matches. That is too much for a player as mentally volatile as him. Berdych and Nalbandian are in the top half with the Czech having to face minor opposition before the quarterfinals. Nalbandian has a potential battle with Verdasco before taking on Gulbis or Ferrer and then having to meet Nadal in the quarterfinals. He is fit at the moment, but that is a mighty task to beat five good players in best of five sets and we doubt he can pull it off.

Having in mind all the contenders we see Federer as the natural favorite for the title and he has the draw and the skills to do it. The only alternative for us in the higher odds department can be Berdych as he also has an easier draw and has to play just three big matches to win while his fellow outsiders-in-form Baghdatis and Nalbandian have much tougher tasks.

Good luck!

Stakhovsky v De Bakker

Stakhovsky is a fast surface player with powerful serve and good volleys. He likes to finish points fast and should do well on hard, but he plays better indoors as he needs less bounce and more speed for his game. He played here last season and failed to qualify. He beat Gasquet in Toronto this season, but then lost to Berdych there and to Roddick in Cincinnati. De Bakker is a tall powerful server with solid baseline game. He played a lot on clay on Challenger level last season, but came to the top tour this year and plays more on other surfaces now. He came to the US early and trained hard on the surface. He played three events here and went 3-3 losing tight matches to Isner, Monfils and Roddick. He has not played on US hard before this season. The Match – Stakhovsky finally took advantage of Baghdatis’ desire to run away, but the Cypriot kept him on court for more than two hours. The Ukrainian did well this week, but he was not impressive despite the good victories over Robredo and Baghdatis. He won just 63% on serve, which is pretty bad for a player relying a lot on serve and he got broken eight times in the eight sets played. De Bakker was much better as he fired 29 aces and won 68% on serve against his opponents getting broken just five times in eight sets. The Dutchman is the more solid player and his serve is working better so he should expose the weak ground game of his opponent and dominate the serve which should give him the match. The Verdict – De Bakker in two sets.

Troicki v Istomin

Troicki is a powerful server with aggressive game, but he also has decent baseline defensive skills when needed. He plays a lot on hard and likes the surface, but his form is not too good this season. He is 3-3 on US hard this summer losing to Djokovic, Fish and Kohlschreiber. He played here once back in 2008 and got one victory before retiring. Istomin is a powerful server with aggressive ground game and good movement on court. He plays well on all surfaces, but he has done better on the faster ones this season. He started playing more on the ATP tour this season and did relatively well especially after the clay court spell. He is 9-3 on US hard this summer, but four of the victories are in qualifying. He lost to Federer last week as he hurt his ankle and had to retire, but he should be fit to play now. The Match – Troicki played a messy match against Stepanek and got broken three times in the eight service games he had, but overall his opponent looked tired and unwilling to fight so the Serbian had time to practice. He was very solid on serve this week and won 69% behind it despite the bad match yesterday. Istomin on the other hand started gloriously against Gabashvili, but then faded away and nearly lost the match as he looked second best in the decider. Both are good servers and play powerful and aggressive ground game. Both are rather solid at the back, but also have good options in attack. Istomin has been better on the US hard, but he has played against weaker opponents. All in all, Troicki has more class and better skills, which makes him the favourite in this match, but we see no value for betting. The Verdict – Troicki in three sets.

Korolev v De Bakker

Korolev is known for his big ground game and serve and his risky game. He plays ultra attacking tennis and likes the fast US hard courts. He had a shoulder injury this summer and then picked up a back injury after the clay season. He will make his debut on the US hard in New Haven where he is yet to win a match in the main draw. De Bakker is a tall powerful server with solid baseline game. He played a lot on clay on Challenger level last season, but came to the top tour this year and plays more on other surfaces now. He came to the US early and trained hard on the surface. He played three events here and went 3-3 losing tight matches to Isner, Monfils and Roddick. He has not played on US hard before this season. The Match – Korolev got two straight sets victories so far, but it was far from easy for him as he had to save 15 break points on the way and still got broken six times. He makes a lot of errors and his serve is far from its best. De Bakker had more trouble with the score as he needed three sets to get past both Kukushkin and Mayer, but his performance as he made 24 aces and won 67% of the points behind serve getting broken just four times. He is more solid on serve this week and he has the consistent and powerful ground game to force errors out of the Kazakh. Korolev was waiting to be beaten so far, but his opponents could not take advantage of his shaky form so we think he will find his match here. However, odds are too low on the Dutchman to be taken. The Verdict – De Bakker in three sets.

Troicki v Stepanek

Troicki is a powerful server with aggressive game, but he also has decent baseline defensive skills when needed. He plays a lot on hard and likes the surface, but his form is not too good this season. He is 3-3 on US hard this summer losing to Djokovic, Fish and Kohlschreiber. He played here once back in 2008 and got one victory before retiring. Stepanek is a powerful server with attacking net rushing game. He hits the ball flat and deep and usually follows it to the net where he has great volleys. He has picked up a fatigue syndrome and has not won a match on the main tour since February. He is starting to get his fitness back and he even played the final of Washington in doubles. He played qualifications here and beat Sergeyev and Sweeting with impressive display, but then lost to Gabashvili. Speculations are he knew by then that Fish would withdraw and he would be lucky loser and he saved his energy. The Match – These two met last week and Troicki totally dominated the match winning 7-5 6-1. The Czech was in bad shape due to fatigue syndrome and he had to play six matches in six days here including a gruelling 2:40 hour battle against Hanescu yesterday. That alone should make the Czech underdog in the match as his fitness will be tested severely. In addition Troicki plays well and he has made 18 aces in his matches so far while staying unbroken. We see the Serbian as the more solid and powerful player and he has the skills to handle the deep and flat shots of Stepanek while maintaining a better serve. The Verdict – Troicki in two sets.

Gabashvili v Istomin

Gabashvili is a powerful aggressive baseliner who plays most of his tennis on clay on the Challenger level. He has improved his defence by doing so and he is now more solid and controlled player. He lost all three matches he played on US hard recently to beatable opponents like Tursunov, Smyczek and Schuettler. His form is not very good, but he beat three opponents in qualifying and he looked impressive on the ground. He is 5-4 here so far, but he is yet to win a match in the main draw. Istomin is a powerful server with aggressive ground game and good movement on court. He plays well on all surfaces, but he has done better on the faster ones this season. He started playing more on the ATP tour this season and did relatively well especially after the clay court spell. He is 8-3 on US hard this summer, but four of the victories are in qualifying. He lost to Federer last week as he hurt his ankle and had to retire, but he should be fit to play now. The Match – Gabashvili wasted six match points before being able to finish a shaky Golubev and he should be mentally and physically exhausted after that effort. Istomin also lost a set to Lacko, but he was dominant in the decider. Both are powerful baseliners with good serves and both have the same style and match practice on the surface. However, Istomin is in better form this summer and he has the more powerful and solid game for hard. Gabashvili was not convincing so far in the main draw while Istomin was so we will side with the Uzbek in this match. The Verdict – Istomin in three sets.

Baghdatis v Chela

Baghdatis is a powerful baseliner with great talent and very good game for hard. He is in great form at the moment and he went 9-4 on the US hard before this event. However, he stayed late in Cincinnati and wasted a lot of energy there. He is just 2-3 in New Haven so far and despite his good form we doubt he will give it his best here just before the Slam. Chela is a solid baseliner with rather aggressive baseline game. He has good defence, but he also has the needed power off both wings to press his opponents. He plays more on clay and stayed late in Europe on the dirt, but he also has sufficient experience on hard and some success there too. He played just Toronto this summer on hard and beat Falla before losing to Federer. He needs match practice on hard and he should take the event seriously. He is 6-2 in New Haven so far. The Match – Baghdatis was solid enough against Andreev and he put our estimation to test as he might actually give it a try here despite his chances at the US Open. Chela started badly against Young as he got broken four times in the first set, but then picked up his game and stayed unbroken for the rest of the match. Both are capable baseliners with good options in attack. Chela is better in defence, but Baghdatis is in much better form this season and he is also better suited for hard courts. The Cypriot is the natural favourite in this match, but once again his motivation to stay late in the water drained New Haven is questionable so we might once again try and lay him. The Verdict – Chela in three sets.

Marchenko v Korolev

Marchenko is a solid baseliner with powerful ground game. He has very good defensive skills and he also has good counter punching shots from the back. He came early to the US to get some matches on the surface and he went 5-5 here so far. His best result was the third round in Washington. Korolev is known for his big ground game and serve and his risky game. He plays ultra attacking tennis and likes the fast US hard courts. He had a shoulder injury this summer and then picked up a back injury after the clay season. He will make his debut on the US hard in New Haven where he is yet to win a match in the main draw. The Match – Marchenko played two solid matches and after a rough start against Beck he had no problem winning. Korolev made a lot of his usual errors against Berrer, but the German made a terrible effort by missing 11 break points in the match. The two know each other well and play powerful baseline tennis, but Marchenko is the more solid and defensive player while Korolev is rather messy and ultra aggressive. He has played very well here so far while Korolev was lucky and erratic in his only match. Marchenko gets the nod for us in this match as his opponent is not in great form and should err his way out of the event. The Verdict – Marchenko in two sets.

De Bakker v Mayer

De Bakker is a tall powerful server with solid baseline game. He played a lot on clay on Challenger level last season, but came to the top tour this year and plays more on other surfaces now. He came to the US early and trained hard on the surface. He played three events here and went 3-3 losing tight matches to Isner, Monfils and Roddick. He has not played on US hard before this season. Mayer is a very tricky and talented player who has been hit by injury throughout his career. He has a powerful serve and good movement on court. He also has good flat shots, but can mix them up with slices and drop shots and he has decent volleys at the net. He likes slower surfaces, but does well on hard too. However, he chose to stay late in Europe and played just Cincinnati where he passed qualification, but then lost in the first round to Chardy. The Match – De Bakker was impressive on serve against Kukushkin, but had a hard time finishing the match in the rain. Mayer on the other hand had absolutely no problems against clay courter Hajek. The German hits the ball flat and he has a lot of tricks in the bag while De Bakker is more solid and straightforward. The Dutchman has the edge on serve and he is also more used to the hard courts as he has played three events here already. All in all, the match looks like a tough one to rate as Mayer is a tricky opponent to face and it cannot be predicted how De Bakker will handle his game. The German has a slight edge, but he is too unpredictable to be backed so we will stay away from this match. The Verdict – Mayer in three sets.

Hanescu v Stepanek

Hanescu is a tall and powerful server with big flat ground strokes. He is not a good mover on court and he needs time for his shots, which makes him better on clay, but he has enough practice on hard courts too. He stayed late in Europe and played just the two Masters events this season where he went 2-2. He is 7-3 in New Haven so far having won a match in every appearance. Stepanek is a powerful server with attacking net rushing game. He hits the ball flat and deep and usually follows it to the net where he has great volleys. He has picked up a fatigue syndrome and has not won a match on the main tour since February. He is starting to get his fitness back and he even played the final of Washington in doubles. He played qualifications here and beat Sergeyev and Sweeting with impressive display, but then lost to Gabashvili. Speculations are he knew by then that Fish would withdraw and he would be lucky loser and he saved his energy. The Match – Stepanek made a nice comeback with two victories in qualifying and two in the main draw, but he faced players even weaker than himself so far as both Cuevas and Gonzalez were out of form and did not really challenge him. Hanescu played great in his match against Brands and his serve and flat ground game found the surface very good for his game. Both hit the ball flat and rely on deep and powerful shots. Hanescu is bigger on serve and his ground game should be better on this slower hard. Stepanek is in worse form and we do not see him passing this obstacle. The Verdict – Hanescu in two sets.

Golubev v Gabashvili

Golubev is a powerful server with big forehand and very aggressive ground game. He has good volleys and often rushes to the net and he plays his best tennis indoors. He does well on hard and he is in very good form this season as he won his first ATP title in Hamburg. He came to the US after that and tried playing on hard, but he got tired and performed badly on the surface due to fatigue. He needs matches on the surface and he needs a good run here. Gabashvili is a powerful aggressive baseliner who plays most of his tennis on clay on the Challenger level. He has improved his defence by doing so and he is now more solid and controlled player. He lost all three matches he played on US hard recently to beatable opponents like Tursunov, Smyczek and Schuettler. His form is not very good, but he beat three opponents in qualifying and he looked impressive on the ground. He is 4-4 here so far, but he is yet to win a match in the main draw. The Match – Golubev started on fire against Gonzalez and his serve and attacking game clicked well, but then he fell apart and lost the second set badly. He finished things up convincingly, but his game was in ups and downs and he did not look impressive on his usually reliable serve. Gabashvili got a nice break as Malisse retired and awarded him the victory after just six games played. Both are powerful servers with big ground strokes. Both can be very aggressive and make errors, but Gabashvili has become more reliable and solid lately. Both did not impress so far, but the Russian is used to the conditions and they suit his game better. Golubev lacks matches here and we think Gabahsvili should be able to outsmart him on the slow hard, but both are not trustworthy and we will need huge odds to back the Russian. The Verdict – Gabashvili in three sets. 

Istomin v Lacko

Istomin is a powerful server with aggressive ground game and good movement on court. He plays well on all surfaces, but he has done better on the faster ones this season. He started playing more on the ATP tour this season and did relatively well especially after the clay court spell. He is 7-3 on US hard this summer, but four of the victories are in qualifying. He lost to Federer last week as he hurt his ankle and had to retire, but he should be fit to play now. Lacko is a powerful hard courter with dangerous serve and forehand. He has a lot of experience on hard, but he has played more on the Challenger level and on the slower types of hard. He is not in good form at the moment and he had to fight off injuries this season. He played three events on the US hard so far and he got to the quarterfinal in Atlanta, but then lost tight matches to Gulbis and De Bakker. The Match – Istomin was very impressive against Becker and showed no signs of an injury. Lacko also played two very good matches and defeated Serra and Bellucci without being in danger of losing. Both are powerful on the ground and big on serve. Istomin looks in better form after the grass spell and he has more experience and power on court. Lacko is fairly inconsistent and he can always backfire. Istomin has been the same throughout his career, but he is starting to be more reliable recently and he deserves some credit in this match. The Verdict – Istomin in three sets.

[1] M Baghdatis (CYP) vs I Andreev (RUS)

Baghdatis is a powerful baseliner with great talent and very good game for hard. He is in great form at the moment and he went 9-4 on the US hard before this event. However, he stayed late in Cincinnati and wasted a lot of energy there. He is just 1-3 in New Haven so far and despite his good form we doubt he will give it his best here just before the Slam. Andreev is a powerful baseliner with big serve and forehand. He hits with a lot of spin and plays his best tennis on clay. He comes off an ankle injury and is still to get his form back, but he is 11-4 in New Haven so far so he enjoys the event despite not being too good on hard. The Match – Andreev has a great record here and he was solid enough when beating Clement. Baghdatis does not really care to win the title here and we do not see him staying for more than two matches as he has ambitions for the Slam and he needs to rest and get to NY early. That makes Andreev favourite for this match despite the better form and game of the Cypriot. We are ready to take him at odds above 3. The Verdict – Andreev in three sets.

[WC] D Young (USA) vs [14] J Chela (ARG)

Young is a local hopeful with solid and powerful counter punching game. He moves well on court and has the angles and the pace to trouble opponents. His game generally fares well on hard and he has huge experience on the surface. His major setback is the lack of mentality, but he is slowly working to overturn that. He is 2-2 in New Haven so far and he lost in the first round of Cincinnati last week to Gulbis, but he played well. Chela is a solid baseliner with rather aggressive baseline game. He has good defence, but he also has the needed power off both wings to press his opponents. He plays more on clay and stayed late in Europe on the dirt, but he also has sufficient experience on hard and some success there too. He played just Toronto this summer on hard and beat Falla before losing to Federer. He needs match practice on hard and he should take the event seriously. He is 5-2 in New Haven so far. The Match – Young was very impressive in the first round, but his opponent looked out of place. Chela will be a bigger threat as the veteran has the power and the skills to do well on the slow hard. Young is better used to the surface and that gives him a slight edge, but Chela is more experienced on this level. The match should be a tight one and we give Young some credit, but we do not think odds will be good enough to back him. The Verdict – Young in three sets. 

[9] S Stakhovsky (UKR) vs P Luczak (AUS)

Stakhovsky is a fast surface player with powerful serve and good volleys. He likes to finish points fast and should do well on hard, but he plays better indoors as he needs less bounce and more speed for his game. He played here last season and failed to qualify. He beat Gasquet in Toronto this season, but then lost to Berdych there and to Roddick in Cincinnati. Luczak is a powerful baseliner with good serve who plays most of his tennis on clay. He has the needed experience on hard, but he lacks success on it and his matches are mostly on the Aussie hard. He has not played on the US hard since the spring and he stayed late in Europe to play on clay in the Bundesliga. The Match – Luczak did well to show some form and defeat the shaky Mayer, but he should struggle against the net rushing Ukrainian. Stakhovsky is better on hard courts and he has the aggressive game to derail the baseliner in this match. The Verdict – Stakhovsky in two sets.

[WC] T Dent (USA) vs T Robredo (ESP)

Dent is a typical serve and volleys player with huge experience on the US hard. He has the serve and the offense to do well, but his career has been marked by injuries and he looks overweight and slow now. However, he seems in good form this season on the local hard as he is 8-3 on the surface (3-1 on the top level) with a quarterfinal in Atlanta. Robredo is a solid defensive baseliner who plays his best tennis on clay. He is not in good form as he overcame a back injury this summer and is still looking for his game. He usually does poorly on the US hard and gives his best on the Slam. He lost early in Toronto and Cincinnati and did not impress with his game. He needs match practice and will probably look to play two matches here, but he is due to stop at some point and travel to NY early. The Match – Dent needed a lot of effort to beat the rusty clay courter Schwank and the surface obviously is too slow for him. That should favour Robredo who has the solid baseline game to do well on it. However, the Spaniard does not enjoy facing net rushers and that might prove tricky for him. The match is a close one and we lean slightly towards Robredo, but in his current form we are not ready to back him. The Verdict – Robredo in three sets.

[LL] P Bester (CAN) vs. I Marchenko (UKR)

Bester is a Futures player who plays most of his top level tennis on hard. He knows the surface well and he has the experience on it, but he actually does better on clay on the Futures level where he recently won a title on the dirt. He is a baseliner with good movement and power on court and he relies more on return and consistency than on serve. He played qualifying here and beat Phau, Bubka and Anderson in three very tough matches and he was lucky and stubborn enough to win them all. This will be his first second round match on the top level, but he is still looking for his first victory on this stage. Marchenko is a solid baseliner with powerful ground game. He has very good defensive skills and he also has good counter punching shots from the back. He came early to the US to get some matches on the surface and he went 5-5 here so far. His best result was the third round in Washington. The Match – Bester was very lucky to get here, but now he has to step up with his game. Both players are more of a baseliner with solid game, but the Ukrainian has more power and he is definitely more experienced on the level. He will be the best player Bester meets so far and we doubt the qualifier will have the game to overpower Marchenko. The Ukrainian simply has the better polished and more powerful game of the two and he should be able to progress. The Verdict – Marchenko in two sets.

E Korolev (KAZ) vs [13] M Berrer (GER)

Korolev is known for his big ground game and serve and his risky game. He plays ultra attacking tennis and likes the fast US hard courts. He had a shoulder injury this summer and then picked up a back injury after the clay season. He will make his debut on the US hard in New Haven where he is yet to win a match in the main draw. Berrer is a good fast surface player with powerful leftie serve and nice volleys. He uses the slice on the backhand side and attacks well, but he needs lower bounce to play better and therefore he likes indoor surfaces more. He had an ankle injury this summer, but he played three hard court events. He beat beck and Robredo and lost tight matches to Verdasco and Malisse. He is 4-1 in New Haven, but three of his victories are in qualifying. The Match – Korolev did well on his return against Gil, but his opponent was out of form and despite his shaky serve and erratic game the Kazakh managed to win. Berrer has won both matches between the two so far and he has the solid and tricky slice defensive game to trouble Korolev. The Kazakh is very aggressive and might struggle against the lack of pace and bounce of his opponent’s shots. Berrer obviously knows how to handle Korolev and he should be able to do it once again. The Verdict – Berrer in three sets.

[12] T de Bakker (NED) vs. M Kukushkin (KAZ)

De Bakker is a tall powerful server with solid baseline game. He played a lot on clay on Challenger level last season, but came to the top tour this year and plays more on other surfaces now. He came to the US early and trained hard on the surface. He played three events here and went 3-3 losing tight matches to Isner, Monfils and Roddick. He has not played on US hard before this season. Kukushkin is a solid baseliner with good movement and powerful serve. He relies a lot on the serve, but backs it up with solid defence instead of attacking ground game. He can take his chances in attack too, but he does it more seldom. He passed qualifications here by beating Kelly, Klec and Mathieu without dropping a set. His serve was on the needed level as he fired 25 aces and won 68% on serve in the three matches. The Match – Kukushkin suddenly dropped his level of serve and he was lucky that Greul played a terrible game and granted him the victory. De Bakker will definitely hold the edge on serve and things should be pretty tough on the ground. Both are solid baseliners with enough power to hit winners, but the serving advantage of the Dutchman and the bad performance of the qualifier yesterday give De Bakker a huge edge in this match. The Verdict – De Bakker in two sets.

J Hajek (CZE) vs. [8] F Mayer (GER)

Hajek is a solid clay courter with consistent game and nice power of both wings. He plays most of his tennis on clay and he stayed late in Europe to play on the dirt. He has not played on US hard this summer and he lacks the skills to do well on the faster hard courts. He played here once before and passed qualifications, but lost in the first round to Gicquel in 2006. Mayer is a very tricky and talented player who has been hit by injury throughout his career. He has a powerful serve and good movement on court. He also has good flat shots, but can mix them up with slices and drop shots and he has decent volleys at the net. He likes slower surfaces, but does well on hard too. However, he chose to stay late in Europe and played just Cincinnati where he passed qualification, but then lost in the first round to Chardy. The Match – Hajek surprised Brown in the first round, but his opponent lost the plot after missing a number of break points at the start of the match. The Czech is solid and defensive, but he will lack any pace and power to deal with as Mayer is well known for his various shots and clever game. The German is still looking for matches to get in shape and he should be better suited for the hard courts here. He has the variety and serve to do well on hard especially against a clay courter like Hajek. The Verdict – Mayer in two sets.

[7] A Dolgopolov (UKR) vs [WC] J Blake (USA)

Dolgopolov is touted as the next big thing in tennis. He came to the top tour this season and he is making good progress. He plays more on clay, but he has a powerful serve and very good speedy shots off both wings so he can be dangerous on faster surfaces too. He beat Youzhny and Petzschner in Toronto and then lost a tight match to Ferrer in Cincinnati. He has not played here before, but he needs match practice and he likes smaller events like this one. Blake was terrible last week in Cincinnati getting ripped by Istomin. He had no movement and placement on court and he made tons of errors to lose embarrassingly. He is a powerful hard courter by default, but he has been hit by injuries this season and his game has gone down. He has a couple of titles here from 2005 and 2007 and he likes the surface, but he has to improve a lot from last week to hope for a run here. The Match – Blake raced past Riba with the loss of just one game, but he should be in for a bigger challenge against Dolgopolov. The Ukrainian should love the challenge and his game should be well suited for the surface. Both have a lot of power on the ground, but the youngster has the better backhand and he also has more powerful serve. Both tend to be shaky mentally recently, but Dolgopolov is definitely in better form. We see him as the slight favourite in this match, but it all will depend on the attitude of the two players so we will not risk any money on the match. The Verdict – Dolgopolov in three sets.

J Nieminen (FIN) vs [10] V Troicki (SRB)

Nieminen is a powerful leftie with solid ground game and good defensive skills. He plays a tough physical game and relies on counter punching. He likes fast surfaces and he came to the US early, but he has not done anything memorable this season as he failed to qualify for Cincinnati and lost in the first round in Toronto. He is 3-4 in New Haven so far. Troicki is a powerful server with aggressive game, but he also has decent baseline defensive skills when needed. He plays a lot on hard and likes the surface, but his form is not too good this season. He is 3-3 on US hard this summer losing to Djokovic, Fish and Kohlschreiber. He played here once back in 2008 and got one victory before retiring. The Match – Nieminen played great to beat Seppi and he gave his consistent opponent no chance. He will look to serve well and keep the ball in play while forcing Troicki to move and make errors. The Serbian will also rely on serve and his power on the ground to make the needed winners. Troicki lost four of his last five matches against lefties and his game might be troubled by the stubborn and consistent Finn. The surface is a bit slow which should favour the defensive player so we give Nieminen the edge as he has what it takes to stay in rallies while Troicki is usually shaky and inconsistent when he has to hit through opponents. The Verdict – Nieminen in three sets.

[16] V Hanescu (ROU) vs. D Brands (GER)

Hanescu is a tall and powerful server with big flat ground strokes. He is not a good mover on court and he needs time for his shots, which makes him better on clay, but he has enough practice on hard courts too. He stayed late in Europe and played just the two Masters events this season where he went 2-2. He is 6-3 in New Haven so far having won a match in every appearance. Brands is a powerful server with big forehand. He moves better on clay and likes slower surfaces which help him set up his big shots. He is used to playing more on European clay and on Challenger level. This will be his first match on US hard this summer as he stayed late to play on clay in the German Bundesliga. He has won just one match on hard on this level and it was against the hurt and rusty Grosjean this year. The Match – These two plated a very tough match at Wimbledon where the German came from two sets down to defeat Hanescu as the Romanian was forced to retire in the decider. Both are powerful servers with slow movement and both do better on clay. However, Hanescu has done pretty well here so far and he has the more powerful and flat game, which should look good on hard. He also has more experience on hard this summer so we give him the edge in the match. The Verdict – Hanescu in three sets.

R Stepanek (CZE) vs. [3] F Gonzalez (CHI)

Stepanek is a powerful server with attacking net rushing game. He hits the ball flat and deep and usually follows it to the net where he has great volleys. He has picked up a fatigue syndrome and has not won a match on the main tour since February. He is starting to get his fitness back and he even played the final of Washington in doubles. He played qualifications here and beat Sergeyev and Sweeting with impressive display, but then lost to Gabashvili. Speculations are he knew by then that Fish would withdraw and he would be lucky loser and he saved his energy. Gonzalez is a powerful baseliner with big serve and huge forehand. He plays well on all surfaces and despite preferring clay he can be dangerous with his power on the slower hard courts. He concentrates on big events nowadays, but he was hit by a leg injury and has not played for three months. He was scheduled to come back in Toronto, but picked up another calf injury and then missed Cincinnati too. He has played only once in New Haven so far, but he desperately needs match practice and will look to go deep here. The Match – This looks like a great battle between two good players from the top of the rankings. Both are coming back from injuries and both have had a hard time this season. Stepanek had the needed match practice here so far and he looked solid and aggressive against Cuevas although his serve was not that good. Gonzalez is yet to play on hard and we will not want to back him here. Stepanek has the game to stay aggressive and attack the Chilean’s backhand and rush to the net so he should get the nod in this match. The Verdict – Stepanek in two sets.

[5] A Golubev (KAZ) vs M Gonzalez (ARG)

Golubev is a powerful server with big forehand and very aggressive ground game. He has good volleys and often rushes to the net and he plays his best tennis indoors. He does well on hard and he is in very good form this season as he won his first ATP title in Hamburg. He came to the US after that and tried playing on hard, but he got tired and performed badly on the surface due to fatigue. He needs matches on the surface and he needs a good run here. Gonzalez is a powerful baseliner who plays most of his tennis on clay. He missed half of this season with leg injury, but he did well after the return to win some matches on clay. He does not like fast surfaces and he lacks experience on hard. He is just 2-3 on hard in his career on the top level. The Match – Gonzalez did well to handle Zeballos and that proved the surface a bit slow. He is a solid baseliner, but Golubev is a totally different player and will look to pound some winners past him. Golubev has the power to hit through the court and he enjoys slower surfaces too as his title from Hamburg suggests. The Kazakh is the favourite in this match against the clay courter, but we need to see him play before backing him. The Verdict – Golubev in two sets.

T Gabashvili (RUS) vs [11] X Malisse (BEL)

Gabashvili is a powerful aggressive baseliner who plays most of his tennis on clay on the Challenger level. He has improved his defence by doing so and he is now more solid and controlled player. He lost all three matches he played on US hard recently to beatable opponents like Tursunov, Smyczek and Schuettler. His form is not very good, but he beat three opponents in qualifying and he looked impressive on the ground. He is 4-4 here so far. Malisse is a veteran on tour now with huge experience on US hard. It is his best surface and he has the sharp and powerful game to fit on it. He is very talented and dangerous on both wings, but he lacks consistency and patience at times, which makes him pretty unpredictable. He is in very good form at the moment and he went 7-4 on US hard before this event reaching the semis in Washington and the quarterfinals in Atlanta. He did not do well on the bigger events and he concentrated on smaller ones now. The Match – These two are similar players with powerful serves and attacking ground games. Gabashvili has become more solid through the years while Malisse is still the same confidence player. The Belgian has gained some confidence recently and he plays the best tennis of his career this season. Gabashvili on the other hand has not been in good form and the run here is a rare feat on hard as he plays more on clay nowadays. Malisse has the power and the skills to press his opponent and make winners while Gabashvili can reply with the same power, but he is not that efficient in attack and he is also not that solid in defence. Malisse in the favourite in the match and it all depends on his attitude. The Verdict – Malisse in two sets.

[15] D Istomin (UZB) vs. B Becker (GER)

Istomin is a powerful server with aggressive ground game and good movement on court. He plays well on all surfaces, but he has done better on the faster ones this season. He started playing more on the ATP tour this season and did relatively well especially after the clay court spell. He is 6-3 on US hard this summer, but four of the victories are in qualifying. He lost to Federer last week as he hurt his ankle and had to retire, but he should be fit to play now. Becker is a hard courter with powerful serve and good movement on court. He is more patient than the usual hard courter and he has good defence, but he also takes his chances well in attack. He is not in good form on the tour after coming back from injury and he is 2-4 on the US hard this summer. He lost even to Zemlja in Washington and his victories last week came in qualifying over Fognini and Muller. The Match – Becker overcame Chiudinelli in a tight match decided by his better concentration on break point. Istomin comes off an ankle injury from last week and his fitness and desire to press his ankle more are under question this week. He is the more powerful player and he is in better form, but his fitness makes him untrustworthy this week. Becker on the other hand is still looking for his form and he did not impress in his first match here. He has the edge due to his opponent’s problems, but we do not see any value in the odds. The Verdict – Becker in three sets.

L Lacko (SVK) vs. [2] T Bellucci (BRA)

Lacko is a powerful hard courter with dangerous serve and forehand. He has a lot of experience on hard, but he has played more on the Challenger level and on the slower types of hard. He is not in good form at the moment and he had to fight off injuries this season. He played three events on the US hard so far and he got to the quarterfinal in Atlanta, but then lost tight matches to Gulbis and De Bakker. Bellucci is a powerful serving leftie with big forehand. He plays most of his tennis on clay and hits the ball with a lot of spin. He played only the Masters events on hard this summer and lost early both times to Gulbis and Baghdatis, but he played well last week. He lost his only match in New Haven two years ago to Clement and he will look to pick up some matches here, but the surface might trouble him. The Match – Lacko overpowered the shaky Serra easily and made 9 aces on serve. He has the skills to do well on this slow hard courts and he should like the conditions here. Bellucci lacks matches on hard and he likes such small events before Slams. He will look to dominate on serve and unleash his spinning forehand, but the lack of bounce here might trouble him. Lacko does not do well against lefties and he also does not handle big serves well. If Bellucci managed to serve well he has a big chance to win the match as he is more experienced and his opponent struggles against the likes of him. The outcome depends on the serve of the second seed and we are not ready to put money on it. The Verdict – Bellucci in three sets.

I Andreev (RUS) vs. A Clement (FRA)

Andreev is a powerful baseliner with big serve and forehand. He hits with a lot of spin and plays his best tennis on clay. He comes off an ankle injury and is still to get his form back, but he is 10-4 in New Haven so far so he enjoys the event despite not being too good on hard. Clement is in bad form now that he stares at retirement. He plays solid baseline tennis with good serving and nice attacking option when needed. He failed to qualify for LA, Toronto and Cincinnati and lost in the first round in Washington. He is 3-3 in New Haven so far. The Match – Andreev has the better record here and he has the power and the serve to dominate the match. Clement is not in form and he is heading down, but he has the solid game to trouble the rusty Russian. We will not bet on this match, but we think the Russian might just have the edge in clinch it. The Verdict – Andreev in three sets.

S Robert (FRA) vs. [WC] D Young (USA)

Robert came to the top tour this season after doing well on clay on Challenger level last season. He has a technical serve and hits the ball flat and with power, but he lacks good movement and he is also pretty shaky and inconsistent. He has not played on the US hard this summer and he lacks experience under the conditions. Young is a local hopeful with solid and powerful counter punching game. He moves well on court and has the angles and the pace to trouble opponents. His game generally fares well on hard and he has huge experience on the surface. His major setback is the lack of mentality, but he is slowly working to overturn that. He is 1-2 in New Haven so far and he lost in the first round of Cincinnati last week to Gulbis, but he played well. The Match – Young has the solid and powerful game to oppose to the Frenchman and he surely has a huge edge in experience on the surface. He can keep the ball in play and he can use the power of his opponent well to trouble him so we do not see Robert as having any weapons to hurt Young. However, the local kid is still unstable and we will need good odds above 2.00 to back him. The Verdict – Young in three sets.

A Beck (GER) vs. I Marchenko (UKR)

Beck is a powerful server with big leftie forehand. He plays most of his tennis on clay and Europe and he stayed late in Europe for the Bundesliga. He arrived for Cincinnati and lost to Mayer in the qualifying there. He lost his only match in New Haven so far and he lost his last five matches on hard. Marchenko is a solid baseliner with powerful ground game. He has very good defensive skills and he also has good counter punching shots from the back. He came early to the US to get some matches on the surface and he went 5-5 here so far. His best result was the third round in Washington. The Match – Marchenko has the power and the consistency to do well here. Beck on the other hand is more aggressive, but he lacks the speed and the skills to hit his usual shots and will struggle on the surface. The Ukrainian has the edge in all areas but serve and he should be able to capitalize on his good defence and win. The Verdict – Marchenko in three sets.

F Gil (POR) vs. E Korolev (KAZ)

Gil is a powerful attacking baseliner who hits with a lot of spin and likes clay courts most. He stayed in Europe late as he usually does and played on hard in Istanbul getting to the semifinal like he did last season. He managed to pass qualifications and reach the third round in New Haven last season, but his form back then was better than it is this year. Korolev is known for his big ground game and serve and his risky game. He plays ultra attacking tennis and likes the fast US hard courts. He had a shoulder injury this summer and then picked up a back injury after the clay season. He will make his debut on the US hard in New Haven where he is yet to win a match in the main draw. The Match – Korolev has the power and the serve to do well here, but his game is very attacking and he needs to be in form to play well. He lacks matches and is not to be trusted. The same is true about Gil who also lacks experience on the US hard and comes from slower surfaces. Both are not prepared and will need to adjust their game fast for the US hard which makes it hard for us to predict the winner. The Verdict – Korolev in three sets.

A Seppi (ITA) vs. J Nieminen (FIN)

Seppi is a solid defensive player with good counter attacking skills. He plays well on all surfaces, but likes slower ones more. He stated late in Germany to play Bundesliga and he will make his debut on the US hard courts now. He has not done anything big in New Haven, but has always won a match here. Nieminen is a powerful leftie with solid ground game and good defensive skills. He plays a tough physical game and relies on counter punching. He likes fast surfaces and he came to the US early, but he has not done anything memorable this season as he failed to qualify for Cincinnati and lost in the first round in Toronto. He is 2-4 in New Haven so far. The Match – These two are similar player with solid defensive skills and powerful baseline game. They know each other well and Nieminen has won both matches between them so far. The Finn has more matches on the US hard and he should be better suited for the surface, but he failed to impress in his matches and Seppi might just have the consistency to trouble him. Nieminen will be made favourite because of his matches in the US, but we do not trust him against an equally solid opponent so we will skip this match for betting. The Verdict - Nieminen in three sets.

L Lacko (SVK) vs. F Serra (FRA)

Lacko is a powerful hard courter with dangerous serve and forehand. He has a lot of experience on hard, but he has played more on the Challenger level and on the slower types of hard. He is not in good form at the moment and he had to fight off injuries this season. He played three events on the US hard so far and he got to the quarterfinal in Atlanta, but then lost tight matches to Gulbis and De Bakker. Serra is a solid baseliner with good movement on court and solid defensive skills. He likes to take the ball early in attack and he can move opponents around well on court when he is in form. He is far from that state at the moment as he has not made a run in any tournament since April. He plays well on all surfaces, but clay is his best. He failed to qualify for Toronto and Cincinnati lately and he is 3-5 in New Haven so far. The Match – Serra is the more solid and stable player, but he is also in worse form. Lacko has more matches here this season and he has played well despite his losses. The Slovak has the serve and the attack to do well here while Serra will look to stay solid and force errors out of his opponent. Lacko is the small favourite for us and we think he has the skills to defeat the out of form Frenchman. The Verdict – Lacko in two sets.

P Luczak (AUS) vs. L Mayer (ARG)

Luczak is a powerful baseliner with good serve who plays most of his tennis on clay. He has the needed experience on hard, but he lacks success on it and his matches are mostly on the Aussie hard. He has not played on the US hard since the spring and he stayed late in Europe to play on clay in the Bundesliga. Mayer is a powerful and aggressive baseliner who has the serve and the forehand to play on hard. He likes the fast conditions in the USA, but his form is not good at the moment as he lost his last six matches on hard and he is 13-19 overall this season. He is 3-1 in New Haven reaching the quarterfinals last season. The Match – Luczak is not motivated and willing to play on hard and he does not like the surface. Mayer likes the conditions and should be looking for his first hard court victory of the summer. He has the weapons to hold off the Aussie and his serve is much better so he should be able to win. The Verdict – Mayer in two sets.

[WC] T Dent (USA) vs. E Schwank (ARG)

Dent is a typical serve and volleys player with huge experience on the US hard. He has the serve and the offense to do well, but his career has been marked by injuries and he looks overweight and slow now. However, he seems in good form this season on the local hard as he is 8-3 on the surface (3-1 on the top level) with a quarterfinal in Atlanta. Schwank is a powerful baseliner with attacking ground game. He moves slow on court and likes slower surfaces where he has more experience. He had back injury issues this summer and he lacks match practice. He played just one match on the US hard this season and lost to Verdasco in Toronto. The Match – Dent has the pressing ground game and the serve to do well on the surface. He has more experience on it and he can press Schwank hard and force errors out of him. The Argentinean lacks experience on the surface and he will rely on baseline exchanges. Dent will not allow long rallies and should be able to win this one. The Verdict – Dent in two sets.

[WC] J Blake (USA) vs. P Riba (ESP)

Blake was terrible last week in Cincinnati getting ripped by Istomin. He had no movement and placement on court and he made tons of errors to lose embarrassingly. He is a powerful hard courter by default, but he has been hit by injuries this season and his game has gone down. He has a couple of titles here from 2005 and 2007 and he likes the surface, but he has to improve a lot from last week to hope for a run here. Riba is a decent clay courter with solid defence and good ground game. He plays most of his matches on the dirt and on the Challenger level and he stayed late in Europe to play the Bundesliga. He has never played a match on the main tour on hard and he lacks experience and skills for the fast surfaces. The Match – Blake is in bad form at the moment and he needs a good run to boost his confidence. He faces a shaky and inexperienced opponent and Riba seems just the player to be beaten by the wild card. Blake has the skills to do better than the Spaniard and Riba lacks the shots and the movement to do well here. We expect Blake to win the match, but after seeing him last week we will definitely not support him in this match. The Verdict – Blake in two sets.

L Kubot (POL) vs. D Brands (GER)

Kubot is a powerful serving doubles player who plays aggressive tennis. He has good volleys and likes to rush to the net, but he also a decent baseliner with good ground strokes. He started the season very well on clay, but then picked up a virus and struggled with fitness throughout the season. He is 4-13 after the good clay court run and he has concentrated on doubles now. He played in the semis of Cincinnati alongside Marach and he arrived late in New Haven. He has the skills for the surface, but he is not familiar with the conditions and he should not be trusted in his poor form. Brands is a powerful server with big forehand. He moves better on clay and likes slower surfaces which help him set up his big shots. He is used to playing more on European clay and on Challenger level. This will be his first match on US hard this summer as he stayed late to play on clay in the German Bundesliga. He has won just one match on hard on this level and it was against the hurt and rusty Grosjean this year. The Match – Kubot is in very bad form and he comes unprepared for the event. Brands has not played on hard so far and he also comes off clay and is not used to the conditions. Both have big serves and good baseline skills, but both are in bad form at the moment. Kubot has the game to do well on hard and he at least has some matches here this summer while Brands comes late and obviously does not like to play here. That makes Kubot favourite, but we are not risking any money on him. The Verdict – Kubot in three sets.

M Gonzalez (ARG) vs. H Zeballos (ARG)

Gonzalez is a powerful baseliner who plays most of his tennis on clay. He missed half of this season with leg injury, but he did well after the return to win some matches on clay. He does not like fast surfaces and he lacks experience on hard. He is just 1-3 on hard in his career on the top level and he has not played on the surface this season. Zeballos is a powerful and aggressive leftie with strong serve and good ground strokes. He likes to press opponents and he has enough experience on the fast surfaces. His best performance on the tour so far came indoors, but he is just 8-11 on the top tour this season and he is struggling to maintain the good form. He played four events here this summer and he won just one match against Przysiezny in Washington, but he played well and lost tight ones to Baghdatis and Kohlschreiber. The Match – Both are more used to playing on clay, but Zeballos has the more aggressive game. He has the tough leftie serve and attacking ground game to press Gonzalez and his opponent lacks the skills to handle the hard courts well enough. Zeballos also has the edge in match practice and he should be the favourite against the rusty clay courter Gonzalez. The Verdict – Zeballos in two sets.

M Chiudinelli (SUI) vs. B Becker (GER)

Chiudinelli is a powerful and aggressive hard courter who takes the ball early and has good angles on court. He is not in form at the moment and he actually has never been too impressive on the top level throughout his career. He lost his last three matches on the US hard to the likes of Salamanca and Devvarman. Becker is a hard courter with powerful serve and good movement on court. He is more patient than the usual hard courter and he has good defence, but he also takes his chances well in attack. He is not in good form on the tour after coming back from injury and he is 1-4 on the US hard this summer. He lost even to Zemlja in Washington and his victories last week came in qualifying over Fognini and Muller. The Match – Both are good on hard, but both are not in form. Becker has the better serve and the better overall game for the surface and he is also more experience on these courts. He should be the natural favourite in this match, but we will definitely not trust him here. The Verdict – Becker in three sets.

S Greul (GER) vs. M Kukushkin (KAZ)

Greul is a powerful server with wide kick serve and good forehand. He plays most of his tennis on clay and in Europe. He has better results on Challenger level and he stayed late in Europe to play on clay this summer. He played Cincinnati qualifying last week and beat Ram before losing to Istomin. He has no experience and success on the faster US hard courts and he has not played here before. Kukushkin is a solid baseliner with good movement and powerful serve. He relies a lot on the serve, but backs it up with solid defence instead of attacking ground game. He can take his chances in attack too, but he does it more seldom. He passed qualifications here by beating Kelly, Klec and Mathieu without dropping a set. His serve was on the needed level as he fired 25 aces and won 68% on serve in the three matches. The Match – Both have good dangerous serves and both rely on baseline exchanges. Greul is more powerful and aggressive, but he lacks experience here. Kukushkin also comes from Europe, but he played on hard there and his qualifying experience must count for something as he played well and beat a good opponent yesterday. However, the final qualifying round was played indoors and that might prove bad for Kukushkin as he has to switch to outdoor conditions for the main draw now. He is the favourite to progress, but be careful with the staking. The Verdict – Kukushkin in three sets.

J Hajek (CZE) vs. D Brown (JAM)

Hajek is a solid clay courter with consistent game and nice power of both wings. He plays most of his tennis on clay and he stayed late in Europe to play on the dirt. He has not played on US hard this summer and he lacks the skills to do well on the faster hard courts. He played here once before and passed qualifications, but lost in the first round to Gicquel in 2006. Brown is a powerful server with aggressive and even net rushing game. He has a lot of power on the forehand side, but lacks a good backhand. However, he likes to play attacking tennis and despite playing a lot on clay he enjoys faster surfaces like indoors and hard. He lacks experience on this level and on these courts, but he picked up some matches in qualifying. He defeated Kamke, Sirianni and Rufin there. He fired 54 aces in the eight sets played and won over 70% of the points on serve. The Match – Hajek is solid and defensive, but his skills are not for the fast hard courts and he should find the speed and the low bounce here troublesome. Brown on the other hand should enjoy the speed of his serve and the nice attacking set up of his shots here. He was impressive on serve in qualifying and despite his lack of success on hard he should be able to hit past the defensive clay courter. The Verdict – Brown in two sets.

R Stepanek (CZE) vs. P Cuevas (URU)

Stepanek is a powerful server with attacking net rushing game. He hits the ball flat and deep and usually follows it to the net where he has great volleys. He has picked up a fatigue syndrome and has not won a match on the main tour since February. He is starting to get his fitness back and he even played the final of Washington in doubles. He played qualifications here and beat Sergeyev and Sweeting with impressive display, but then lost to Gabashvili. Speculations are he knew by then that Fish would withdraw and he would be lucky loser and he saved his energy. Cuevas is a powerful serving clay courter with good solid forehand and nice defence. He plays most of his tennis on clay and he came to the top tour this season. He had a back injury which spoiled his season so far, but he did well on the clay this summer. He last played the semis in Kitzbuhel Challenger on clay three weeks ago and then decided to skip the Masters events on hard and get back to Buenos Aires where he prepared for the hard court spell. He is 4-1 here from last season, but three of his victories came in qualifying. The Match – Stepanek is better prepared for the match and he has the skills to do well on hard courts as fast as these ones. He is also better used to the conditions. Cuevas will be looking to get some matches on hard, but he lacks practice on these courts. Apart from that the surface should suit him, but we think that the Czech has an overwhelming advantage due to his qualifying experience. However, we would not touch Stepanek here as he has not won for some time and he needs to prove his value. The Verdict – Stepanek in two sets.

P Starace (ITA) vs. T Gabashvili (RUS)

Starace is a tall and powerful clay courter with good solid serve and good ground game. He plays most of his matches on clay and rarely risks any play on faster surfaces apart from the Slams. However, he has played here three times overall and he is 2-3 so far having beaten Vanek and Zverev in his last appearances. He stayed late in Europe to play on clay and this will be his summer debut on hard. Gabashvili is a powerful aggressive baseliner who plays most of his tennis on clay on the Challenger level. He has improved his defence by doing so and he is now more solid and controlled player. He lost all three matches he played on US hard recently to beatable opponents like Tursunov, Smyczek and Schuettler. His form is not very good, but he beat three opponents in qualifying and he looked impressive on the ground. He is 3-4 here so far, but he is yet to win a match in the main draw. The Match – Both are tall and powerful and solid. They can defend well and they can launch the needed fast attack. Starace lacks the skills to do well on hard and he also lacks the experience and practice at the moment. Gabashvili obviously takes his hard court game more serious and he aims to do something here. In addition he has the qualifying experience so he should be the favourite in this match. The Verdict – Gabashvili in two sets.

Federer v Fish

Federer did well last week in Toronto and despite the loss to Murray in the final he was positive about his form and looked a bit like the old player at times. He has three titles from Cincinnati and he usually does well here as he likes the surface which favours servers and attacking baseliners. He has the skills and the form to do well here so expect him to make a run. Fish is a powerful server with aggressive ground game. He has huge experience on hard courts and his game is very well suited for the surface. He has worked on his game a lot recently and his injuries are behind him now. He is 12-8 in Cincinnati so far with one good run to the final back in 2003. He lost four of his last five matches here, but he won the title in Atlanta this season and he looks in good form. The Match – Federer leads the previous meetings 6-1, but he lost the last one which was two years ago. He has lost five of his last six finals while Fish won his last two. The American relies on serve and baseline consistency, but he has the wits and the volleys to finish points fast when needed. Federer has shown sparks of his old self and he is in good form at the moment. He has the better ground game and he has the power to dominate the rallies. Both are in good form, but Fish has overcome the better opponents here and he should be given credit for that while Federer had to play just a couple of matches against players who lacked the stability and power to beat him. Fish might prove to be the same, but at least he has the momentum and the hard court form on his side so we see some value in backing him on odds above 4. The Verdict – Fish in three sets.

Baghdatis v Federer

Baghdatis is a very talented and solid baseliner with good aggressive options off both wings and a powerful serve. He moves well and has the skills to handle low bounce and fast courts. He is 7-3 in Cincinnati so far and he is 8-3 on the US hard this season. He played the final in Washington a week ago and that led to an early exit in Toronto last week. Federer did well last week in Toronto and despite the loss to Murray in the final he was positive about his form and looked a bit like the old player at times. He has three titles from Cincinnati and he usually does well here as he likes the surface which favours servers and attacking baseliners. He has the skills and the form to do well here so expect him to make a run. The Match – Baghdatis finally broke the trend and defeated Nadal as the Spaniard made too many errors and the Cypriot served amazingly and played great attacking tennis. Federer had less trouble against Davydenko and looked good in his first match here. Both are talented and aggressive players with good serve and both have the weapons for the surface. Baghdatis has played more matches on the US hard this season and he is in great form. Federer also showed sparks of his old dominant game in the last two weeks. The Swiss master leads the previous meetings 6-1, but the Cypriot won the match they played this season. We find the game a tight one and after prevailing over Nadal Baghdatis might use the momentum to defeat Federer too so there is some value in backing him, especially if odds are above 3. The Verdict – Baghdatis in three sets.

Fish v Roddick

Fish is a powerful server with aggressive ground game. He has huge experience on hard courts and his game is very well suited for the surface. He has worked on his game a lot recently and his injuries are behind him now. He is 11-8 in Cincinnati so far with one good run to the final back in 2003. He lost four of his last five matches here, but he won the title in Atlanta this season and he looks in good form. Roddick is a powerful server with big forehand and solid backhand. He likes playing on hard courts and Cincinnati should be one of his favourite events as it is fast and low bouncing and that should suit his game perfectly. However, he has been diagnosed with a mild case of mononucleosis which has been going on for the last two months and pretty much explains his bad form and lack of power on court. The Match – These two are similar type of players who know each other very well and are good friends. They rely on powerful serve and play aggressive on the ground, but both have improved the defence recently and both have shown good consistency this week. Roddick is the better player on paper and he beat the better opponents, but Fish is also on fire and he is in better form at the moment. Fish had a very tough match yesterday and he might be tired and Roddick also holds the edge 9-3 in previous matches (2-2 on fast US hard). We see no value in betting on this match as odds are set right. The Verdict – Roddick in three sets.

Nadal v Baghdatis

Nadal is a powerful defensive leftie who hits with a lot of top spin and moves very well on court. He likes to chase balls and win with consistency and power, but he should find the surface here too fast and low bouncing for his game. He is 11-6 here so far and he has exited in the first round three times. He looked in good form last week in Toronto, but fell to Murray and he will need some adjustments to get used to the faster surface here. Baghdatis is a very talented and solid baseliner with good aggressive options off both wings and a powerful serve. He moves well and has the skills to handle low bounce and fast courts. He is 6-3 in Cincinnati so far and he is 7-3 on the US hard this season. He played the final in Washington a week ago and that led to an early exit in Toronto last week. The Match – Nadal had a very hard time against Benneteau and despite his fitness he should feel some tiredness after three hours on court. Baghdatis had a quicker match and he beat a man in form in Berdych. The Cypriot is in great shape and he has the serve and the ground power to do well on this surface. Nadal on the other hand will play his usual defensive game and will rely on speed and consistency. The match is in the hands of Baghdatis as he has the weapons and the good form to win, but he will have to come up with his best game and he has never done that against Nadal losing all the six meetings. Odds are well above 4 for the man in form here and we will give him some credit against a tired and shaky Rafa. The Verdict – Baghdatis in two sets.

Federer v Davydenko

Federer did well last week in Toronto and despite the loss to Murray in the final he was positive about his form and looked a bit like the old player at times. He has three titles from Cincinnati and he usually does well here as he likes the surface which favours servers and attacking baseliners. He has the skills and the form to do well here so expect him to make a run. Davydenko is an aggressive baseliner with good movement on court and nice angles. He takes the ball early and hits hard and that makes his weaker on the very fast surfaces. He is 8-6 in Cincinnati so far and he should be trouble by the fast conditions as he is not in form now. He is making a comeback from a wrist injury, but he is not in form yet and he lost his last matches to weaker opponents like Gimeno, Golubev, Chela and Chardy. The Match – Federer played just seven games this week so far and he should be rested and fresh on one side, but lacking match practice on the other side. Davydenko finally found some form and he looked good on the ground against Ferrer. However, the Russian is far from his best and he will meet an opponent in better form. He won two matches against Federer lately, but he was in his best form back then while Federer was at the bottom of his. Things are different now and after a long match yesterday we do not see the Russian lasting another one on a high level against Federer. The Verdict – Federer in two sets.

Fish v Murray

Fish is a powerful server with aggressive ground game. He has huge experience on hard courts and his game is very well suited for the surface. He has worked on his game a lot recently and his injuries are behind him now. He is 10-8 in Cincinnati so far with one good run to the final back in 2003. He lost four of his last five matches here, but he won the title in Atlanta this season and he looks in good form. Murray is 14-4 in Cincinnati so far with a title from 2008. He is a fast and solid defensive player with good serve and the ability to attack fast and accurate when seeing the chance. He is a clever player on court and he looks in good form after winning his first title of the season last week. He is still without a coach, but he is motivated to play and the surface will favour him. The Match – These two have different game style, but have been pretty tight against each other so far. They are ties at three with Fish winning the last two matches this season. He also leads the hard court meetings 2-1. He is much better on serve than Murray and he has been very solid this week defeating some decent ground men like Simon, Gasquet and Verdasco. Murray on the other hand has been better on the ground and relied on return as he got broken six times in two matches. Fish got broken just once and he has the edge on serve, which could be decisive on this fast surface. Murray had two tough matches and he needs some rest and lacks motivation. Fish is worth a shot and we think bookies will give him good odds for betting. The Verdict – Fish in three sets.

Roddick v Djokovic

Roddick is a powerful server with big forehand and solid backhand. He likes playing on hard courts and Cincinnati should be one of his favourite events as it is fast and low bouncing and that should suit his game perfectly. However, he has been diagnosed with a mild case of mononucleosis which has been going on for the last two months and pretty much explains his bad form and lack of power on court. Djokovic started the US hard spell shaky, but then picked up the pace and was solid and sharp in Toronto. He is 12-5 in Cincinnati so far with a couple of finals in his last two appearances. He plays well on hard and on fast surfaces. His form is not very good at the moment for his standards, but he should be able to prepare well for the Slam. The Match – Roddick proved his fitness against Soderling and he looked sharp with 26 aces and pretty solid and clinical game. However, he stayed on court for almost three hours and that should be too much for him. Djokovic had an easier match against Nalbandian and he also looked very solid and dangerous. The Serbian is great in defence so far this week and he also takes successful chances in attack. He will dominate the rallies while Roddick will look to stay solid on serve, but after his long match yesterday we do not see him winning this one too. The Verdict – Djokovic in two sets.

Nadal v Benneteau

Nadal is a powerful defensive leftie who hits with a lot of top spin and moves very well on court. He likes to chase balls and win with consistency and power, but he should find the surface here too fast and low bouncing for his game. He is just 10-6 here so far and he has exited in the first round three times. He looked in good form last week in Toronto, but fell to Murray and he will need some adjustments to get used to the faster surface here. Benneteau is a powerful baseliner with good fighting skills and solid shots off both wings. He plays well on all surfaces as he is consistent and solid at the back, but he also has good tricky serve and can use it to rush to the net too. He likes fast conditions and should enjoy it here in Cincinnati and he is 8-6 so far. He got to the quarterfinals last season and he lost to Djokovic in Canada last week. The Match – Nadal played a good match against Dent and he was not really challenged, but he will meet a different opponent in Benneteau. The Frenchman is a tough fighter, but his game is built around solid consistency and that is one part of the game that Nadal cannot be surpassed in. The Spaniard has the power and the spin to trouble Benneteau and actually he should feel better on the surface than the Frenchman. The Verdict – Nadal in two sets.

Baghdatis v Berdych

Baghdatis is a very talented and solid baseliner with good aggressive options off both wings and a powerful serve. He moves well and has the skills to handle low bounce and fast courts. He is 5-3 in Cincinnati so far and he is 6-3 on the US hard this season. He played the final in Washington a week ago and that led to an early exit in Toronto last week. Berdych looks in good form at the moment as he is 5-2 on the US hard court this summer. He is also 8-5 in Cincinnati. He is a powerful server with deep flat powerful ground strokes and he should find the conditions here good for his game. The Match – Baghdatis handled Cilic fast, but then needed luck and more than two hours to beat clay courter Bellucci. Berdych was very solid and powerful against Mathieu and he confirmed his good form. Both have done very well on the US hard so far and the match should be a good one. Berdych has the better serve and he is more solid and consistent overall. He has the bigger and flatter shots which will make him favourite on the occasion, but we do not find any value for betting. The Verdict – Berdych in three sets.

Federer v Kohlschreiber

Federer did well last week in Toronto and despite the loss to Murray in the final he was positive about his form and looked a bit like the old player at times. He has three titles from Cincinnati and he usually does well here as he likes the surface which favours servers and attacking baseliners. He has the skills and the form to do well here so expect him to make a run. Kohlschreiber is a powerful and talented baseliner with good serve and nice movement and angles on the ground. He had some troubles with his form recently, but he stayed late on clay in Europe and worked on his game. He did well in Canada last week getting to the quarterfinals. He might find the surface here too fast and low bouncing for his ground strokes, but he is 6-3 here so he should not despise the conditions. The Match – Federer got a second bye against Istomin as his opponent retired and he had a needed rest here so far. Kohlschreiber played two messy matches and needed three sets to beat Zeballos and Falla. He prevailed through pure class difference and he will need to pick up his game for Federer. He will certainly do it, but this is not his best surface and he is far fro his best form. Federer has the serve and the power to hit through the German and we do not see Kohlschreiber troubling the Swiss master today. The Verdict – Federer in two sets.

Ferrer v Davydenko

Ferrer had some shoulder problems before coming to the US and he needs match practice now to get in form. He is a solid and fast baseliner and he hits the ball with a lot of spin and power. He prefers clay courts, but his fast movement and solid counter punching ability make him good even on fast hard courts. He is 11-6 in Cincinnati so far with a couple of quarterfinals on the way. Davydenko is an aggressive baseliner with good movement on court and nice angles. He takes the ball early and hits hard and that makes his weaker on the very fast surfaces. He is 8-6 in Cincinnati so far and he should be trouble by the fast conditions as he is not in form now. He is making a comeback from a wrist injury, but he is not in form yet and he lost his last matches to weaker opponents like Gimeno, Golubev, Chela and Chardy. The Match – Ferrer was impressive against Dolgopolov and Querrey serving well and moving even better. He dominates the ground game and he has obviously suited his counter punching game for the surface. Davydenko looked better than before against Ginepri, but he still needs matches and practice as his opponent was not in his prime and still took him to three sets. We are in for some tough baseline rallies in this match, but Ferrer is better suited for the surface with his defensive game while Davydenko should be in trouble while trying to pound winners on this uncomfortable ground. The Spaniard gets the nod in our eyes as he is more consistent and we will bet on him at odds around evens. The Verdict – Ferrer in three sets.

Fish v Gasquet

Fish is a powerful server with aggressive ground game. He has huge experience on hard courts and his game is very well suited for the surface. He has worked on his game a lot recently and his injuries are behind him now. He is 9-8 in Cincinnati so far with one good run to the final back in 2003. He lost four of his last five matches here, but he won the title in Atlanta this season and he looks in good form. Gasquet is an aggressive baseliner with a great backhand and powerful serve. He plays attacking tennis and he is not very solid mentally, but when he is on a good run he is hard to stop. He picked up a back injury in Washington and he lost to Stakhovsky in Toronto, but he should be fit to play in Cincinnati. He has not done well here through the years (4-4) and he should struggle on his backhand side as the surface is fast and low bouncing. The Match – Fish stayed very solid against tough baseliner Simon and then fought off powerful Verdasco. He is in great form and his serve has rarely been better as he won 73% behind it against two good returners. Gasquet was less impressive against Youzhny, but fought well and then Berrer was no match to him. Fish will once again use his serve to put pressure on the opponent, but he showed in his last match that he can also use tactics and he will no doubt try once again to keep the ball in play and force errors out of Gasquet. Gasquet will look to stay solid himself and will try to overpower his opponent from the back, but he tends to be shaky and erratic at times. Fish has the edge in experience and power and he has been very impressive on serve. He seems to have the needed weapons to prevail on this surface. The Verdict – Fish in three sets.

Gulbis v Murray

Gulbis is an aggressive and very powerful baseliner with big serve and forehand. He takes his chances in attack and he plays well when he is in form. He is in his best season so far, but he got a heat stroke a week ago and lost early in Washington. He then lost to Soderling in Toronto, but played well. He should find the surface here good for his serve and attack and he reached the quarterfinals here in 2008. Murray is 13-4 in Cincinnati so far with a title from 2008. He is a fast and solid defensive player with good serve and the ability to attack fast and accurate when seeing the chance. He is a clever player on court and he looks in good form after winning his first title of the season last week. He is still without a coach, but he is motivated to play and the surface will favour him. The Match – Gulbis was very powerful and solid so far in his matches getting the best on his serve and using the courts to pound some winners. Murray stated before the event he comes to get as far as he can, but he will be focused on the Slam. He looked in the driving seat against Chardy, but failed to serve out the match and was taken to a decider. However, his game and serve looked fine and seeing the previous record against Gulbis (4-0) he should be able to pull through this one. He has the serve to match Gulbis and he has the stability to press him and not allow him many winners. That should derail the Latvian and we do not see him powering his way past the Toronto champion. The Verdict – Murray in two sets.

Soderling v Roddick

Soderling is a powerful server with big ground strokes and a lot of power on the ground. He hits the ball flat and deep and can make winners on any surface, but it will be easier for him to do it here. However, he is just 8-5 in Cincinnati so far and he needs more bounce to make his shots and more time to set them up. That makes the surface here a bit troublesome for him and in addition he is not in great form recently as he lacks matches on hard. He beat Gulbis last week in Toronto and then lost to Nalbandian. Roddick is a powerful server with big forehand and solid backhand. He likes playing on hard courts and Cincinnati should be one of his favourite events as it is fast and low bouncing and that should suit his game perfectly. However, he has been diagnosed with a mild case of mononucleosis which has been going on for the last two months and pretty much explains his bad form and lack of power on court. The Match – Soderling looked on fire against Hewitt and he did well to beat a traditionally uncomfortable opponent for him. Roddick continued his comeback from mono with a good serving and volleying performance against De Bakker. Both will be able to get some big serves in and the Swede has the edge in power. He has the fitness and the match practice edge too and that makes him the overall favourite in our book. The Verdict – Soderling in three sets.

Nalbandian v Djokovic

Nalbandian returned from injury on fire in Washington and he won the title there. He then went on to reach the quarterfinals in Toronto and he took well needed three days off after that. He is a very good baseliner with powerful and aggressive game. He has great angles and down the line shots off both wings and he plays well on hard courts. He is 7-5 in Cincinnati so far, but he needs the victories here to get a seeding for the Slam. Djokovic started the US hard spell shaky, but then picked up the pace and was solid and sharp in Toronto. He is 12-5 in Cincinnati so far with a couple of finals in his last two appearances. He plays well on hard and on fast surfaces. His form is not very good at the moment for his standards, but he should be able to prepare well for the Slam. The Match – Nalbandian got a lucky break as Isner twisted his ankle and retired while leading by a break in the first set. The Argentinean started slowly as in the first round, but his overall form is very good at the moment. Djokovic played very well against Troicki and he has a lot of power and good options on the ground. The same is true for Nalbandian as he also has the power and the talent to produce some winners on the surface. The match should be a juicy one and we find it hard to predict the winner. Nalbandian can be sharper and he is in better form at the moment so we give him a slight edge. The Verdict – Nalbandian in three sets.

Nadal v Dent

Nadal is a powerful defensive leftie who hits with a lot of top spin and moves very well on court. He likes to chase balls and win with consistency and power, but he should find the surface here too fast and low bouncing for his game. He is just 9-6 here so far and he has exited in the first round three times. He looked in good form last week in Toronto, but fell to Murray and he will need some adjustments to get used to the faster surface here. Dent is a classical net rusher with technical serve and nice volleys. He has been hit by injuries throughout his career, but he is fit now. His game style is a bit old now and he finds it difficult to perform it on most surfaces. He has huge experience on US hard courts and he should find these ones good for his game. He passed qualifications with two good victories over Nieminen and Soeda. He is in decent form at the moment coming off a 5-2 record on the US hard, but most of is victories have come on the Challenger level. The Match – Dent did well to beat Lopez and his serve looked solid and impressive. However, he will meet a much better returner today and he lacks the solid ground game to handle Nadal from the back. He will also have to get his returns low and rush to the net and we doubt his usually inconsistent ground game will stand the spin and the power of his opponent. Nadal has the upper hand in every department but serve and Dent has not been famous for consistent serving recently so we do not see the local player springing a surprise in this match. The Verdict – Nadal in two sets.

Benneteau v Wawrinka 

Benneteau is a powerful baseliner with good fighting skills and solid shots off both wings. He plays well on all surfaces as he is consistent and solid at the back, but he also has good tricky serve and can use it to rush to the net too. He likes fast conditions and should enjoy it here in Cincinnati and he is 7-6 so far. He got to the quarterfinals last season and he lost to Djokovic in Canada last week. Wawrinka is a powerful baseliner with good backhand and dangerous serve. He moves well on the line, but prefers slower surfaces. He has been hit by injuries this season and he changed coaches. He is not in good form and he beat only the hurt Dancevic on the US hard this summer, but his losses were to Nadal and Nalbandian. He is just 3-4 in Cincinnati so far. The Match – These two play better on the slower surfaces, but Benneteau has more practice and experience on fast grounds. He was taken to three sets by Llodra, but the market for the match was very shaky and Benneteau was expected to prevail. Wawrinka defeated Almagro easily with solid serving and good ground game, but his opponent was hopeless on hard. Both are solid baseliners and both have the power to make some winners from the back. Wawrinka is bigger on serve and he also has more power. Benneteau should be more solid, but the Swiss player has also played consistent tennis on hard this summer so we give him the edge in this match. The Verdict – Wawrinka in three sets.

Federer v Istomin

Federer did well last week in Toronto and despite the loss to Murray in the final he was positive about his form and looked a bit like the old player at times. He has three titles from Cincinnati and he usually does well here as he likes the surface which favours servers and attacking baseliners. He has the skills and the form to do well here so expect him to make a run. Istomin is a powerful baseliner with good serve and solid ground game. He has a lot of experience on hard courts, but he plays better on the slower type. He qualified for Toronto last week, but his last match drained him and he lost in the main draw. He played better and quicker this weekend and defeated Reynolds and Greul with convincing serving and attacking ground game. He did well on fast surfaces this season so he should like this one and might do some damage. The Match – Istomin handled a shaky Blake in the first round, but he was not troubled and should not be praised too much. He has good serve and aggressive ground game, but the same is true for Federer and the Swiss master is naturally better than the Uzbek in all departments. Federer is also in good form and has regained some confidence so he should not be troubled by the qualifier. The Verdict – Federer in two sets.

Kohlschreiber v Falla

Kohlschreiber is a powerful and talented baseliner with good serve and nice movement and angles on the ground. He had some troubles with his form recently, but he stayed late on clay in Europe and worked on his game. He did well in Canada last week getting to the quarterfinals. He might find the surface here too fast and low bouncing for his ground strokes, but he is 5-3 here so he should not despise the conditions. Falla is a powerful serving leftie with good attacking ground game. He has more experience on hard than the usual South American and he is actually in good form for his standards. He is 4-3 in the three events played on the US hard this summer and he defeated Zemlja and Clement in qualifying this weekend. His serve went well and he actually enjoyed the hot and fast conditions. The Match – Falla handled Monfils well, but the Frenchman lacked motivation and fighting spirit. Kohlschreiber had many problems against Zeballos as he could not take his chances. He might find the big serve of Falla hard to read and he will also have difficulties in dealing with another attacking baseliner. Falla also has the edge of his leftie serve and he is in better form on hard courts at the moment than his opponent. He is also more solid mentally and looked better so far in the event. We expect bookies to make the German favourite by default, but we see Falla as a more likely winner and will back him if we see the value above 2.40. The Verdict – Falla in three sets.

Ferrer v Querrey

Ferrer had some shoulder problems before coming to the US and he needs match practice now to get in form. He is a solid and fast baseliner and he hits the ball with a lot of spin and power. He prefers clay courts, but his fast movement and solid counter punching ability make him good even on fast hard courts. He is 10-6 in Cincinnati so far with a couple of quarterfinals on the way. Querrey is a very good hard courter with powerful serve and attacking ground game. He has a good forehand and nice volleys and he plays well on the ground on hard. He knows the surface very well and plays his best tennis on it, but he is not in good form recently. He won the title on the slow hard in LA, but then failed in Washington and Toronto. He is 7-4 in Cincinnati so far. The Match – Querrey sounded relieved to defeat Petzschner easily and get the needed victory under his belt. He played his usual powerful tennis and despite some troubles on the second serve he made up for it with the first. Ferrer had tougher time against talented Dolgopolov and he played his usual defensive and solid tennis from the back. These two have different styles of play with the American being typical hard court player (serve and attack) and Ferrer being a solid counter puncher. Both styles do well here, but Querrey has just a slight edge with his power and his serve while Ferrer has a lot of running and retrieving to do on the fast surface. The Verdict – Querrey in three sets.

Ginepri v Davydenko

Ginepri is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with big serve and forehand. He has huge experience on hard and he knows how to use the courts well. He has been hit by injuries lately and he had to rest for some time as he reignited his hip injury in LA and missed Toronto. He was given a wild card here so he should be fit to play. He is 14-9 in Cincinnati so far. Davydenko is an aggressive baseliner with good movement on court and nice angles. He takes the ball early and hits hard and that makes his weaker on the very fast surfaces. He is 7-6 in Cincinnati so far and he should be trouble by the fast conditions as he is not in form now. He is making a comeback from a wrist injury, but he is not in form yet and he lost his last matches to weaker opponents like Gimeno, Golubev, Chela and Chardy. The Match – Both are far from convincing at the moment and we should stay away from this one. Davydenko is working hard now and should go on a run at some point. He had passed the first round in his last three events despite not being in form. Ginepri was troubled by Devvarman and did not look impressive. The Russian should be a deserved favourite due to pure class difference, but we will not put any money on him. The Verdict – Davydenko in three sets.

Verdasco v Fish

Verdasco is a powerful leftie with technical serve and big ground strokes. He plays most of his tennis on clay, but he likes slower hard courts too. He hits with a lot of spin and power and he relies on his fore hand more. He does not like fast and low bouncing hard courts and he is just 3-5 in Cincinnati so far. He lost to Chardy last week and hurt his leg in the final set. He came here early and has practiced hard without looking hurt. Fish is a powerful server with aggressive ground game. He has huge experience on hard courts and his game is very well suited for the surface. He has worked on his game a lot recently and his injuries are behind him now. He is 8-8 in Cincinnati so far with one good run to the final back in 2003. He lost four of his last five matches here, but he won the title in Atlanta this season and he looks in good form. The Match – Fish held strong against the defensive skills of Simon and thanks to his serve he won in straight sets. He has the needed experience on hard and against a powerful baseliner like Verdasco he will look to finish points fast and keep the ball low. He has won both meetings on fast surfaces against the Spaniard and he is in better form at the moment. Verdasco has the attacking power to do well, but the speed of the courts should trouble him and in his training so far he has not met a big server so he will be troubled by Fish as it has been before. The Verdict – Fish in three sets.

Berrer v Gasquet

Berrer is a powerful server with aggressive ground game and limited skills. He uses the slice on the backhand and he has a powerful leftie forehand. He plays most of his tennis on hard and indoors, but he lacks a lot of experience on the US hard. He twisted his ankle before Wimbledon and he still needs matches to make up for the loss. He beat Beck and lost to Verdasco and Malisse in his two hard courts events so far. Gasquet is an aggressive baseliner with a great backhand and powerful serve. He plays attacking tennis and he is not very solid mentally, but when he is on a good run he is hard to stop. He picked up a back injury in Washington and he lost to Stakhovsky in Toronto, but he should be fit to play in Cincinnati. He has not done well here through the years (3-4) and he should struggle on his backhand side as the surface is fast and low bouncing. The Match – Gasquet looked down and out against Youzhny as he piled up a ton of errors in the first set, but he hung on and then the Russian collapsed at the end. Berrer also had a tough match against the out of form Robredo, but prevailed in the decisive tie-break. Berrer will use his serve and aggressive game to press on Gasquet while the Frenchman will once again rely on good baseline skills and power from the back. Gasquet has done well against leftie and attackers so far and he has more power and better skills than the German so we see him as the favourite here. The Verdict – Gasquet in two sets.

Melzer v Gulbis

Melzer is a powerful leftie with good ground game and nice variety on court. He is a powerful server and he also has good volleys, but he can hold his ground in defence and he plays well on all surfaces. He is just 4-4 here so far and he looked uninterested and shaky in Toronto last week losing easily to Polansky. He should find the surface good for his attacking game, but his motivation is not certain. Gulbis is an aggressive and very powerful baseliner with big serve and forehand. He takes his chances in attack and he plays well when he is in form. He is in his best season so far, but he got a heat stroke a week ago and lost early in Washington. He then lost to Soderling in Toronto, but played well. He should find the surface here good for his serve and attack and he reached the quarterfinals here in 2008. The Match – Gulbis had some problems against Young in the first set, but then things came into place and he won in straight sets serving very well. Melzer had an easier outing as Giraldo was not a legitimate test to him. The Austrian has the tricky variable game to give Gulbis a hard time as he can move him around and give him no pace for his shots. The Latvian on the other hand has the power to create his winners and he has the serve to use the conditions well. The match is very hard to predict and we see it as an even one with Gulbis getting just a slight edge because of his power and better usage of the surface here. The Verdict – Gulbis in three sets.

Chardy v Murray

Chardy is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with good serve and deep ground strokes. He likes to take his chances and press opponents and he often follows his shots to the net. He should like the fast conditions here, but he hits with a fare amount of spin so he might be troubled by the speed. Murray is 12-4 in Cincinnati so far with a title from 2008. He is a fast and solid defensive player with good serve and the ability to attack fast and accurate when seeing the chance. He is a clever player on court and he looks in good form after winning his first title of the season last week. He is still without a coach, but he is motivated to play and the surface will favour him. The Match – Chardy played well against Mayer in the first round, but his opponent was not in good shape. The Frenchman is in form at the moment and he handled the change of pace of the surface well. However, Murray is a very solid player who has the skills to keep the ball in play and press Chardy and the Frenchman is generally prone to mental lapses. Chardy has never been the one to upset big players in form and we do not see him getting anything out of this one. The Verdict – Murray in two sets.

Soderling v Hewitt

Soderling is a powerful server with big ground strokes and a lot of power on the ground. He hits the ball flat and deep and can make winners on any surface, but it will be easier for him to do it here. However, he is just 7-5 in Cincinnati so far and he needs more bounce to make his shots and more time to set them up. That makes the surface here a bit troublesome for him and in addition he is not in great form recently as he lacks matches on hard. He beat Gulbis last week in Toronto and then lost to Nalbandian. Hewitt is a solid defensive counter puncher with fast movement on court. He feeds off opponent’s pace and likes to keep the ball in play and make acute angles. He likes fast surfaces and although he does better on the slower hard he has huge experience on the US type. He picked up a calf strain in Washington and he had to rest for a couple of weeks. He just started hitting the ball in practice last week and he might not be in form now. The Match – Surprisingly enough it was Lu who had problems with injury and retired against Hewitt. The Aussie looked solid and moved well so he should be considered fit for the match. Soderling has lost all three meetings against Hewitt so far and he is obviously troubled by the stubborn counter punching Aussie. However, Hewitt should be still rusty and despite his first round win we are still not convinced he is in better form than Soderling so we will skip this match for betting. The Verdict – Soderling in two sets.

De Bakker v Roddick

De Bakker is a tall and powerful guy with big serve and good movement on court for his height. He is powerful and aggressive when he has too, but he can also stay in rallies well. His best surface so far has been clay as he has most experience on it, but since we came up on the top tour this season he has also done well on hard. He practiced in the US for over a month now and he played well in the last two weeks. Roddick is a powerful server with big forehand and solid backhand. He likes playing on hard courts and Cincinnati should be one of his favourite events as it is fast and low bouncing and that should suit his game perfectly. However, he has been diagnosed with a mild case of mononucleosis which has been going on for the last two months and pretty much explains his bad form and lack of power on court. The Match – Both used their serve and ground power to progress, but Roddick was better and more impressive despite his illness. He lasted the two hours on court well and he was fresher in the decider. De Bakker also looked solid in the long match and he should be able to match the American on serve. The lack of fitness and matches for Roddick should even things up in the other departments where Roddick has the edge. De Bakker should be tougher to hit through and move around than Stakhovsky and he might just be able to hold off the ailing local favourite. We like the odds on the Dutchman and might consider backing him on odds around 4. The Verdict – De Bakker in three sets.

Nalbandian v Isner

Nalbandian returned from injury on fire in Washington and he won the title there. He then went on to reach the quarterfinals in Toronto and he took well needed three days off after that. He is a very good baseliner with powerful and aggressive game. He has great angles and down the line shots off both wings and he plays well on hard courts. He is 6-5 in Cincinnati so far, but he needs the victories here to get a seeding for the Slam. Isner is a tall guy with powerful serve and big forehand. He likes fast hard courts and he should be able to use the surface to full extend here. He looked tired against Malisse in Washington and then withdrew from Toronto due to a shoulder problem, but he should be fit and fresh now. He is 3-3 in Cincinnati so far. The Match – Both got an easy passage to the second round. Isner will look to serve his way through the match while Nalbandian will look to return enough balls to get the rallies going and he should dominate from there on. The Argentinean is in better form and he has the skills to defeat Isner in this match. The local player has to serve rock solid to get anything out of this and he has done it numerous times, but this is not his venue and he is not in that hot serving form. The Verdict – Nalbandian in two sets.

Troicki v Djokovic

Troicki is a powerful server with aggressive ground game and good options off both wings. He has the skills to attack at the net and he also has the solid game to stay at the back when needed. He played well on the US hard recently, but lacked the mentality to finish Kohlschreiber off last week and lost to Fish before that. Djokovic started the US hard spell shaky, but then picked up the pace and was solid and sharp in Toronto. He is 11-5 in Cincinnati so far with a couple of finals in his last two appearances. He plays well on hard and on fast surfaces. His form is not very good at the moment for his standards, but he should be able to prepare well for the Slam. The Match – These two are compatriots and they know each other very well. Djokovic is the better player overall and he has the sharper shots and better angles on court. He has beaten Troicki in the last three meetings between the two and his form is better than that of the lower ranked player. Troicki has the serve to do some damage, but apart from that he should be pressed too hard by the second seed and lose. The Verdict – Djokovic in two sets.

Llodra v Benneteau

Llodra is a powerful leftie with big serve and big flat ground strokes. He hits with a lot of power off both wings and he has great volleys so he often comes to the net. He plays his best tennis indoors and on grass, but he should like the conditions here. However, he has lost all seven matches in Cincinnati so far. He did well last week to get to the third round before losing to Federer. Benneteau is a powerful baseliner with good fighting skills and solid shots off both wings. He plays well on all surfaces as he is consistent and solid at the back, but he also has good tricky serve and can use it to rush to the net too. He likes fast conditions and should enjoy it here in Cincinnati and he is 6-6 so far. He got to the quarterfinals last season and he lost to Djokovic in Canada last week. The Match – Llodra played well last week and he reached the doubles final in Toronto alongside Benneteau. The two are friends and know each other well so no surprises should be expected. Llodra has been in better form, but he does not fare well here while Benneteau has a better record. The match is too close to call so we will stay away from it giving Benneteau just a slight edge as Llodra obviously finds the surface uncomfortable for his game. The Verdict – Benneteau in three sets.

Istomin v [wc] Blake

Istomin is a powerful baseliner with good serve and solid ground game. He has a lot of experience on hard courts, but he plays better on the slower type. He qualified for Toronto last week, but his last match drained him and he lost in the main draw. He played better and quicker this weekend and defeated Reynolds and Greul with convincing serving and attacking ground game. He did well on fast surfaces this season so he should like this one and might do some damage. Blake is an aggressive baseliner with big forehand. He has huge experience on the surface and has the weapons for it, but he has been hit by injuries this season and his form is poor. He is 12-8 in Cincinnati so far and he reached the final here back in 2007, but that was his best season on tour. He reached the quarterfinals in LA this season, but he lost early in both Atlanta and Washington where the courts are similar in speed to these ones. The Match – Istomin has the match practice under his belt and he was actually impressive and solid in qualifying. He has the power and the serve to do well on hard. Blake is not in form and despite his good record here he is far from the player he used to be. He makes many errors nowadays and his victories recently have come over weaker players than him. Istomin has picked up the pace from the weekend and we see him as a possible winner of the match, but there is no value in the odds offered. The Verdict – Istomin in three sets.

Zeballos v Kohlschreiber

Zeballos is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with nice leftie serve and touch at the net. He lacks experience on the tour and he plays more of his tennis on clay, but he has good aggressive game for faster surfaces and his big break last season was indoors. However, he is not very good on hard and he is just 3-7 on the surface this season. Kohlschreiber is a powerful and talented baseliner with good serve and nice movement and angles on the ground. He had some troubles with his form recently, but he stayed late on clay in Europe and worked on his game. He did well in Canada last week getting to the quarterfinals. He might find the surface here too fast and low bouncing for his ground strokes, but he is 4-3 here so he should not despise the conditions. The Match – The German is by far the better hard courter and he has more solid and powerful shots and better placement on court. He should make his opponent run and press him hard while Zeballos has to look for some early attacking in order to take control of the match. This is not easy to do on this surface and against a superior opponent so we do not see the leftie getting anything out of this match. The Verdict – Kohlschreiber in two sets.

Falla v Monfils [16]

Falla is a powerful serving leftie with good attacking ground game. He has more experience on hard than the usual South American and he is actually in good form for his standards. He is 4-3 in the three events played on the US hard this summer and he defeated Zemlja and Clement in qualifying this weekend. His serve went well and he actually enjoyed the hot and fast conditions. Monfils played very well last week, but fell at the hands of eventual champion Murray. He was close to beating him had he stepped up with his game, but he made some spectacular dives and finally could not bring his attacking game together. He is a powerful baseliner with big shots off both wings, but he also moves well on the baseline and has great defence. He tends to stay back more than needed and rely on keeping the ball in play, which might not be too wise on this surface. He is 4-4 in Cincinnati so far. The Match – Falla has the serve and the skills to do well here, but he just has not been up to the task against the bigger players. Monfils on the other hand has the defence and the consistency to stay in the match and it takes a better and more powerful player to outgrind him. Falla is not such a player so we think Monfils will find his way past him in this match. The Verdict – Monfils in two sets.

Baghdatis v Bellucci

Baghdatis is a very talented and solid baseliner with good aggressive options off both wings and a powerful serve. He moves well and has the skills to handle low bounce and fast courts. He is 5-3 in Cincinnati so far and he is 6-3 on the US hard this season. He played the final in Washington a week ago and that led to an early exit in Toronto last week. Bellucci is a powerful leftie with big serve. He hits with a lot of top spin and moves well on court. Naturally, he plays his best tennis on clay and does not like fast surfaces. He will use his serve well on this surface, but that is pretty much his only weapons here as the courts should be too fast for his spin. He lost his only match here two years ago and he also got beaten by Gulbis last week. The Match – Baghdatis was very solid and concentrated against Cilic and despite his low first serve percentage he managed to win in straight sets. Bellucci also served very well and capitalized on the errors of his opponent to defeat Becker. Baghdatis is the better player on hard and he is in good form this season. He has the power to keep the ball deep and he should expose the slower response of his opponent on the fast surface. The Verdict – Baghdatis in two sets.

Mathieu v Berdych [7]

Mathieu is a powerful aggressive baseliner with big serve and good backhand side. He plays better on slower surfaces, but he has enough experience and success on all surfaces. He has been hit by injuries recently and he needs some victories to get his confidence back. He lost twice in Toronto last week to Nieminen in qualifying and then to Lu as a lucky loser in the main draw. He played relatively well, but lacked concentration in the key moments. He is 5-6 in Cincinnati so far and he knows the surface well. Berdych looks in good form at the moment as he is 4-2 on the US hard court this summer. He is also 7-5 in Cincinnati. He is a powerful server with deep flat powerful ground strokes and he should find the conditions here good for his game. The Match – Mathieu had a very hard time beating clay courter Hanescu in the first round, but he made it and that was his first main draw victory in six matches. He served well, but his opponent was too shaky on the ground to test him. Berdych should present a different and much tougher challenge as he has the serve and the power to hit past the Frenchman. Mathieu will have to be fast and powerful and that might be too steep a hill for him to climb at the moment. The Verdict – Berdych in two sets.

[wc] Fish v Simon

Fish is a powerful server with aggressive ground game. He has huge experience on hard courts and his game is very well suited for the surface. He has worked on his game a lot recently and his injuries are behind him now. He is 7-8 in Cincinnati so far with one good run to the final back in 2003. He lost four of his last five matches here, but he won the title in Atlanta this season and he looks in good form. Simon is a solid defensive baseliner with good movement on court. He relies on defence and keeping the ball in play and his sharp counter punching game does well on such fast hard courts. He is 8-5 here so far with his best result being last season when he got to the quarterfinals. He came back from injury this season and he still lacks match practice, but he has been playing well recently despite the losses to Youzhny and Nalbandian. The Match – Fish is in better form and he plays better on hard courts. He has not done too well here so far, but he is in great form this season on hard. Simon on the other hand has a better record here, but his game lacks the usual sharpness and he still needs matches. Fish has the fast approach to handle the Frenchman and he should not allow Simon any counter attacking as he will rely on serve and aggression. The Verdict – Fish in two sets.

Gasquet v Youzhny [12]

Gasquet is an aggressive baseliner with a great backhand and powerful serve. He plays attacking tennis and he is not very solid mentally, but when he is on a good run he is hard to stop. He picked up a back injury in Washington and he lost to Stakhovsky in Toronto, but he should be fit to play in Cincinnati. He has not done well here through the years (2-4) and he should struggle on his backhand side as the surface is fast and low bouncing. Youzhny is a solid baseliner with good defence. He was a hothead with impatient game years ago, but he improved his game recently and he plays more controlled and consistent game now. He is 11-7 here so far and he has the movement to keep the ball in play while at the same time he has the power and the skills to press his opponent. The Match – Both are powerful and solid on the ground, but Gasquet is more flashy and erratic in general. In addition the surface will favour the Russian and he also leads the previous meetings 3-1 so he knows how to use the weak links of his opponent and win. He should be the favourite in this match, but we will need a huge bookie mistake to back him. The Verdict – Youzhny in three sets.

Gulbis v [wc] Young

Gulbis is an aggressive and very powerful baseliner with big serve and forehand. He takes his chances in attack and he plays well when he is in form. He is in his best season so far, but he got a heat stroke a week ago and lost early in Washington. He then lost to Soderling in Toronto, but played well. He should find the surface here good for his serve and attack and he reached the quarterfinals here in 2008. Young is a local hopeful who plays mostly on Challenger level. He is a solid defensive baseliner with powerful game and nice movement on court. His counter attacking game might actually fare well on the surface, but he lacks the experience and consistency to perform it well. He lost all three matches played here so far and he is just 2-2 on hard on the top level this season. The Match – Gulbis has the power and the serve to hit through the court and he has done it before. He has the needed experience on the US hard and he likes it a lot. Young also has the needed matches on the grounds, but he lacks experience on the level and he should struggle against a powerful opponent in form. He has been too shaky recently to be trusted and the Latvian should be able to handle him easily. The Verdict – Gulbis in two sets.

Mayer F v Chardy

Mayer is a very good baseliner with great variety on court. He plays clever and tactical tennis using a lot of shots like slice, drop shots, powerful flat approaches and volleys. He has been hit by injuries throughout his career and that prevented him from doing well in the ranking. He was injured a couple of times this season, but he seems to be fit now. He played qualifications here during the weekend and defeated Beck and Russell with his usual solid serving and mixed up ground game. Chardy is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with good serve and deep ground strokes. He likes to take his chances and press opponents and he often follows his shots to the net. He should like the fast conditions here, but he hits with a fare amount of spin so he might be troubled by the speed. The Match – Chardy reached the quarterfinals in Toronto last week and he liked the bouncy grounds there. He is a confidence player and should be on fire now, but the conditions here are a bit different. Mayer is better used to the courts and he has the tricky choice of shots and the way to move opponents around and give them no pace which will annoy Chardy. The Frenchman is a shaky player mentally and he has not played Mayer so far. The German is the favourite in this match for us, but we need odds above evens to take him. The Verdict – Mayer in three sets.

Hewitt v Lu

Hewitt is a solid defensive counter puncher with fast movement on court. He feeds off opponent’s pace and likes to keep the ball in play and make acute angles. He likes fast surfaces and although he does better on the slower hard he has huge experience on the US type. He picked up a calf strain in Washington and he had to rest for a couple of weeks. He just started hitting the ball in practice last week and he might not be in form now. Lu is a solid defensive baseliner with fast movement and good defence on the line. He has the skills to keep the ball in play and he has nice angles on the ground. He has a lot of experience on hard courts and he likes playing on them. He had a foot injury before the US hard court spell, but he was fit last week in Toronto and reached the third round. He is 4-2 in Cincinnati, but all victories have been in qualifying. The Match – These are similar type of players with good movement on court and great defensive skills. Hewitt has better skills and more power and he is also more experienced, but he is also hurt and unprepared for the event. He will also look forward to the Slam and will not risk it all. Lu is in good from and he has the skills to stay in play and test the fitness of his opponent. That makes him worth a shot against the rusty Aussie and we might take him at odds above 2.20 at a one-ball paying bookie. The Verdict – Lu in two sets.

[15] Ljubicic v Nalbandian

Ljubicic is a veteran on tour with powerful flat ground strokes and big serve. He needs time for his strokes and he does not move very fast on court nowadays. He is also bothered by back injury and has not played in the last three weeks. He will make his debut on the US hard courts. He is 15-8 in Cincinnati so far. Nalbandian returned from injury on fire in Washington and he won the title there. He then went on to reach the quarterfinals in Toronto and he took well needed three days off after that. He is a very good baseliner with powerful and aggressive game. He has great angles and down the line shots off both wings and he plays well on hard courts. He is 5-5 in Cincinnati so far, but he needs the victories here to get a seeding for the Slam. The Match – Ljubicic leads the previous meetings 5-2, but the conditions are different now. He is not in form and he is troubled by his back. That makes is slow and weak on this surface. Nalbandian on the other hand looks fit and on fire and he did well in the last weeks. He has the power and the skills to trouble the veteran and we do not see him losing this match. The Verdict – Nalbandian in two sets.

Isner v Kubot

Isner is a tall guy with powerful serve and big forehand. He likes fast hard courts and he should be able to use the surface to full extend here. He looked tired against Malisse in Washington and then withdrew from Toronto due to a shoulder problem, but he should be fit and fresh now. He is 2-3 in Cincinnati so far. Kubot is a good doubles player who did well in singles last season. He has a technical serve and good volleys and he likes fast surfaces, but his form is very poor at the moment. He had a sprained ankle recently and is trying to recover, but he has not played in two months. The Match – Both are powerful servers with attacking game and both should like the conditions. Isner might not be fully fit, but the same is true for Kubot. The Pole is in poor form and he is definitely not to be trusted in this match. Isner is at home here and he should be the favourite in this match, but we will also not bet any money on him before seeing him play. The Verdict – Isner in two sets.

Dent v Lopez

Dent is a classical net rusher with technical serve and nice volleys. He has been hit by injuries throughout his career, but he is fit now. His game style is a bit old now and he finds it difficult to perform it on most surfaces. He has huge experience on US hard courts and he should find these ones good for his game. He passed qualifications with two good victories over Nieminen and Soeda. He is in decent form at the moment coming off a 5-2 record on the US hard, but most of is victories have come on the Challenger level. Lopez is a powerful leftie with big serve and forehand. He lacks a competitive backhand, but he uses the slice well and the surface here should suit him well. He plays well on fast grounds and he likes them, but he has not done too well on the US soil. He is 4-7 in Cincinnati so far and he lost his last six main draw matches here. He reached the semis in LA this season, but then lost in the first round of Toronto. The Match – Both are playing the same type of tennis, but Dent has a huge edge in experience and in match practice here. His game is risky and fast which make him hard to trust, but this time his opponent is also a shaky and erratic type of player so we give him the edge overall in the match. The Verdict – Dent in three sets.

Wawrinka v Almagro [14]

Wawrinka is a powerful baseliner with good backhand and dangerous serve. He moves well on the line, but prefers slower surfaces. He has been hit by injuries this season and he changed coaches. He is not in good form and he beat only the hurt Dancevic on the US hard this summer, but his losses were to Nadal and Nalbandian. He is just 2-4 in Cincinnati so far. Almagro is a powerful and aggressive clay courter with big kick serve and dangerous ground strokes. He likes slow or bouncy fast surfaces and he should not like the conditions here, but he is 5-3 in Cincinnati with a nice run to the quarterfinals in 2007. He lost to Llodra last week and he looked shaky and fragile there and his form should be worse on the faster grounds here. The Match – Wawrinka leads the previous meetings 3-1, but the two are tied on hard. The Swiss man played decent tennis last week and he might be getting back to form. Almagro is in good form this season, but his shot making is not made for these kinds of courts. We see the Swiss player as the favourite in this match, but bookies have made the odds good enough to take away all value for betting. The Verdict – Wawrinka in two sets.

Bellucci v Becker

Bellucci is a powerful leftie with big serve. He hits with a lot of top spin and moves well on court. Naturally, he plays his best tennis on clay and does not like fast surfaces. He will use his serve well on this surface, but that is pretty much his only weapons here as the courts should be too fast for his spin. He lost his only match here two years ago and he also got beaten by Gulbis last week. Becker is a US college graduate with huge experience on hard. He has the serve and the ground power to do well here and he also moves well on court and defends well. He was injured a month ago and is yet to find his good form, but he beat Fognini and Muller to get into the main draw here and he was rock solid on serve. He is 3-3 in Cincinnati so far. The Match – Both are serving well and are powerful on the ground, but Becker has a big edge in match practice here and he is also better suited for hard courts. In addition he got the needed feeling of the courts and he looked in decent form so we see him moving his opponent around well and pressing him hard to force the top spin errors and win the match. The Verdict – Becker in two sets.

Mathieu v Hanescu

Mathieu is a powerful aggressive baseliner with big serve and good backhand side. He plays better on slower surfaces, but he has enough experience and success on all surfaces. He has been hit by injuries recently and he needs some victories to get his confidence back. He lost twice in Toronto last week to Nieminen in qualifying and then to Lu as a lucky loser in the main draw. He played relatively well, but lacked concentration in the key moments. He is 4-6 in Cincinnati so far and he knows the surface well. Hanescu is a tall powerful server with slow movement on court and flat ground strokes. He needs time for his shots and he likes clay courts more. He did well in Toronto, but his opponents were local wild cards. He is 1-3 in Cincinnati so far and these fast courts with low bounce will not do him any favours. The Match – Both would have preferred slower conditions, but will have to do with these. Mathieu is faster and more variable on court and he has more options on the baseline. Hanescu has the bigger serve, but apart from that he is second best in the match. The Verdict – Mathieu in three sets.

[10] Ferrer v Dolgopolov

Ferrer had some shoulder problems before coming to the US and he needs match practice now to get in form. He is a solid and fast baseliner and he hits the ball with a lot of spin and power. He prefers clay courts, but his fast movement and solid counter punching ability make him good even on fast hard courts. He is 9-6 in Cincinnati so far with a couple of quarterfinals on the way. Dolgopolov is a youngster with great prospects for the future. He plays more of his tennis on clay and he has a powerful serve and big ground strokes off both wings. He is slowly making his transition to the top tour and he is making good impression on all surfaces. He reached the third round last week, but he will find conditions here tougher for his game as he needs bounce for his shots. Still, his serve should be good on the fast hard. The Match – Ferrer is the more solid player and he actually plays well on this surface. He has the skills and the consistency to keep the ball in play and Dolgopolov lacks the patience and the mentality to pound winner after winner. The Ukrainian has a big edge on serve, but there is no telling how his serve will fare so we prefer Ferrer for the victory. The Verdict – Ferrer in two sets.

Querrey v Petzschner

Querrey is a very good hard courter with powerful serve and attacking ground game. He has a good forehand and nice volleys and he plays well on the ground on hard. He knows the surface very well and plays his best tennis on it, but he is not in good form recently. He won the title on the slow hard in LA, but then failed in Washington and Toronto. He is 6-4 in Cincinnati so far. Petzschner is a good doubles player with powerful and tricky serve and nice volleys. He has a solid forehand and slices on the backhand side which makes him dangerous on fast and low bouncing surfaces like this one. His form is pretty bad recently and he played just one match on hard last week which he lost to Dolgopolov. He is not ready for the hard courts, but he has the game to do well here. The Match – Both are not in good form and both need to get their game going fast in order to win. The local player has more practice on the surface and he is in better overall form despite his bad results in the last two weeks. Petzschner prefers grass and indoor surfaces and he is not match fit for this event. We will give Querrey the edge in this match, but we will definitely stay away with our money. The Verdict – Querrey in two sets.

[wc] Ginepri v Devvarman

Ginepri is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with big serve and forehand. He has huge experience on hard and he knows how to use the courts well. He has been hit by injuries lately and he had to rest for some time as he reignited his hip injury in LA and missed Toronto. He was given a wild card here so he should be fit to play. He is 13-9 in Cincinnati so far. Devvarman is a solid baseliner with fast movement on court and good defence. He is also powerful on serve and his counter punching style should do well here. He lacks experience on this level, but he passed qualifications so he should be able to make up for it with match fitness. He beat Chiudinelli and Smyczek and he relied more on return and consistency than on serve. The Match – Devvarman has the needed experience on the US hard as he is a local college graduate. He also played a lot of matches on the surface recently. Ginepri has the power and the skills to hit through the Indian, but on the other hand if he is not fully fit and his game does not click well Devvarman has the solid defence to expose him and force the errors and the loss. The Verdict – Devvarman in three sets.

Berrer v Robredo

Berrer is a powerful server with aggressive ground game and limited skills. He uses the slice on the backhand and he has a powerful leftie forehand. He plays most of his tennis on hard and indoors, but he lacks a lot of experience on the US hard. He twisted his ankle before Wimbledon and he still needs matches to make up for the loss. He beat Beck and lost to Verdasco and Malisse in his two hard courts events so far. Robredo is a defensive baseliner with fast movement and solid counter attacking skills. He has a back injury this season and he still needs matches to get in form. He beat Nieminen in Toronto last week, but then got demolished by Nalbandian. He has a great record in Cincinnati (12-8) and the surface obviously suits him, but he is not in form now. The Match – Both are not in good form and need matches to shake off the rustiness. Robredo has his solid defence to count on and he has done fine here so far, but in his current state he is not to be trusted. Berrer is more of a net rusher and has the skills to keep the ball low and press opponents. However, he is not too solid recently and he might struggle to find his serve and play his best. We will avoid this match for betting. The Verdict – Robredo in three sets.

[13] Melzer v Giraldo

Melzer is a powerful leftie with good ground game and nice variety on court. He is a powerful server and he also has good volleys, but he can hold his ground in defence and he plays well on all surfaces. He is just 3-4 here so far and he looked uninterested and shaky in Toronto last week losing easily to Polansky. He should find the surface good for his attacking game, but his motivation is not certain. Giraldo is a powerful baseliner who has played most of his tennis on clay. He also has the needed experience on hard courts and he passed qualifications here so he should be match fit. He beat Ilhan and Serra and served very well in both matches. He is in bad form at the moment as he lost his last four matches on hard and he seems to find the conditions too fast for his liking. However, the good weekend should boost his hard court game. The Match – Melzer has the experience and the game to win this match as he can use the serve and the slice and dice tricks to trouble his opponent. However, his game looked bad last week and we do not know whether he will try better this week. Giraldo was impressive in qualifying and served well, but he is not used to the hard courts here and we cannot trust him either so we will stay away from this one. The Verdict – Melzer in three sets.

Monaco v De Bakker

Monaco is a solid baseliner who likes and plays most of his matches on clay courts. He has an aggressive approach and he has the power to use the court well, but he is also fast and solid in defence which makes him dangerous on slower surfaces. He does not like fast hard courts and he is not prepared for them now. He rested his wrist for two months and has not played competitive tennis since May. He started training three weeks ago, but he was not ready to play last week and pulled out of Toronto. He was in Miami for the last week preparing on hard. De Bakker is a tall and powerful guy with big serve and good movement on court for his height. He is powerful and aggressive when he has too, but he can also stay in rallies well. His best surface so far has been clay as he has most experience on it, but since we came up on the top tour this season he has also done well on hard. He practiced in the US for over a month now and he played well in the last two weeks. The Match – Both are better on clay, but De Bakker has the serve and the power to use the courts well. He also has fitness on his side and his thumping serve will not give Monaco’s wrist a rest. The Argentinean is a very good player, but he lacks matches and should not be able to pull out a surprise in this match. The Verdict – De Bakker in two sets.

Stakhovsky v Roddick [9]

Stakhovsky is a net rushing big server with good volleys and attacking game. He plays his best tennis indoors and likes the low bounces and speedy surfaces that give him the chance to torment opponents at the end. He should enjoy the conditions here, but he has played just one match in Cincinnati before. He beat a hurt Gasquet last week in Toronto and then lost to Berdych. Roddick is a powerful server with big forehand and solid backhand. He likes playing on hard courts and Cincinnati should be one of his favourite events as it is fast and low bouncing and that should suit his game perfectly. However, he has been diagnosed with a mild case of mononucleosis which has been going on for the last two months and pretty much explains his bad form and lack of power on court. The Match – Stakhovsky lacks matches on success on these hard courts and he should rely on serve and net rushing. Roddick has more power and weapons for the hard courts, but he has the fitness problem going on and despite claiming he is almost past the mono he should not be trusted until seen in form again. These might be some value in backing Stakhovsky who can be solid and tricky on any surface if he tries. The Verdict – Stakhovsky in three sets.

Stepanek v Troicki

Stepanek has gone through a lot recently starting with a fatigue syndrome and going through stomach pains, virus and knee injury. That made his totally unfit and for a physical player like him it has been a nightmare. He played well in doubles in Washington, but in singles he lost his last two matches without problem. He is a powerful server with aggressive game and nice volleys. He hits the ball flat and deep and the surface should be good for him, but he simply does not play his own game recently and he is not to be backed this season. Troicki is a powerful server with aggressive ground game and good options off both wings. He has the skills to attack at the net and he also has the solid game to stay at the back when needed. He played well on the US hard recently, but lacked the mentality to finish Kohlschreiber off last week and lost to Fish before that. The Match – Troicki should be fit and solid and he also has the serve to bring to the fast hard courts. Stepanek on the other hand has not won for a while and he is not fit at the moment. That makes the Serbian a huge favourite at the moment and we agree with the bookies on this one. The Verdict – Troicki in two sets.

Cilic v Baghdatis

Cilic is a tall and powerful player with long reach and big ground strokes and serve. He likes hard courts and they are his best surface, but he is not a fast mover and looks to make up with his long reach. The courts here are fast and low bouncing and that should not be too good for him. He is 1-3 in Cincinnati so far and he is 3-2 on the US hard this season. He lost early in Toronto to Troicki and he looked a bit weak and had the flu there. Baghdatis is a very talented and solid baseliner with good aggressive options off both wings and a powerful serve. He moves well and has the skills to handle low bounce and fast courts. He is 4-3 in Cincinnati so far and he is 5-3 on the US hard this season. He played the final in Washington a week ago and that led to an early exit in Toronto last week. The Match - Cilic has won the two ATP matches between them and he beat Baghdatis in Miami this season. However, the surface here is much faster and that will suit the more mobile and variable Baghdatis. In addition, the Cypriot has found his form recently and he has improved a lot since the start of the season while Cilic has done better on clay and did not look too impressive on hard. He might also struggle with regaining his form after the virus. The match looks like a tight one, but we give the Cypriot a slight edge and will definitely take him if he gets odds above evens. The Verdict - Baghdatis in three sets.

Murray v Federer

Murray is a very solid baseliner with fast movement on court and great defensive skills. He has great weapons off both wings and he also has one of the best returns of serve on tour. His first serve is a powerful weapon, but his second one often lacks power and depth. He is not in good form this season on hard as he has not won a title on the surface and he is yet to win any title this year. He is 11-2 in Toronto so far with semifinals in his both appearances. Hard courts are good surface for him as he has speed and the power to use them and he also should use the bounce to get to more balls in defence. Federer is 16-3 in Toronto with two titles and three first round exits so far. He has not played on hard since losing to Berdych in Miami in March. He also has not played since losing the Wimbledon quarterfinal to Berdych two months ago. He has a new coach in Paul Annacone and he looks forward to improving his current form as he was pretty shaky before the break. He is a powerful server with very good ground game and he should like the surface here a lot. The Match – These two proved to be the best players this week as Murray disposed of the player in form Nalbandian and the top seed while Federer defeated powerhouse Berdych and tricky Djokovic. However, the Swiss man played two roller coaster matches and was more or less shaky and uneven throughout the proceedings with many ups and downs. Murray on the other hand was very reliable and solid and even his second serve was on the needed level. The Brit leads the past meetings 6-5 and they are tied 2-2 on US hard courts. Murray is more solid and he will leave the attack and the match in the hands of Federer, but he will also press more and make his opponent run more. Federer will look to show pieces of his genius, but judging from his last matches we think that he might just struggle against the solid opponent. We see Murray as the more likely winner, but the equal odds are set about right. The Verdict – Murray in three sets.

Nadal v Murray

Nadal is a powerful defensive leftie who moves very well on court and hits with a lot of topspin. Hard courts are his worst surface, especially the US hard courts as they are too fast for him so far. However, he has the speed to get to almost any ball at the back and the bounce here will work for him and his top spin shots. He will play his first match since Wimbledon which is natural for a top player like him. He is 10-2 in Toronto and he is the defending champion. Murray is a very solid baseliner with fast movement on court and great defensive skills. He has great weapons off both wings and he also has one of the best returns of serve on tour. His first serve is a powerful weapon, but his second one often lacks power and depth. He is not in good form this season on hard as he has not won a title on the surface and he is yet to win any title this year. He is 10-2 in Toronto so far with semifinals in his both appearances. Hard courts are good surface for him as he has speed and the power to use them and he also should use the bounce to get to more balls in defence. The Match – Murray played his best match so far and took out Nalbandian, but he was aided by his opponent who made many errors and just looked tired. The Brit is not in great form at the moment and apart from yesterday was less than impressive. Nadal had more trouble with his opponent, but was actually never in danger of losing the match against Kohlschreiber. The top seed also looked rusty and shaky at times this week, but overall he was more impressive than Murray. Both are solid defensive players, but Nadal has the better movement and he can easily expose the weaker second serve of his opponent while not having such a liability in his own game. He leads the Brit 8-3 and 2-1 on the US hard including a victory here two seasons ago. The Spaniard looks like the favorite in this match, but is just too short for any value. The Verdict – Nadal in three sets.

Federer v Djokovic

Federer is 15-3 in Toronto with two titles and three first round exits so far. He has not played on hard since losing to Berdych in Miami in March. He also has not played since losing the Wimbledon quarterfinal to Berdych two months ago. He has a new coach in Paul Annacone and he looks forward to improving his current form as he was pretty shaky before the break. He is a powerful server with very good ground game and he should like the surface here a lot. Djokovic is a very good aggressive baseliner with great talent and dangerous shots off both wings. He moves well and takes the ball early and he also has a powerful serve. He plays well on all surfaces and he has found some form recently. He risks more this season and goes for his shots and he has done well so far as he has the ground power and when he gets his game going he is hard to stop. He played just Davis Cup after Wimbledon and he has not played on hard since the spring. He is 5-1 in Toronto so far, but he is 8-2 with a title on the similar surface in Montreal. The Match – Federer is lucky to be here after breaking Berdych in the last possible moment and winning the match in the coin toss decisive tie-break. He looked more like the player from old times this week, but could not keep that level for long periods of time. Djokovic picked up his game after a shaky start against Benneteau and he looked solid and impressive in his last two matches, but he met weaker opponent and has not been tested yet. Federer leads the Serbian 9-5 so far and 4-2 on the US hard courts. The Swiss player is well prepared and fired up for this match and he has the serve and the power to trouble Djokovic. The Serbian is more shaky and he is yet to win a big match this week, but he has been looking good and he has the movement and power to press his opponent and there is no telling whether Federer will hold strong. All in all the match looks like a tight one and we might consider backing any of the two who gets odds above evens. The Verdict – Federer in three sets.

Nadal v Kohlschreiber

Nadal is a powerful defensive leftie who moves very well on court and hits with a lot of topspin. Hard courts are his worst surface, especially the US hard courts as they are too fast for him so far. However, he has the speed to get to almost any ball at the back and the bounce here will work for him and his top spin shots. He will play his first match since Wimbledon which is natural for a top player like him. He is 9-2 in Toronto and he is the defending champion. Kohlschreiber is a very powerful and skillful baseliner with good backhand and the ability to generate a lot of pace on the ground. He plays well from the back and creates very good angles on the ground, but he is not in good form at the moment. His serve is giving him a lot of trouble and in addition he is playing erratic and shaky tennis. He has not played on hard since March. The Match – Nadal was better against Anderson than in his first match and he played good solid tennis with his usual power and great movement. Kohlschreiber took advantage of the fatigue of Lu and used it to win the decider easily, but he should be in the same spot now after playing for almost three hours yesterday. Nadal has won all seven matches between the two and he is the more solid and powerful player. In addition he will use the top spin to trouble the German and in his current condition Kohlschreiber is in no spot to handle it. The Verdict – Nadal in two sets.

Murray v Nalbandian

Murray is a very solid baseliner with fast movement on court and great defensive skills. He has great weapons off both wings and he also has one of the best returns of serve on tour. His first serve is a powerful weapon, but his second one often lacks power and depth. He is not in good form this season on hard as he has not won a title on the surface and he is yet to win any title this year. He is 9-2 in Toronto so far with semifinals in his both appearances. Hard courts are good surface for him as he has speed and the power to use them and he also should use the bounce to get to more balls in defence. Nalbandian had a great week in DC where he went the distance and despite looking a bit overweight he also looks in great form. He likes hard courts and he should like both the speed and the bounce here as both favour his power and execution off both wings. He is very talented and skillful and he needs matches. He is 6-3 in Toronto and 14-6 in Canada overall so he likes the surface and conditions here. The Match – Nalbandian will once again feature in the match of the day. He plays great tennis now and with his power and talent in full swing the only thing that can stop him at the moment is fatigue. However, he looked fresh and sharp against Soderling and he spent less than two hours on court. Murray on the other hand played in ups and downs like in his first match and he was lucky that his opponent lacked weapons and consistency to break him. Nalbandian has won both matches between the two so far and in his current form he should be able to produce the power and the aggression to take out the defensive Brit on these fast courts. However, still with fatigue in mind we would not advice any bets on this match as odds seem about right. The Verdict – Nalbandian in three sets.

Federer v Berdych

Berdych is a powerful server with big flat ground strokes and a lot of aggressive power on the ground. He likes playing on hard courts which are his best and favorite surface. He does well on slower hard courts, but he has the serve and the firepower to use the bouncy and speedy stuff here. He is 6-2 in Toronto so far and he looked in form last week in DC before getting angry with the schedule and losing to Malisse. Federer is 14-3 in Toronto with two titles and three first round exits so far. He has not played on hard since losing to Berdych in Miami in March. He also has not played since losing the Wimbledon quarterfinal to Berdych two months ago. He has a new coach in Paul Annacone and he looks forward to improving his current form as he was pretty shaky before the break. He is a powerful server with very good ground game and he should like the surface here a lot. The Match – Federer leads the previous matches 8-3, but he lost the last two against the Czech. Berdych has the power and the serve to use the courts well, but he is not very impressive this week and he had a medical timeout for his knee yesterday. His movement might be a bit limited and that is enough to avoid him for betting. Federer also got broken twice against Llodra and had his troubles in the first set, but then picked up the pace as his opponent faded away in the second. A fit Berdych has a good chance against Federer, but his condition is not clear so we will stay away from this match. The Verdict – Federer in three sets.

Chardy v Djokovic

Chardy is a powerful player who plays aggressive tennis and often rushes to the net. He has a lot of spin on his shots and is able to create good angles. Chardy has no practice on the surface and that might be tricky for him. However, he has a solid game and adjusts easily to any surface. He struggled with lack of self-belief since last autumn but there were signs lately that he is improving his level. Djokovic is a very good aggressive baseliner with great talent and dangerous shots off both wings. He moves well and takes the ball early and he also has a powerful serve. He plays well on all surfaces and he has found some form recently. He risks more this season and goes for his shots and he has done well so far as he has the ground power and when he gets his game going he is hard to stop. He played just Davis Cup after Wimbledon and he has not played on hard since the spring. He is 4-1 in Toronto so far, but he is 8-2 with a title on the similar surface in Montreal. The Match – Chardy faced a messy and weak Davydenko and handled him well to take the victory, but the overall feeling this week is of a great luck for the Frenchman who is not playing his best tennis. However, he is a confidence player and he should be able to capitalize on that. Djokovic was feeling much better yesterday and he used the better weather conditions to improve his game and handle Hanescu with ease. He has won all four matches against Chardy so far and he is yet to lose a set to the guy. The match is the last of the day so the weather should be fine for the Serbian and he has the power and the consistency to press his opponent and win this one. The Verdict – Djokovic in two sets.

(1)Nadal – Anderson

Nadal is a powerful defensive leftie who moves very well on court and hits with a lot of topspin. Hard courts are his worst surface, especially the US hard courts as they are too fast for him so far. However, he has the speed to get to almost any ball at the back and the bounce here will work for him and his top spin shots. He will play his first match since Wimbledon which is natural for a top player like him. He is 8-2 in Toronto and he is the defending champion. Anderson is a powerful server with limited ground game. He improved it recently as he played and actually did well on clay this spring and summer. He likes hard courts and uses the fast US hard courts well to unleash his serve and attack. He eached the semis in Atlanta and then failed to qualify for Washington, but he beat Klec and Smyczek here with sound serving. The Match – Nadal looked a bit rusty against Wawrinka, but did the job fast enough. Anderson continued his good run with a solid victory over Querrey due to his very good serving in the match. However, he should be troubled by the leftie serve and the top spin of Nadal. If he continues to serve rock solid he might have a chance on this surface, but we are not ready to bet money on that. The Verdict – Nadal in two sets. 

Kohlschreiber – Lu

Kohlschreiber is a very powerful and skillful baseliner with good backhand and the ability to generate a lot of pace on the ground. He plays well from the back and creates very good angles on the ground, but he is not in good form at the moment. His serve is giving him a lot of trouble and in addition he is playing erratic and shaky tennis. He has not played on hard since March. Lu is a solid defensive baseliner with huge experience on hard courts. He has played mostly in Asia and likes the slower hard surfaces, but he has the speed and the quick shot action to deal with faster grounds too. He is very good on counter attack and has great acute angles on court. He had some foot problem in recent weeks and he lost to Falla in DC last week, but he managed to pass qualifying here by beating Bozoljac and Copil. The Match – Kohlschreiber got a second victory here in a tough match against Troicki, but his opponent just gave up in the decider. Lu on the other hand played for more than three hours to get past Mathieu. Both are solid baseliners with Lu being in a bit better form. Kohlschreiber needs to boost his confidence now and he should be able to pull it off in this match with his better attack and especially after his opponent’s marathon match yesterday. The Verdict – Kohlschreiber in two sets.

(4)Murray - (15)Monfils

Murray is a very solid baseliner with fast movement on court and great defensive skills. He has great weapons off both wings and he also has one of the best returns of serve on tour. His first serve is a powerful weapon, but his second one often lacks power and depth. He is not in good form this season on hard as he has not won a title on the surface and he is yet to win any title this year. He is 8-2 in Toronto so far with semifinals in his both appearances. Hard courts are good surface for him as he has speed and the power to use them and he also should use the bounce to get to more balls in defence. Monfils twisted his ankle in the final of Hamburg and he took a month off tennis with training and playing poker. He is an athletic player with big serve and very good court coverage. He has great defense and a lot of power on the ground. He also has a lot of variety on court and nice volleys, but he is mentally and physically fragile. He plays well on hard and knows the surface well, but he prefers slower surfaces. The Match – Murray generally has no problems getting past Monfils as he is far more solid and consistent than the Frenchman. Monfils has more firepower on the ground, but he rarely uses it nowadays and with his solid and powerful serving display against Malisse the Brit has proven he is in good shape so he should be able to handle the opponent. The Verdict – Murray in two sets.

Nalbandian – (5)Soderling

Nalbandian had a great week in DC where he went the distance and despite looking a bit overweight he also looks in great form. He likes hard courts and he should like both the speed and the bounce here as both favour his power and execution off both wings. He is very talented and skillful and he needs matches. He is 5-3 in Toronto, but 13-6 in Canada overall so he likes the surface and conditions here. Soderling took a vacation after losing the final in Bastad on clay and he claims to be rested and ready for the hard court season. He is a powerful server who likes hard courts and he has the big speedy ground strokes on the ground to make a lot of winners. He hits the ball flat and he likes high bounce so the surface here would be perfect for his game. He is just 4-3 here so far. The Match – This is the game of the day by far. Nalbandian is playing great recently and he had a needed rest in his match against Robredo as he spent under an hour on court. Soderling looked a bit rusty against Gulbis serving seven double faults and having to save six break points. Nalbandian has the power and the skills to keep the ball out of the big forehand of his opponent and he has beaten the Swede five times out of six so far. Soderling will once again rely on serve and raw power, but his serve was not in top condition in his opener and he might not get many good balls on the forehand. Nalbandian looks like the favorite for us, but odds are set pretty much right. The Verdict – Nalbandian in three sets.

(7)Berdych – Dolgopolov

Berdych is a powerful server with big flat ground strokes and a lot of aggressive power on the ground. He likes playing on hard courts which are his best and favorite surface. He does well on slower hard courts, but he has the serve and the firepower to use the bouncy and speedy stuff here. He is 5-2 in Toronto so far and he looked in form last week in DC before getting angry with the schedule and losing to Malisse. Dolgopolov is very talented with a lot of power and technique on the ground and he also has a big serve. He plays more on Challenger level, but has made the step to the top tour recently. He likes clay most, and is making the trip to North America for the first time in his career having now got the needed rankings to enter the main draw. The Match – Dolgopolov got into the habit of losing his first set 1-6, but he once again managed to come back and win against Youzhny. He was outplayed in the first two sets, but then picked up his game in the decider and with strong serving and good ground game got the job done. Berdych was untroubled against Stakhovsky and looked prepared for the challenge here. The Czech has the flat power to hit through the court and he also has the serve to match that of his opponent and even topple it. The youngster should have trouble handling the sheer power of his opponent and we think this should be the end of the road for him. 6-1 for Berdych in the first set looks like a sure bet. The Verdict – Berdych in two sets.

Llodra – (3)Federer

Llodra is a powerful leftie with big serve and very good volleys. He hits the ball flat and with power, but he also has good slices and his volleys are really solid and swift. He likes to play on fast surfaces but indoors is his specialty and his record of 6-1 in 2010 with a title in Marseille proves that. He does not feature well in USA and especially in Canada with five first round exits and two unsuccessful qualification attempts. Federer is 13-3 in Toronto with two titles and three first round exits so far. He has not played on hard since losing to Berdych in Miami in March. He also has not played since losing the Wimbledon quarterfinal to Berdych two months ago. He has a new coach in Paul Annacone and he looks forward to improving his current form as he was pretty shaky before the break. He is a powerful server with very good ground game and he should like the surface here a lot. The Match – Federer was not very impressive against Chela, but he got the job done in style and he showed some of the old Federer stuff at times. Llodra played well so far and showed that he cares despite this not being in France. He serves very well winning more than 75% on serve so far and he has the ground power to set up his good attack. However, he now meets a classy opponent and Federer has no trouble handling big servers or lefties or net rushers. The third seed should be able to hold off the serve of his opponent and if he does that the match is in the bag. The Verdict – Federer in two sets.

(6)Davydenko – Chardy

Davydenko suffered from a broken wrist and he is yet to find his form. He is a very good powerful baseliner who takes the ball early and has great angles on the ground. He likes all surfaces and he will like the bounce and the speed of these courts. He is a hard worker and he needs matches and training to get in form so he will need some more time to get his game going well. He also needs a coach at the moment as his brother left him to concentrate on coaching his own son. The Russian is 2-2 in Toronto so far. Chardy is a powerful player who plays aggressive tennis and often rushes to the net. He has a lot of spin on his shots and is able to create good angles. Chardy has no practice on the surface and that might be tricky for him. However, he has a solid game and adjusts easily to any surface. He struggled with lack of self-belief since last autumn but there were signs lately that he is improving his level. The Match – Chardy did well to beat Verdasco, but he stayed on court for almost three hours and was lucky that his opponent got injured at the end. He missed many chances as usual, but he served well and played solid enough tennis. Davydenko handled Fognini very quickly and he played well, but the Italian was in no mood for opposition. The Russian is very solid and sharp in general while Chardy tends to be weary and erratic when pressed hard. That makes Davydenko the favorite in this match, but we do not see any value in backing him. The Verdict – Davydenko in three sets.

Hanescu - (2)Djokovic

Hanescu is a tall guy with big serve and powerful flat ground strokes but he is best suited to slow surfaces like clay. His record on hard courts the last five seasons is poor 15-25 and his best performance was in 2005 when reached the semi-finals at New Haven. Last year he beat Melzer and Kohlschreiber here before losing to Del Potro. Djokovic is a very good aggressive baseliner with great talent and dangerous shots off both wings. He moves well and takes the ball early and he also has a powerful serve. He plays well on all surfaces and he has found some form recently. He risks more this season and goes for his shots and he has done well so far as he has the ground power and when he gets his game going he is hard to stop. He played just Davis Cup after Wimbledon and he has not played on hard since the spring. He is just 3-1 in Toronto so far, but he is 9-2 with a title on the similar surface in Montreal. The Match – Hanescu had two local wild cards to overcome and he did the job well becoming the executor of the last local in the draw. He served well so far winning over 70% behind it and he has the kick and the power to do well on this surface. Djokovic looked sick and tired and played badly in his opener, but his opponent was not up to the task of upsetting him. Hanescu has lost all four matches between the two so far, but two have been decided by retirement. He is the better looking player at the moment, but he has played weak opponents. However, he can trouble Djokovic on serve and if he unleashes the ground power he might even win providing that the Serbian plays close to his yesterday stuff. There is no value whatsoever in backing the favorite and we might consider putting a small punt on the underdog in this match. The Verdict – Hanescu in three sets.

Nadal v Wawrinka

Nadal is a powerful defensive leftie who moves very well on court and hits with a lot of topspin. Hard courts are his worst surface, especially the US hard courts as they are too fast for him so far. However, he has the speed to get to almost any ball at the back and the bounce here will work for him and his top spin shots. He will play his first match since Wimbledon which is natural for a top player like him. He is 7-2 in Toronto and he is the defending champion. Wawrinka is a powerful baseliner with big serve and very good backhand. He hits the ball with a lot of power and moves well on court, but he prefers clay and slower hard. He played in Washington last week and got beaten by Nalbandian in the second round. He is 3-1 in Toronto so far, but he lacks matches on hard. He has a new coach in Peter Lundgren and this will be their first event together. The Match – Wawrinka handled the injured Dancevic well enough, but his opponent posted a performance way below par. Nadal should be much better despite some rustiness and Wawrinka generally lacks the weapons and more or less the consistency to pound the defence of the top seed and win this. The Verdict – Nadal in two sets.

Anderson v Querrey

Anderson is a powerful server with limited ground game. He improved it recently as he played and actually did well on clay this spring and summer. He likes hard courts and uses the fast US hard courts well to unleash his serve and attack. He eached the semis in Atlanta and then failed to qualify for Washington, but he beat Klec and Smyczek here with sound serving. Querrey is a powerful server with attacking ground game and good volleys. He has a lot of experience on the US hard courts and he has improved his game a lot recently. He lacks great baseline shots, but he has the perfect serve and attack combination for hard. He won the title in LA this season, but the surface there is slow and bouncy while Toronto is fast and bouncy. Nevertheless, he should fancy the conditions here as they favour big servers, but he has lost both his matches in Canada so far. The Match – These two rely on serve and fast baseline attack and they are similar players. Querrey is naturally the better hard courter and he has more experience and better skills on the ground. He lost a set to Russell, but overall played much better than in recent weeks and won 78% behind serve. Anderson was less impressive against Mayer and comparing the serve and the skills of the two will make the American favorite for the victory in this match. In addition he has taken all four matches between the two so far. The Verdict – Querrey in three sets.

Troicki v Kohlschreiber

Troicki is a powerful baseliner with aggressive game and big serve. He likes to finish points fast and he likes faster surfaces, but he is also pretty solid on the baseline and can stay in rallies. He beat Kim in Washington, but then lost to Fish. Kohlschreiber is a very powerful and skillful baseliner with good backhand and the ability to generate a lot of pace on the ground. He plays well from the back and creates very good angles on the ground, but he is not in good form at the moment. His serve is giving him a lot of trouble and in addition he is playing erratic and shaky tennis. He has not played on hard since March. The Match – Kohlschreiber was lucky to get over his opponent as Tipsarevic retired early in their match. That should boost the German’s confidence a bit, but overall he lacks the matches on hard and should not be too happy with the walkover. Troicki on the other hand beat the ailing Cilic fare and square with good serving and aggressive ground game. The Serbian has the needed reliable serve and he has good practice of his attacking game while the German is pretty shaky recently and should be troubled by the simple and solid game of his opponent as he struggles with his own game. The Verdict – Troicki in two sets.

Lu v Mathieu

Lu is a solid defensive baseliner with huge experience on hard courts. He has played mostly in Asia and likes the slower hard surfaces, but he has the speed and the quick shot action to deal with faster grounds too. He is very good on counter attack and has great acute angles on court. He had some foot problem in recent weeks and he lost to Falla in DC last week, but he managed to pass qualifying here by beating Bozoljac and Copil. Mathieu got lucky as Roddick retired and he managed to get straight into the second round. That must have been a bit unexpected for him and he might not be fully prepared, but he has the weekend matches under his belt so he should be ready for the hard courts. He beat White in qualifying and then lost to Nieminen in a messy match. He is a powerful baseliner with good attacking ground game, but he lacks consistency and he lacks matches as he has been hit by injuries this season. He lost his last four matches on tour and he is 0-2 in the main draw here. The Match – Lu is the more reliable and solid player as he moves well on hard and can be consistent and dangerous on counter attack. Mathieu should find the surface too fast for his taste and he looked less than impressive in qualifying so we will go with Lu in this match. The Verdict – Lu in two sets.

Murray v Malisse

Murray is a very solid baseliner with fast movement on court and great defensive skills. He has great weapons off both wings and he also has one of the best returns of serve on tour. His first serve is a powerful weapon, but his second one often lacks power and depth. He is not in good form this season on hard as he has not won a title on the surface and he is yet to win any title this year. He is 7-2 in Toronto so far with semifinals in his both appearances. Hard courts are good surface for him as he has speed and the power to use them and he also should use the bounce to get to more balls in defence. Malisse is a very talented baseliner with good ground strokes and dangerous weapons off both wings. He has a very good backhand, but he is very shaky mentally and he is also injury-prone and those two factors spoiled his chances for the best. He is now a veteran and hard courts are his best and favorite surface. He is in hot form after the grass season and he comes off a semifinal in Washington. He is 7-3 on US hard this season and he is 4-3 in Toronto with a quarterfinal reached in his last appearance in 2006. The Match – Malisse was impressive against Berrer and he lost just two points behind first serve and won 81% behind serve overall. He is in very good form and he has the skills and the power to handle anyone on this surface. Murray on the other hand will rely on defence and consistency. Malisse is generally shaky and untrustworthy and he struggles against solid defensive types as the Brit. We would not trust Murray as he is fresh on the hard courts here, but his game should be good enough to put off the Belgian. The Verdict – Murray in three sets.

De Bakker v Monfils

De Bakker is a tall and powerful youngster with big serve and forehand. He plays well on the baseline and likes long exchanges and clay. He has just come to the top tour and he plays his first hard court matches among the men this season. He prepared for the hard courts hard in Las Vegas and he beat Lacko before losing to Isner in Washington last week. Monfils twisted his ankle in the final of Hamburg and he took a month off tennis with training and playing poker. He is an athletic player with big serve and very good court coverage. He has great defense and a lot of power on the ground. He also has a lot of variety on court and nice volleys, but he is mentally and physically fragile. He plays well on hard and knows the surface well, but he prefers slower surfaces. The Match – Monfils played Devvarman instead of Gonzalez and he raced through the match despite failing to serve out the first set. De Bakker was very solid and powerful on serve as he won 78% behind it and gave Lopez absolutely no chance of breaking him. Both are powerful players with big serves and good movement at the back. Monfils is the more experienced and skilled one, but he also is more unstable and unreliable. De Bakker is easily more consistent and with his serving from the first round we cannot really oppose him here. The question for us is whether he deserves any trust as an underdog, but we will need some huge odds above 3 to back him. The Verdict – De Bakker in three sets.

Nalbandian v Robredo

Nalbandian had a great week in DC where he went the distance and despite looking a bit overweight he also looks in great form. He likes hard courts and he should like both the speed and the bounce here as both favour his power and execution off both wings. He is very talented and skillful and he needs matches. He is 4-3 in Toronto, but 12-6 in Canada overall so he likes the surface and conditions here. Robredo is a solid baseliner with good defence and nice movement on court. He prefers clay courts where he prevails through defence and counter attack, but he also does well on slower hard courts. He had a back injury which sidelined him before the French Open and he is not in good form at the moment as besides the semifinal reaches in Bastad he lost all his other matches. He will make a debut on hard and he is 4-3 in Toronto (passed the first round in all his appearances). The Match – Nalbandian leads the previous meetings 5-2 and he has won both matches on hard courts so far. He is in great from at the moment and he has the power and the skills to hit past Robredo – something Nieminen had no weapons to do. However, the Argentinean will play his eight match in ten days and he was a bit shaky and tired against Ferrer. Robredo on the other hand looked solid and fast against the weary Nieminen and he has the defence and baseline consistency to outlast the in-form Argentinean. We do not trust the Spaniard a lot, but he might just have the fitness and the defence on his side and we are ready to back him on odds above 2.50. The Verdict – Robredo in three sets.

Dolgopolov v Youzhny

Dolgopolov is very talented with a lot of power and technique on the ground and he also has a big serve. He plays more on Challenger level, but has made the step to the top tour recently. He likes clay most, and is making the trip to North America for the first time in his career having now got the needed rankings to enter the main draw. Youzhny is very much a confidence player – whenever he gets some wins and builds-up his self-belief then he is a real match-up for anyone, but if he struggles with his game, then his unforced errors mount with the speed of light. He is a talented baseliner with attacking game and good weapons off both wings and likes playing on fast surfaces. His record in Canada Masters is 8-7 all-time failing to make an impact. The Match – Dolgopolov played a highly suspicious first set against Petzschner which all the betting world seemed to know would finish in favour of the German, but then stepped up and won the decisive tie-break. Youzhny on the other hand won easier against Simon, but he was less impressive as his second serve was shaky and he was lucky to get back into the second set. Both are powerful baseliners, but Dolgopolov has more power on the ground and on serve. However, he is more shaky and inexperienced on the surface and the new and improved Youzhny should prove too solid and clever for him. The Verdict – Youzhny in two sets.

Almagro v Llodra

Almagro comes off a title in Hamburg on clay and he had a week to rest and to adjust to hard. He is a powerful baseliner with big serve and forehand and very nice backhand. He should find Toronto too fast for his taste, but his serve and aggressive forehand can do some damage here. He is 1-2 in Canada. Llodra is a powerful leftie with big serve and very good volleys. He hits the ball flat and with power, but he also has good slices and his volleys are really solid and swift. He likes to play on fast surfaces but indoors is his specialty and his record of 6-1 in 2010 with a title in Marseille proves that. He does not feature well in USA and especially in Canada with five first round exits and two unsuccessful qualification attempts. The Match – Almagro had some trouble against Marchenko in the first round, but he was solid overall and played well for a first match on hard. Llodra also did well to hold serve and race through the match with Giraldo as his opponent could not handle the serve at all. The match should be dominated by serve and fast finish of points. Both are very powerful and aggressive on the ground and the outcome will be decided by concentration in the key moments and better shot execution. The winner is hard to predict, but we lean towards Almagro as the Frenchman is known as more shaky and untrustworthy. The Verdict – Almagro in three sets.

Davydenko v Fognini

Davydenko suffered from a broken wrist and he is yet to find his form. He is a very good powerful baseliner who takes the ball early and has great angles on the ground. He likes all surfaces and he will like the bounce and the speed of these courts. He is a hard worker and he needs matches and training to get in form so he will need some more time to get his game going well. He also needs a coach at the moment as his brother left him to concentrate on coaching his own son. The Russian is 1-2 in Toronto so far. Fognini is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with big shots off both wings. He lacks a huge serve and he also plays more on clay. In addition he is very shaky and inconsistent and that makes him hard to trust. He should like the bouncy hard courts, but the speed might prove a problem to him. He has not played here before, but he defeated Chvojka and Yani in qualifying and he was flawless on the ground against them. The Match – Fognini faced a shaky and erratic Stepanek and won easily without being too impressive. He will meet his match on the ground now as Davydenko is equally as powerful and attacking as him. The Russian is more solid and consistent in general and he has better angles while Fognini relies more on raw power off the baseline. The Russian is the better player overall and if he plays close to his usual tennis he should win. He see him getting past the unstable Italian, but we will not risk any money on his first match on the surface this summer. The Verdict – Davydenko in three sets.

Chardy v Verdasco

Chardy is a powerful player who plays aggressive tennis and often rushes to the net. He has a lot of spin on his shots and is able to create good angles. Chardy has no practice on the surface and that might be tricky for him. However, he has a solid game and adjusts easily to any surface. He struggled with lack of self-belief since last autumn but there were signs lately that he is improving his level. Verdasco is powerful attacking player with big forehand and excellent technical serve. He is known for his high first serve percentage which troubles opponents a lot and limits their opportunities. He made his debut last week at Washington and reached the quarter-finals but did not impress. Even though he will not admit, the Spaniard is bothered by ankle and minor muscle tear injury. Verdasco is 7-5 in Canada and is not likely to break his record R16. The Match – Chardy went the distance against Baghdatis and capitalized on the frustration of his opponent at the end to win it all. He looked second best and despite the 15 aces got broken four times and stayed on court for more than 2:30 hours. Verdasco also played three sets, but he played an hour less and looked better overall. He managed to get 80% of his first serves in and win 70% behind serve. He has more power on court and he is easily the more reliable and solid player. He will trouble the Frenchman with his leftie serve and better movement on court. Judging from the first matches of both Verdasco looks like the more likely winner of this one. The Verdict – Verdasco in two sets.

Polansky v Hanescu

Polansky is a local player – more specifically a good baseliner with technical ground game, but he lacks the power to be really dangerous against the big guns. He plays on all surfaces, but seems to do better on hard and clay courts. He is the long time hitting partner of Federer in Canada which is a rare opportunity to get a taste of playing against the very best on Tour. Hanescu is a tall guy with big serve and powerful flat ground strokes but he is best suited to slow surfaces like clay. His record on hard courts the last five seasons is poor 14-25 and his best performance was in 2005 when reached the semi-finals at New Haven. Last year he beat Melzer and Kohlschreiber here before losing to Del Potro. The Match – Polansky played a great match to defeat Melzer in the first round and he looked impressive despite his opponent making too many errors and not giving his best at the end. Hanescu also played well and won deservedly against another local wild card. Both served well and the local player played better on the ground while Hanescu was more powerful on serve. The surface favours the bigger servers and Hanescu has the edge there so he should be the favorite here. The odds seem correctly set so we see no value for betting. The Verdict – Hanescu in three sets.

Benneteau v Djokovic

Benneteau is a solid baseliner with fast movement and tough physical game. He is a fighter on court and likes long rallies, which makes him good on clay, but he is also a tricky and powerful server with nice volleys. He likes fast indoor surfaces and clay, but hard courts are not his forte. He lost to Malisse in the opener in Washington last week and he is just 3-3 in Toronto main draw so far. He lost his last five matches on hard and he is not in good form. Djokovic is a very good aggressive baseliner with great talent and dangerous shots off both wings. He moves well and takes the ball early and he also has a powerful serve. He plays well on all surfaces and he has found some form recently. He risks more this season and goes for his shots and he has done well so far as he has the ground power and when he gets his game going he is hard to stop. He played just Davis Cup after Wimbledon and he has not played on hard since the spring. He is just 2-1 in Toronto so far, but he is 8-2 with a title on the similar surface in Montreal. The Match – Benneteau was solid and powerful enough to defeat qualifier Istomin easily in the first round. Djokovic on the other hand failed in his doubles attempt alongside Nadal and lost to local beginners Raonic and Pospisil. The Serbian has the power and the ground game to defeat Benneteau and he is also better on serve. He has the better hard court game and although we will not back him here, we think he will win comfortably as Benneteau lacks the powerful weapons to trouble him. The Verdict – Djokovic in two sets.

(WC)Dancevic –Wawrinka

Dancevic is a powerful server with aggressive and even net rushing ground game. He has a lot of experience on hard courts as he has grown up on them and he knows the conditions here perfectly. Injuries ruined his career so far and he is once again not fit. He ran over a scoreboard in Atlanta a couple of weeks ago and he got a cut in his thigh. He played two events after that, but had treatment for the injury and did not look too well. He is 2-5 in Toronto so far. Wawrinka is a powerful baseliner with big serve and very good backhand. He hits the ball with a lot of power and moves well on court, but he prefers clay and slower hard. He played in Washington last week and got beaten by Nalbandian in the second round. He is 2-1 in Toronto so far, but he lacks matches on hard. He has a new coach in Peter Lundgren and this will be their first event together. The Match – Both are far from their best form as Dancevic is not fully fit while Wawrinka is still rusty and not too good on hard. The local player has more experience and better skills for hard, but against the power and routine of his opponent and with a hurt thigh he might not be able to pull it off. We do not see any value for betting on this match. The Verdict – Wawrinka in two sets.

(11)Cilic – Troicki

Cilic is a powerful baseliner with big serve and big ground strokes. He likes fast and bouncy surfaces as they give him height to make his shots and at the same time are speedy enough to make his winners. He reached the semis in Washington last week so he is prepared for the hard court Masters. He likes hard courts and he is 3-1 here with one appearance so far. Troicki is a powerful baseliner with aggressive game and big serve. He likes to finish points fast and he likes faster surfaces, but he is also pretty solid on the baseline and can stay in rallies. He beat Kim in Washington, but then lost to Fish. The Match – Cilic has won all five meetings between the two so far. He has the power and the reach to trouble his opponent and Troicki is obviously yet to find a way to handle the big Croat. Cilic is in better form and he will have the needed couple of days to rest so we see him as the more likely winner. The Verdict – Cilic in two sets.

Tipsarevic – Kohlschreiber

Tipsarevic is a very good and talented hard courter with powerful and dangerous shots off both wings and good movement on court. He plays his best tennis on hard and he is 6-3 on the US hard in the last three weeks with a semifinal in LA and a quarterfinal in DC last week. Kohlschreiber is a very powerful and skillful baseliner with good backhand and the ability to generate a lot of pace on the ground. He plays well from the back and creates very good angles on the ground, but he is not in good form at the moment. His serve is giving him a lot of trouble and in addition he is playing erratic and shaky tennis. He has not played on hard since March. The Match – Both are similar players with very good and powerful ground game. Both tend to have mental issues and rely on momentum and current form. Tipsarevic is ahead in that department as he played and won a lot of matches on hard recently while his opponent is just making a start. That along with the bad form of the German makes Tipsarevic the favorite in this match and we completely agree. The Verdict – Tipsarevic in two sets.

(WC)Duclos – Lu

Duclos is a local wild card who plays mostly on Futures and Challengers. He is a small and fast baseliner with good movement on court and nice volleys. His best result on hard this season is a quarterfinal on Challenger level and he has not reached the main draw in Canada Masters so far. He played the final in Beijing Challenger last week so he had to stay there until Sunday and travel late to Toronto. Lu is a solid defensive baseliner with huge experience on hard courts. He has played mostly in Asia and likes the slower hard surfaces, but he has the speed and the quick shot action to deal with faster grounds too. He is very good on counter attack and has great acute angles on court. He had some foot problem in recent weeks and he lost to Falla in DC last week, but he managed to pass qualifying here by beating Bozoljac and Copil. The Match – Lu has the edge in this match as he is the more solid and experienced player. In addition he has the advantage of having played some matches here already while the local wild card will arrive late and will have to fight the jet-lag. The Verdict – Lu in two sets.

(16)Querrey – Russell

Querrey is a powerful server with attacking ground game and good volleys. He has a lot of experience on the US hard courts and he has improved his game a lot recently. He lacks great baseline shots, but he has the perfect serve and attack combination for hard. He won the title in LA this season, but the surface there is slow and bouncy while Toronto is fast and bouncy. Nevertheless, he should fancy the conditions here as they favour big servers, but he has lost both his matches in Canada so far. Russell is a fast defensive baseliner with a lot of experience on hard. He is actually a veteran on tour and he has played most of his matches on this surface. He moves fast and counter attacks well, but he should find the courts here too fast for his game. He had a messy match against local Diez in the first qualifying round and then did better against a terrible Bester in the second. This is his first match in the main draw here. The Match – Russell has the edge in match practice, but his game is out of hand here. He had the luck to face weak opponents in qualifying and progress, but Querrey should be too much for him. Querrey has not done too well here so far, but he has the serve and he is in good form. He likes playing Russell and should have the chance to use his weapons so we do not see him losing this one. The Verdict – Querrey in two sets.

Malisse – Berrer

Malisse is a very talented baseliner with good ground strokes and dangerous weapons off both wings. He has a very good backhand, but he is very shaky mentally and he is also injury-prone and those two factors spoiled his chances for the best. He is now a veteran and hard courts are his best and favorite surface. He is in hot form after the grass season and he comes off a semifinal in Washington. He is 6-3 on US hard this season and he is 3-3 in Toronto with a quarterfinal reached in his last appearance in 2006. Berrer is a powerful leftie with big serve and very good volleys. He is a net rusher who plays his best tennis indoors. He had an ankle injury which took him out of Wimbledon and he is still trying to get his form back after that. He beat Beck in DC last week, but then lost to Verdasco after wasting a match point. The Match – Berrer likes faster and lower bouncing surfaces and although this one will match his taste in speed it will not do him any favors for the bounce. The balls should bounce high here and that will give Malisse extra time and height for his shots while it will make the German slice easier to handle. The Belgian has won both meetings between the two so far and we do not see him losing this one. However, he had a sore foot last week so you might want to be careful with him now. The Verdict – Malisse in two sets.

(15)Monfils – Gonzalez

Monfils twisted his ankle in the final of Hamburg and he took a month off tennis with training and playing poker. He is an athletic player with big serve and very good court coverage. He has great defense and a lot of power on the ground. He also has a lot of variety on court and nice volleys, but he is mentally and physically fragile. He plays well on hard and knows the surface well, but he prefers slower surfaces. Gonzalez had a knee injury which sidelined him for two months and he is making a comeback now after losing early in Paris in May. He had the troubles with his knee since April and his season so far has not been successful. He is a very powerful baseliner with big serve and forehand and he has improved the backhand a lot too. He likes fast surfaces, but prefers the hard courts a bit slower. He lacks match practice and obviously his goal would be to play some matches and get ready for the Slam. He is 7-4 in Toronto so far with a semifinal in 2006. The Match – Monfils is the more solid and prepared player. He has the defense and the consistency to keep the ball in play and he should be fit and ready to play here. Gonzalez is an aggressive player with relies a lot on his forehand and serve, but he needs time to tune them and he is just starting to play competitive tennis now so he might not be prepared. Monfils has the edge in every department despite his recent injury and he should be able to win this one. The Verdict – Monfils in two sets.

(10)Ferrer – Nalbandian

Ferrer is a very solid and fast baseliner with defensive game and powerful and tricky ground strokes. He plays his best tennis on clay, but he also likes hard courts, especially the slow and bouncy ones. He might not fancy Toronto a lot as it is very fast, but the bounce will do him good and he is fast and powerful. However, he is just 2-3 in Toronto so far and he has not played since withdrawing from Hamburg with shoulder injury. Nalbandian had a great week in DC where he went the distance and despite looking a bit overweight he also looks in great form. He likes hard courts and he should like both the speed and the bounce here as both favour his power and execution off both wings. He is very talented and skillful and he needs matches. He is 3-3 in Toronto, but 11-6 in Canada overall so he likes the surface and conditions here. The Match – Ferrer should be still rusty and unaccustomed to the conditions while Nalbandian comes off a great week and he is hot and in form. His only problem should be the busy schedule, but as we mentioned he is hungry to play and should not be tired too much as he has not played for months. Ferrer leads past meetings 6-4, but they are tied on hard and the current form favors Nalbandian. The Verdict – Nalbandian in two sets.

Dolgopolov - Petzschner

Dolgopolov is very talented with a lot of power and technique on the ground and he also has a big serve. He plays more on Challenger level, but has made the step to the top tour recently. He likes clay most, and is making the trip to North America for the first time in his career having now got the needed rankings to enter the main draw. Petzschner is a solid player on fast surfaces as he has a technical serve and good volleys. He also has good approach shots and nice slice on the backhand side which keeps him in rallies longer. His form is poor as he lost all his three matches on clay courts after Wimbledon. He hurt his finger in a match against Chela, also needed rest to get himself up for the busy US hard courts schedule. The Match – Dolgopolov is a newcomer in Toronto and his mind will be full of plenty new things while playing against Petzschner is not the easiest draw. The German is a type that gives opponents no rhythm changing pace and shot selection. He has some health issues that surround him and create some uncertainty but overall has better chances to progress. The Verdict – Petzschner in two sets.

Llodra – Giraldo

Llodra is a powerful leftie with big serve and very good volleys. He hits the ball flat and with power, but he also has good slices and his volleys are really solid and swift. He likes to play on fast surfaces but indoors is his specialty and his record of 6-1 in 2010 with a title in Marseille proves that. He does not feature well in USA and especially in Canada with five first round exits and two unsuccessful qualification attempts. Giraldo is a powerful baseliner with aggressive game and some nice angles on the ground. He likes to play on fast surfaces, but he has not adjusted yet on hard and lost early in LA and Washington. He will make his debut in Toronto main draw as history remembers two unsuccessful qualification campaigns. The Match – Both are powerful hitters and on theory should enjoy the hard court conditions but for various reason none of these has managed to be victorious in Toronto. Giraldo might have slightly better chances simply because Llodra is not interested in putting too much effort outside France, but he is too shaky to be a reliable choice. The Verdict – Giraldo in two sets.

Fognini – Stepanek

Fognini is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with big shots off both wings. He lacks a huge serve and he also plays more on clay. In addition he is very shaky and inconsistent and that makes him hard to trust. He should like the bouncy hard courts, but the speed might prove a problem to him. He has not played here before, but he defeated Chvojka and Yani in qualifying and he was flawless on the ground against them. Stepanek is a good attacking player with powerful serve and nice flat and deep shots. He likes to press opponent and rush to the net fast and often and he has great volleys. He likes fast surfaces and should use the speed and the bounce here well, but he has a chronic fatigue syndrome and he is not in form now. He was also troubled by a virus and a knee injury and he lost to Chiudinelli easily last week. He is 3-3 in Toronto so far, but he has not won a match on tour since February. He reached the final in Washington doubles last week alongside Berdych. The Match – Stepanek is hard to trust as he is yet to win a match after a long break. Fognini on the other hand is pretty shaky and untrustworthy in general and hard courts are not his forte. With that being said we will not commit on any bets on this match, but overall we might fancy the Czech who gathered some matches in doubles last week and should be ready for a victory. The Verdict – Stepanek in three sets.

Baghdatis – Chardy

Baghdatis played deep in Washington reaching the final and finishing runner-up. He was enjoying his game under the tough condition. Baghdatis is a fighter on court and possesses great heart devoted to tennis – the reason why he has many fans worldwide. The Cypriot is 2-2 in Canada Masters but would find the transition from one of the fastest hard courts in Washington into rather slower conditions in Toronto difficult. Chardy is a powerful player who plays aggressive tennis and often rushes to the net. He has a lot of spin on his shots and is able to create good angles. Chardy has no practice on the surface and that might be tricky for him. However, he has a solid game and adjusts easily to any surface. He struggled with lack of self-belief since last autumn but there were signs lately that he is improving his level. The Match – Baghdatis is in excellent form moving well behind the baseline able to limit his unforced errors especially against players that have troubles staying longer in rallies. The Cypriot possesses useful return and will have his chances against Chardy who has plenty of power but trouble as well to keep control of it. The Verdict – Baghdatis in two sets.

(9)Verdasco – Schwank

Schwank is a powerful server with aggressive game and big ground strokes. He plays most of his matches on clay and he is well used to the surface, but his recent form is pretty bad. He had some shoulder problems and he lost his last five matches on the tour, then beat Kamke before surrendering to Melzer in Hamburg. The Argentine has only three career victories in main draw hard court tournaments. Verdasco is powerful attacking player with big forehand and excellent technical serve. He is known for his high first serve percentage which troubles opponents a lot and limits their opportunities. He made his debut last week at Washington and reached the quarter-finals but did not impress. Even though he will not admit, the Spaniard is bothered by ankle and minor muscle tear injury. Verdasco is 7-5 in Canada and is not likely to break his record R16. The Match – Schwank is in poor form and will play on a surface he does not have many positive memories. The Argentine is shaky and has difficulties playing against average opponents let alone top 10 opposition. Verdasco seemed a bit disinterested playing under the heat and humidity in Washington last week but Masters event is another story. He should be focused and determined as much as he can, which would be enough to cruise to victory. The Verdict – Verdasco in two sets.

Gulbis v Soderling

Gulbis is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with big serve and forehand. He is in great form this season and he plays his best tennis on hard courts. He tends to be shaky mentally, but he has grown up a lot under coach Gumy and he should do well here. He suffered from the heat in Washington and had ton retire against Marchenko there, but he should be fit and ready for the Masters. Soderling took a vacation after losing the final in Bastad on clay and he claims to be rested and ready for the hard court season. He is a powerful server who likes hard courts and he has the big speedy ground strokes on the ground to make a lot of winners. He hits the ball flat and he likes high bounce so the surface here would be perfect for his game. He is just 3-3 here so far though and he has not played on hard since March. The Match – The two are powerful servers with big ground strokes and both like to take risks and go for their shots. Soderling has the edge in power and mentality while Gulbis has played some matches on hard and is better used to the stuff. However, he looked a bit shaky despite the victory last night and we cannot force ourselves to trust him here. The Verdict – Soderling in two sets.

Berdych v Stakhovsky

Berdych is a powerful server with big flat ground strokes and a lot of aggressive power on the ground. He likes playing on hard courts which are his best and favorite surface. He does well on slower hard courts, but he has the serve and the firepower to use the bouncy and speedy stuff here. He is 4-2 in Toronto so far and he looked in form last week in DC before getting angry with the schedule and losing to Malisse. Stakhovsky is a powerful server with aggressive and net rushing game. He likes fast surfaces and plays his best tennis indoors and on hard. He has the skills to stay in rallies, but overall his game is built around serve and attack and he has difficulties doing that recently. He lost his last four matches but strangely as it may seem he won the title in Den Bosch on grass in June. The Match – Stakhovsky has the edge of having played here already, but that is no big deal as he did not look to solid against Gasquet. He held serve well and that annoyed his opponent enough to lose, but he would not have any advantage in the serving department against Berdych. The Czech would hold an edge in power and in ground skills and he looks in top form so we do not see him losing to an average hard courter like Stakhovsky. The Verdict – Berdych in two sets.

Chela v Federer

Chela is a relatively powerful and aggressive baseliner with good movement on court and solid defensive coverage. He is a veteran on tour now and he has huge experience on clay. His form is very good this season as he won the title in Houston. He passed the first round in his last four events on clay and he plays good tennis recently but when it comes to faster surfaces Chela is unable to respond with good performance. He is 5-12 in main draw hard court events the last three seasons. Federer is 12-3 in Toronto with two titles and three first round exits so far. He has not played on hard since losing to Berdych in Miami in March. He also has not played since losing the Wimbledon quarterfinal to Berdych two months ago. He has a new coach in Paul Annacone and he looks forward to improving his current form as he was pretty shaky before the break. He is a powerful server with very good ground game and he should like the surface here a lot. The Match – Federer has won all four matches against Chela so far losing just one set in the process. He has the serve and the skills to dominate this match and Chela did not look too impressive against Falla, but his opponent just gave away the match. Federer comes here with renewed ambitions and we do not see him faltering in his first match. The Verdict – Federer in two sets.

L. Mayer – Anderson

Mayer is a powerful and attacking player with impatient and nervous ground game. He likes playing on hard courts and has a lot of experience on them. He played his best tennis on the US hard court tour last season, but he is not in good form this season and he lost both his matches in the US this year. Anderson is a powerful server with limited ground game. He improved it recently as he played and actually did well on clay this spring and summer. He likes hard courts and uses the fast US hard courts well to unleash his serve and attack. He eached the semis in Atlanta and then failed to qualify for Washington, but he beat Klec and Smyczek here with sound serving. The Match – Both players like the surface and should use it to full extent. Mayer lacks matches on the hard and he has not been too bright lately while Anderson has done much better and he has the priceless qualifying practice on his side. He is also pretty simple to rely on as he has the serve to use and he has won 77% on serve in qualifying. The Verdict – Anderson in two sets.

(16)Querrey – Russell

Querrey is a powerful server with attacking ground game and good volleys. He has a lot of experience on the US hard courts and he has improved his game a lot recently. He lacks great baseline shots, but he has the perfect serve and attack combination for hard. He won the title in LA this season, but the surface there is slow and bouncy while Toronto is fast and bouncy. Nevertheless, he should fancy the conditions here as they favour big servers, but he has lost both his matches in Canada so far. Russell is a fast defensive baseliner with a lot of experience on hard. He is actually a veteran on tour and he has played most of his matches on this surface. He moves fast and counter attacks well, but he should find the courts here too fast for his game. He had a messy match against local Diez in the first qualifying round and then did better against a terrible Bester in the second. This is his first match in the main draw here. The Match – Russell has the edge in match practice, but his game is out of hand here. He had the luck to face weak opponents in qualifying and progress, but Querrey should be too much for him. Querrey has not done too well here so far, but he has the serve and he is in good form. He likes playing Russell and should have the chance to use his weapons so we do not see him losing this one. The Verdict – Querrey in two sets.

Lopez - de Bakker

Lopez is a powerful leftie with big serve and forehand and lack of baseline consistency. He also lacks competitive backhand and the use of slice is not too good on hard courts. He plays well on fast surfaces and he reached the semis in LA a week ago. He is 2-3 in Toronto so far and he is in good form recently. De Bakker is a tall and powerful youngster with big serve and forehand. He plays well on the baseline and likes long exchanges and clay. He has just come to the top tour and he plays his first hard court matches among the men this season. He prepared for the hard courts hard in Las Vegas and he beat Lacko before losing to Isner in Washington last week. The Match – Lopez has the edge in experience and he has the advantage of being a leftie with tough serve. He will look to use that and press his opponent in attack. De Bakker will rely on serve and baseline power and consistency, but in this match he will not have the chance to stay in long rallies as Lopez will look to end them fast. That gives the Spanish veteran some edge as De Bakker is not too good and experienced against leftie net rushers. We see Lopez as the favorite, but we will not bet on him. The Verdict – Lopez in two sets.

Robredo – Nieminen

Robredo is a solid baseliner with good defence and nice movement on court. He prefers clay courts where he prevails through defence and counter attack, but he also does well on slower hard courts. He had a back injury which sidelined him before the French Open and he is not in good form at the moment as besides the semifinal reaches in Bastad he lost all his other matches. He will make a debut on hard and he is 3-3 in Toronto (passed the first round in all his appearances). Nieminen is a leftie with tough baseline game and good defensive skills. He plays well on all surfaces and likes hard courts, but he fares better on the slower Aussie ones. He beat Zemlja and Mathieu in qualifying, but was very lucky to win a messy and erratic match against the Frenchman. He is 4-3 here so far with a quarterfinal back in 2006. The Match – Robredo leads previous meetings 6-1, but the Finn has won the only meeting on hard courts. Both are similar defensive baseliners and Robredo obviously has the better skills in all areas, but he is out of practice and out of form now while Nieminen got used to the courts here. We fancy the qualifier in this match, but he failed to impress us this weekends and we would need really good odds above 2.20 to back him. The Verdict – Nieminen in three sets.

Gulbis – Bellucci

Gulbis is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with big serve and forehand. He is in great form this season and he plays his best tennis on hard courts. He tends to be shaky mentally, but he has grown up a lot under coach Gumy and he should do well here. He suffered from the heat in Washington and had ton retire against Marchenko there, but he should be fit and ready for the Masters. Bellucci is a baseliner with big serve and big leftie forehand. He lacks the same speed and power on the backhand side, but he does well in rallies and can play solid and powerful tennis on clay. He is not fond of fast surfaces as he hits with a lot of spin and lacks time to apply it well on faster surfaces. Toronto should be too fast for him, but it is also bouncy enough for the spin and he might be able to handle some weaker opponents. The Match – Bellucci is not good on hard and he meets a powerful and confident opponent. Gulbis plays with power and aggression and his shots should be very uncomfortable for the Brazilian to handle. The match is for Gulbis to take and despite his retirement last week we think he should be solid and fresh enough to win. The Verdict – Gulbis in two sets.

Stakhovsky – Gasquet

Stakhovsky is a powerful server with aggressive and net rushing game. He likes fast surfaces and plays his best tennis indoors and on hard. He has the skills to stay in rallies, but overall his game is built around serve and attack and he has difficulties doing that recently. He lost his last four matches but strangely as it may seem he won the title in Den Bosch on grass in June. Gasquet is a powerful baseliner with big serve and backhand. He plays well on all surfaces, but his game is too aggressive to be considered competitive on clay. He was sidelined for a month with a back injury, and it kept on bothering him last week in Washington when he retired after losing the first set to Vliegen. The Frenchman backs up a solid record in Canada, 9-4, with a final in 2006 and quarter-final in 2008. The Match – Stakhovsky has been in poor form lately and the slow surface in Toronto will do him no favour. Still, the Ukrainian possesses useful weapons that can make enough damage in Gasquet’s game. Stakhovsky’s backhand slice is especially tough to return. Gasquet is struggling with back injury that can be some explanation for his terrible forehand body language last week in Washington. If fit the Frenchman will deal with Stakhovsky, but we don’t advise you to get involved in betting here. The Verdict – Gasquet in three sets.

Dolgopolov - Petzschner

Dolgopolov is very talented with a lot of power and technique on the ground and he also has a big serve. He plays more on Challenger level, but has made the step to the top tour recently. He likes clay most, and is making the trip to North America for the first time in his career having now got the needed rankings to enter the main draw. Petzschner is a solid player on fast surfaces as he has a technical serve and good volleys. He also has good approach shots and nice slice on the backhand side which keeps him in rallies longer. His form is poor as he lost all his three matches on clay courts after Wimbledon. He hurt his finger in a match against Chela, also needed rest to get himself up for the busy US hard courts schedule. The Match – Dolgopolov is a newcomer in Toronto and his mind will be full of plenty new things while playing against Petzschner is not the easiest draw. The German is a type that gives opponents no rhythm changing pace and shot selection. He has some health issues that surround him and create some uncertainty but overall has better chances to progress. The Verdict – Petzschner in two sets.

(12)Youzhny – Simon

Simon has great shot-making abilities from the baseline and his backhand finds angles on the court that stress his opponents. His serve proves to be his downfall lately as he still needs a bit more time to get in top shape. The Frenchman is a very good defender and has great retrieving skills. He should definitely like the slower conditions in Toronto where he holds a healthy 6-3 record with a semi-final appearance in 2008. Youzhny is very much a confidence player – whenever he gets some wins and builds-up his self-belief then he is a real match-up for anyone, but if he struggles with his game, then his unforced errors mount with the speed of light. He is a talented baseliner with attacking game and good weapons off both wings and likes playing on fast surfaces. His record in Canada Masters is 7-7 all-time failing to make an impact. The Match – Simon is getting better with every next match but enters the match-up against Youzhny with a very negative 0-5 record. He lost three times to the Russian last year when carried a knee injury but now looks fit and fresh. Youzhny has been in better form before but is an accomplished all-round type with an attacking approach. The match is close and it’s even more difficult to separate these and choose a winner. The Verdict – Simon in three sets.

(14)Almagro – Marchenko

Almagro comes off a title in Hamburg on clay and he had a week to rest and adjust to hard. He is a powerful baseliner with big serve and forehand and very nice backhand. He should find Toronto too fast for his taste, but his serve and aggressive forehand can do some damage here. He lost his only match here so far and he is 0-2 in Canada. Marchenko is a solid baseliner with fast movement and good serve. He plays most of his tennis on hard and indoors and he has the needed experience on the surface. However, he has played his bets on slower hard, but his indoor experience should prepare him for the conditions here. He might not like the bounce though as he is not used to taking the ball high. He beat Pospisil and Salamanca in qualifying and he was very impressive, but his opponents were not exactly world beaters. He is making a debut in the main draw here. The Match – Almagro is a clay courter, but he has his practice here and he will actually like the bounce and the speed. He has a tough kick serve which will definitely trouble the qualifier and he also has the power to use the bounce on the ground. Marchenko will actually be worse on this surface and if Almagro finds his serve he should be able to clinch this one. The Verdict – Almagro in two sets.

Chela - Falla

Chela is a relatively powerful and aggressive baseliner with good movement on court and solid defensive coverage. He is a veteran on tour now and he has huge experience on clay. His form is very good this season as he won the title in Houston. He passed the first round in his last four events on clay and he plays good tennis recently but when it comes to faster surfaces Chela is unable to respond with good performance. He is 4-12 in main draw hard court events the last three seasons. Falla is a good fast surface player as he has a powerful serve and relatively aggressive game. He struggled with his serve last week in Washington but still managed some good resuts. His preparation is solid coming off a quarter-final in LA and third round in Washington. The South American is not likely to beat himself easily, one needs to outplay him and outrun him to eliminate Falla. The Match – These two share the head-to-head 1-1 with both matches coming this season. Falla enters with plenty of confidence while Chela would need more time to settle on the hard courts in North America. Falla has slightly better chances. The Verdict – Falla in three sets.

(13)Melzer - (WC)Polansky

Melzer is a good all court player with powerful serve and a good variety of shots. He can play long rallies from the back, but he is also capable of serve-and-volley as he is a former Wimbledon junior champion. Hard courts are not his particular strength but he reached the quarter-finals at Rogers Cup back in 2004 when he knocked out Fernando Gonzalez and Agassi before losing to Kiefer. Polansky is a local player – more specifically a good baseliner with technical ground game, but he lacks the power to be really dangerous against the big guns. He plays on all surfaces, but seems to do better on hard and clay courts. He is the long time hitting partner of Federer in Canada which is a rare opportunity to get a taste of playing against the very best on Tour. The Match – Melzer is a career high No 15 in the rankings and is there for a reason. He plays smart and can be offensive when he wants or grinder when he needs. Changing tactics in the course of a match speaks of experience and class. Polansky is good but not enough to consistently outplay the Austrian. Melzer is the deserved favorite and we don’t smell a surprise. The Verdict – Melzer in two sets.

Hanescu - (WC)Raonic

Hanescu is a tall guy with big serve and powerful flat ground strokes but he is best suited to slow surfaces like clay. His record on hard courts the last five seasons is poor 13-25 and his best performance was in 2005 when reached the semi-finals at New Haven. Last year he beat Melzer and Kohlschreiber here before losing to Del Potro. Raonic is a Futures player and this season he started playing at Challengers as well in an attempt to improve his ranking and now he enjoys a career high 209. Almost all his matches have been in North America against fellow players. He is just 19 and relies on big serve and a decent forehand and he is not a fast mover on court. The Match – Hanescu proved last year that the speed of the courts in Canada suits his game. He has enough time to prepare for his shots and it will give him confidence. Raonic is similar but way too inconsistent. His only advantage is the home court but it can lead to pressure and expectations from the public that he would not be able to deal with. The Verdict – Hanescu in two sets.

Istomin – Benneteau

Istomin is a powerful server with aggressive ground game. He has a good backhand and he plays well on fast surfaces. Hard courts are his best surface, but he has played more on the slower ones. He was in good form on grass this season, but he played poorly on hard last week despite beating Mayer. He will make his debut in the main draw here, but he played qualifying this weekend and beat Delgado and Devvarman. He did well, but he played for almost three hours against the Indian yesterday and he might be tired. Benneteau is a solid baseliner with fast movement and tough physical game. He is a fighter on court and likes long rallies, which makes him good on clay, but he is also a tricky and powerful server with nice volleys. He likes fast indoor surfaces and clay, but hard courts are not his forte. He lost to Malisse in the opener in Washington last week and he is just 2-3 in Toronto main draw so far. He lost his last five matches on hard and he is not in good form. The Match – Benneteau is not in form and he should not be backed here. Istomin has the matches and the good hard court experience on this side, but he also has fatigue to fight so we would not trust him either. However, the qualifier is definitely the better choice here, but we would not take him on any odds below evens and not with a big stake. The Verdict – Istomin in two sets.

Baghdatis v Nalbandian

Baghdatis came to the USA two weeks ago and he practiced hard on the hard courts to get his game going. He failed to make an impression in LA though as he was well beaten by Tipsarevic in the second match. He is a powerful baseliner with a lot of talent and power on the ground. He has great talent and nice weapons on both sides, but he lacks consistency.

Nalbandian is making another return after hamstring injury. He played in Moscow in Davis Cup and he looked heavier, but fit and he admitted he has not fitness problems and just needs matches. He is a very talented and powerful baseliner with great shots off both wings and huge arsenal of weapons. He is an all-rounder and he likes hard courts a lot and he should use the fast surface well enough to make winners. 

Malisse v Baghdatis

Malisse is in very good form at the moment and he likes to play on hard. He is a powerful aggressive baseliner with very good shots off both wings. He lacks consistency and can be very shaky at times. He reached the quarterfinals in fast Atlanta and then lost in the first round at slow LA. He will like the fast surface here and he is capable of using it to make his game dangerous and sharp.
Baghdatis came to the USA two weeks ago and he practiced hard on the hard courts to get his game going. He failed to make an impression in LA though as he was well beaten by Tipsarevic in the second match. He is a powerful baseliner with a lot of talent and power on the ground. He has great talent and nice weapons on both sides, but he lacks consistency.
The Match – On Friday the conditions were very tough. Heat and humidity accounted for plenty of errors and bad decision-making. Malisse took advantage of Berdych’s struggles early in the match but overall the Belgian did not play great landing just 48% of his first serves in play. His opponent helped him with plenty of unforced errors at important points. Whenever the Czech stayed in rallies longer, Malisse was the first to respond with an error. Baghdatis managed to get past Verdasco in a similar to Malisse fashion – just 48% first serves in saving 8 break points. The Cypriot leads Malisse 2-0 in recent meetings, both being played at the finals of Challenger hard court events. Baghdatis has better chances if he gets control over rallies but the match is scheduled for 1 p.m. and the heat will play a big part in the final outcome.
The Verdict – Baghdatis in three sets.

Cilic v Nalbandian

Cilic is a tall and powerful player with big serve and flat ground strokes. He likes fast surfaces, but he needs the ball to bounce more in order to set up his big shots. He also does not use the slice a lot and does not respond well to it. He is just 1-1 here so far. The Croat went 1-2 during the grass court season with some poor performance and later beat Troicki but lost to Djokovic in Davis Cup.
Nalbandian is making another return after hamstring injury. He played in Moscow in Davis Cup and he looked heavier, but fit and he admitted he has not fitness problems and just needs matches. He is a very talented and powerful baseliner with great shots off both wings and huge arsenal of weapons. He is an all-rounder and he likes hard courts a lot and he should use the fast surface well enough to make winners.
The Match – Cilic did not let his serve got broken and faced only two break point chances to Tipsarevic. Indeed, the Croat played three matches in Washington so far and was broken just twice (v. Fish). Nalbandian started badly against Simon losing the first set, then got broken early in the second but calmed down, focused and started to play more offensively which ultimately proved decisive. Cilic did not face yet as dominant from the baseline player as Nalbandian while the Argentine did not face a big server this week. Nalbandian is one of the great returners in the Tour but his serve can often be a liability. Cilic has been consistent so far varying attacking flat shots with good defence helped by his long reach. The match-up is very close and tough to call.
The Verdict – Nalbandian in three sets.

Tipsarevic v Cilic

Tipsarevic comes from a semifinal in LA and he will have just a couple of days to adjust to Washington. The surface here is faster than that in LA and he might have some difficulties to switch his game, but overall he is a very talented player and can play well on all grounds.
Cilic is a tall and powerful player with big serve and flat ground strokes. He likes fast surfaces, but he needs the ball to bounce more in order to set up his big shots. He also does not use the slice a lot and does not respond well to it. He is just 1-1 here so far. The Croat went 1-2 during the grass court season with some poor performance and later beat Troicki but lost to Djokovic in Davis Cup.
The Match –Tipsarevic was a break down in the second set but managed to come back and win the match against Falla in straight sets. He will try to post his first victory over his next opponent Marin Cilic in the fifth attempt. All matches between them so far have been in favour of the big Croat and all were played on hard courts. There is always special feelings when there is Serbian-Croatian battle on the court but Cilic is definitely the favourite.
The Verdict – Cilic in three sets.

Nalbandian v Simon

Nalbandian is making another return after hamstring injury. He played in Moscow in Davis Cup and he looked heavier, but fit and he admitted he has not fitness problems and just needs matches. He is a very talented and powerful baseliner with great shots off both wings and huge arsenal of weapons. He is an all-rounder and he likes hard courts a lot and he should use the fast surface well enough to make winners.
Simon is a very solid baseliner with fast movement on court and a lot of power on the ground. He had a long injury break because of his knee problems and is now making a slow comeback. He beat Almagro in a meaningless match in Davis Cup, then went 1-2 on clay struggling to find his rhythm. The Frenchman is otherwise a great defenseman with solid counter-attacking ground strokes.
The Match – Nalbandian has been in impressive form all week long and looks simply unstoppable losing just nine games in three matches. Frenchman Simon was also dominant against No 2 seed Andy Roddick and eliminated him after 6-3 6-3. Roddick played a poor match but credit must go for Simon who served well and made it look easy. Nalbandian was made a clear favourite to beat Simon and we must admit it is for a reason – the Argentine feels great both physically and mentally and is hungry for victories or even titles.
The Verdict – Nalbandian in two sets.

Verdasco v Baghdatis

Verdasco received a late wild card to make his debut in Washington. He is a quality player with plenty of power and top spin in his shots but is in a slump right now. He has only one ATP victory since French Open and lost his both matches in Davis Cup. He looked a shadow of the energized player during the first half of this season when he won two titles and lost another two finals.
Baghdatis came to the USA two weeks ago and he practiced hard on the hard courts to get his game going. He failed to make an impression in LA though as he was well beaten by Tipsarevic in the second match. He is a powerful baseliner with a lot of talent and power on the ground. He has great talent and nice weapons on both sides, but he lacks consistency.
The Match – Qualifier Sweeting gave the best he could and managed to get an early break in each set against Verdasco but ultimately was unable to hold his own serve and the Spaniard got control of the match. Baghdatis on the other hand had a lot more difficulties against Marchenko. He could not convert any of the three break points he had in the second set and lost the tiebreak, but then improved his return and progressed. Verdasco and Baghdatis will meet for the first time and the Cypriot reached good form while Verdasco is playing below his standards. The bookies compiled correct odds and we find no value in backing Baghdatis at odds below 2.9.
The Verdict – Baghdatis in three sets.

Berdych v Malisse

Berdych gave himself plenty of time to rest after his Wimbledon final and he missed Davis Cup due to abdominal muscle problems. He looks fit and enthusiastic again heading into Washington draw as No 1 seed. He backs up a 7-2 record here with an ultra-aggressive approach suitable for the fast court conditions. Washington is known for one of the speediest hard courts on the Tour and it can only be an advantage for the talented Czech.
Malisse is in very good form at the moment and he likes to play on hard. He is a powerful aggressive baseliner with very good shots off both wings. He lacks consistency and can be very shaky at times. He reached the quarterfinals in fast Atlanta and then lost in the first round at slow LA. He will like the fast surface here and he is capable of using it to make his game dangerous and sharp.
The Match – Berdych struggled to beat Golubev and failed to serve out the match at 5-4 in the third set but then recovered quickly and finished in style, but certainly wasn’t convincing enough. Malisse on the other hand played a good match against big serving Isner and withstood 18 aces from the racket of the American but won the third set tie-break to find himself at the quarter-final of an ATP 500 event for the first time since 2006. Malisse could be nervous at this stage of the tournament but showed some good performances so far while Berdych is not in a good form after his long rest. The match could be closer than what the odds suggest but the top seeded has better chances.
The Verdict – Malisse in three sets.

Berdych v Golubev

Berdych gave himself plenty of time to rest after his Wimbledon final and he missed Davis Cup due to abdominal muscle problems. He looks fit and enthusiastic again heading into Washington draw as No 1 seed. He backs up a 6-2 record here with an ultra-aggressive approach suitable for the fast court conditions. Washington is known for one of the speediest hard courts on the Tour and it can only be an advantage for the talented Czech.
Golubev is a powerful and aggressive player and on theory should be capable to compete on fast hard courts. Looking at the variety and quality of the Golubev game, it is hard to understand why he has not made greater results before and one of the main explanations is naturally the lack of self-belief. His rich range of shot-making combined with the confidence he should draw from the title in Hamburg make him a contender to enter deeper into the DC draw.
The Match – Berdych made a shaky start after his last competitive match but ultimately was able to raise his level in the decider against Tursunov and progress into the third round. Golubev won in straight sets as expected against struggling Vliegen. These two met six weeks ago at SW19 and the Czech prevailed but since then things changed a little bit – Berdych treated an abdominal injury while Golubev won an ATP 500 event in Hamburg. The match is closer than what the odds suggest but the Czech is more experienced and probably that would decide the final outcome.
The Verdict – Berdych in three sets.

Malisse v Isner

Malisse is in very good form at the moment and he likes to play on hard. He is a powerful aggressive baseliner with very good shots off both wings. He lacks consistency and can be very shaky at times. He reached the quarterfinals in fast Atlanta and then lost in the first round at slow LA. He will like the fast surface here and he is capable of using it to make his game dangerous and sharp.
Isner plays his second event after the loss at Wimbledon and finished runner-up in Atlanta where he did not perform his usual best but still showed mental composure. He had a week off after that and should be fit and rested for his Washington campaign. He is a powerful server with big forehand and good volleys. The American is 15-4 on hard this season and his game is perfectly suited for the fast court conditions where he holds a comfortable 12-3 record with a final appearance in 2007.
The Match – Malisse continued his good performance on US hard courts improving to 4-2 so far. He holds a slight advantage over his next opponent Isner having beaten him earlier this season on clay in Houston after three tie-breaks. Isner has a very good tie-breaks record (25-14 in 2010) and the fast court conditions would suit his game perfectly. He is not in his best possible form but knows how to win matches like that.
The Verdict – Isner in three sets.

Verdasco v Sweeting

Verdasco received a late wild card to make his debut in Washington. He is a quality player with plenty of power and top spin in his shots but is in a slump right now. He has only one ATP victory since French Open and lost his both matches in Davis Cup. He looked a shadow of the energized player during the first half of this season when he won two titles and lost another two finals.
Sweeting is a solid baseliner with fast movement on court and good defensive skills. He differs from the typical hard courter by being more variable and skilled on the ground, but he lacks the big serve and he actually lacks any big weapons on the ground. He is in good form at the moment as he passed qualifications in Atlanta and then passed the first round in LA. He defeated Bogomolov and Jones in qualifying here and he played very well with good first serve and nice retuning stats on the ground.
The Match – Verdasco was shaky in his first Washington match and was forced to save match points before coming from behind to win the tie-break in the decider. He played a bit tight afraid of errors – signs of lack of confidence. His 10 aces were matched by 10 double faults. Sweeting made light works of Frenchman Llodra winning 6-4 6-2 but the result misleads because actually the American saved 9 break points and won just 58% of his total points on serve despite placing 84% of his first serves in play. Sweeting is able to keep the ball in play for a long time and grind the errors out of unconfident Verdasco.
The Verdict – Sweeting in two sets.

Marchenko v Baghdatis

Marchenko is a solid baseliner with good defence and fast movement on court. He has nice ground strokes and he is a capable baseliner. He also has enough experience on hard courts as he plays a lot on them on Challenger level. He plays more aggressive tennis this season and he is in good form. He played in Atlanta and LA, but lost to Malisse and Anderson.
Baghdatis came to the USA two weeks ago and he practiced hard on the hard courts to get his game going. He failed to make an impression in LA though as he was well beaten by Tipsarevic in the second match. He is a powerful baseliner with a lot of talent and power on the ground. He has great talent and nice weapons on both sides, but he lacks consistency.
The Match – Marchenko took advantage of his opponent Gulbis who withdrew unable to deal with the heat. Marchenko finds himself at a third round of an ATP 500 event for the first time in his career and needs to deal with the nerves. Baghdatis fired 17 aces en route to 7-6 7-6 victory over Zeballos. The Cypriot made a good decision to reunite with his former coach Peyre and is now back in business. Baghdatis is certainly the better player and should be able to dominate rallies and dictate the rhythm behind the baseline.
The Verdict – Baghdatis in three sets.

Tipsarevic v Falla

Tipsarevic comes from a semifinal in LA and he will have just a couple of days to adjust to Washington. The surface here is faster than that in LA and he might have some difficulties to switch his game, but overall he is a very talented player and can play well on all grounds.
Falla is a powerful leftie with big serve and attacking ground game. He has a lot of experience on hard courts and he actually prefers faster surfaces to slow ones. He played well on hard last week in LA where he reached the quarterfinals after beating Beck and Gulbis. He is 8-5 in Washington so far and he reached the quarterfinals here two years ago.
The Match – Tipsarevic definitely adjusted some important things in his game after missing his chances against Querrey last week and now was simply amazing. He gave away just 6 points on his serve for the whole match despite struggling to put high amount of first serves in play. Falla won the first set against Hewitt a bit lucky saving 6 break points and putting just 46% of his first serves but then Hewitt retired with a right calf injury. Tipsarevic is definitely the favourite in his match-up against Falla and he should have a clear plan to progress into the next round.
The Verdict – Tipsarevic in three sets.

Fish v Cilic

Fish had never before won two titles in a season, let alone at consecutive events, but he won the finals in Newport (grass) and Atlanta (outdoor hard) and also reached the final on grass at Queen's Club in June, part of a stretch in which he is 16-2 after going 12-9 to start 2010. Trainer Christian LoCascio: "He gets to basically every drop shot — I can't remember the last time he didn't get to one. And he's in a lot better position to hit shots on the run; balls he would have to hit a defensive shot on in the past, he now gets to with enough time to do something with. He also lasts a lot longer on the court. He knows he can win long points now. If he has to, he can grind it out.” Fish has lost his last four matches in Washington — dating back to 2006 — and never made it past the quarterfinals.
Cilic is a tall and powerful player with big serve and flat ground strokes. He likes fast surfaces, but he needs the ball to bounce more in order to set up his big shots. He also does not use the slice a lot and does not respond well to it. He is just 1-1 here so far. The Croat went 1-2 during the grass court season with some poor performance and later beat Troicki but lost to Djokovic in Davis Cup.
The Match – Both these have poor records in Washington but started in comfortable fashion winning in straight sets. Cilic leads Fish 2-0 in recent meetings but now the American has improved drastically. Cilic is tall and has a long reach, so he should get plenty of balls back into the court and Fish might struggle to consistently fire winners, but the question is how interested would be the Croat to compete for victory having in mind the start of Toronto Masters next week. Fish is rested and determined so he should have slightly better chances.
The Verdict – Fish in three sets.

Nalbandian v Chiudinelli

Nalbandian is making another return after hamstring injury. He played in Moscow in Davis Cup and he looked heavier, but fit and he admitted he has not fitness problems and just needs matches. He is a very talented and powerful baseliner with great shots off both wings and huge arsenal of weapons. He is an all-rounder and he likes hard courts a lot and he should use the fast surface well enough to make winners.
Chiudinelli is a powerful and aggressive baseliner who takes the ball early and likes to finish points fast. Hard courts are his best surface, but his form is pretty bad this season. He is 12-21 overall on the tour and 4-7 on hard. He comes off a second round in Gstaad and will have to adjust to the new conditions and surface now.
The Match – Nalbandian stormed past yet another opponent, this time the victim was the seeded Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka. The mighty Argentine gave away just four games and did not let a single break point opportunity on his own serve. Chiudinelli beat poor playing Stepanek. Nalbandian enters the third round fit and confident to set up his excellent attacking approach taking the ball early and firing winning shots off both wings.
The Verdict – Nalbandian in two sets.

Simon v Roddick

Simon is a very solid baseliner with fast movement on court and a lot of power on the ground. He had a long injury break because of his knee problems and is now making a slow comeback. He beat Almagro in a meaningless match in Davis Cup, then went 1-2 on clay struggling to find his rhythm. The Frenchman is otherwise a great defenseman with solid counter-attacking ground strokes.
Roddick is competing for the ninth time in Washington having won it in 2001, 2005 and 2007 for a 29-5 record. The surface suits his game very well especially when he is well prepared. And after a week off he should be well rested. The American was seen to be highly focused on Sunday training grounds in Washington. Roddick played poor tennis in Atlanta but now would love to go deeper into the draw at a place he enjoys to compete.
The Match – Both started very convincingly their first matches in Washington with Simon thrashing Kunitsyn surrendering just three games while Roddick doing just what was enough to eliminate Zemlja. The American showed some smart decision making moving the ball well in free spaces of the court limiting his unforced errors count. He will do the same against Simon whom he have met twice before and won without dropping a set. The odds are correctly set and we find no value in betting.
The Verdict – Roddick in two sets.

Querrey v Tipsarevic

Querrey is an aggressive hard court player with powerful serve and decent attacking approach. He lacks good baseline consistency, but covers with power and accuracy which together with his experience on hard courts makes him a top 20 opponent with a potential to grow into a top 10er. His form is very good this season and he is 30-14 on the tour coming at Washington having just grabbed the title in LA where he was a bit lucky but that is part of the game. He is 1-2 here and he could struggle to bring his LA form as conditions are different. Tipsarevic comes from a semifinal in LA and he will have just a couple of days to adjust to Washington. The surface here is faster than that in LA and he might have some difficulties to switch his game, but overall he is a very talented player and can play well on all grounds.
The Match – Tipsarevic was very convincing against Clement 6-4 6-0 and is already adjusted to the conditions. He missed his chances last week against Querrey and now will be better prepared for the challenge. Querrey might struggle to bring his top form and despite winning in LA he was prone to many unforced errors especially if opponents were able to stay longer in rallies.
The Verdict – Tipsarevic in three sets.

Gulbis v Marchenko

Gulbis pulled a hamstring in May and has not played since. Then he trained hard and beat Lacko in LA last week before being eliminated by Falla in a third-set tiebreaker. Gulbis is a powerful baseliner with big serve and attacking ground game. He is in very good form this season with good results on all surfaces. Marchenko is a solid baseliner with good defence and fast movement on court. He has nice ground strokes and he is a capable baseliner. He also has enough experience on hard courts as he plays a lot on them on Challenger level. He plays more aggressive tennis this season and he is in good form. He played in Atlanta and LA, but lost to Malisse and Anderson.
The Match – Gulbis should definitely enjoy the fast court conditions as his powerful serve and ground strokes are difficult to handle by most opponents. Marchenko beat Schuettler who is a great defender but now the Latvian would present a completely different approach and style and Marchenko will struggle to match this level. Gulbis is the deserved favourite and most probable winner.
The Verdict – Gulbis in two sets.

Zeballos v Baghdatis

Zeballos is a good fast surface player despite his clay court background. His best event on the top tour so far was indoors and he likes to attack and finish points fast. He is a leftie with powerful serve and good angles and power on the ground. He played a bad match against Dent in Atlanta and then had to retire against Schuettler in LA. He did not look good and he played shaky and erratic tennis in both matches and he did not seem hurt when he retired in LA.
Baghdatis came to the USA two weeks ago and he practiced hard on the hard courts to get his game going. He failed to make an impression in LA though as he was well beaten by Tipsarevic in the second match. He is a powerful baseliner with a lot of talent and power on the ground. He has great talent and nice weapons on both sides, but he lacks consistency.
The Match – Zeballos had a lot of trouble in getting past Przysiezny, but he was surely fit and willing to win. However, he plays poor tennis recently and he will have to step up if he wants to improve. Baghdatis will like the faster conditions here more and he had the time to prepare. He will like a target at the net if Zeballos presents one, but he will also dominate the rallies on the ground as he has the power and the angles to move Zeballos around. We see the Cypriot as a big favourite in this match, but we will keep the match for combo bets only as we would like to see him play before we draw conclusions.
The Verdict – Baghdatis in two sets.

Falla v Hewitt

Falla is a powerful leftie with big serve and attacking ground game. He has a lot of experience on hard courts and he actually prefers faster surfaces to slow ones. He played well on hard last week in LA where he reached the quarterfinals after beating Beck and Gulbis. He is 8-5 in Washington so far and he reached the quarterfinals here two years ago. Hewitt is a solid baseliner and he relies on baseline consistency which is natural to him. He is a fast mover on court and he keeps the ball in play and presses opponents hard. He played well on grass before the hard court spell so his overall form is very good. But he lost badly to Lacko two weeks ago in Atlanta and there are some signs that the hip injury which forced him to miss big part of the season is still bothering him and preventing him to show his best skills.
The Match – Six years ago Hewitt and Falla played against each other in the second round of Washington and the Aussie won comfortably 6-3 6-2 but now things look a bit different. Falla is much more improved player while injuries troubled Hewitt. The match seems closer than what the odds suggest and we advise betting on the South American.
The Verdict – Falla in two sets.

Wawrinka v Nalbandian

Wawrinka is a powerful baseliner with big serve and backhand. He moves well on court, but he prefers slower surfaces and clay is in fact his best ground. He is in very good form this season going 24-10 – winner in Casablanca and runner-up in Chennai. Having in mind his positive results it was unexpected to see him changing his long-time coach. After splitting with Dimitri Zavialoff almost a month ago with whom he has been since he was 10 years old, Wawrinka has finally announced his new coach - Peter Lundgren. The famous Swede said about the Swiss No 2: "He is physically good and has a solid technique, but plays a bit too far back behind the baseline. That and his serve, we will begin to work with." Nalbandian is making another return after hamstring injury. He played in Moscow in Davis Cup and he looked heavier, but fit and he admitted he has not fitness problems and just needs matches. He is a very talented and powerful baseliner with great shots off both wings and huge arsenal of weapons. He is an all-rounder and he likes hard courts a lot and he should use the fast surface well enough to make winners.
The Match – Wawrinka leads Nalbandian 5-2 in recent meetings but now it looks a bit different as the Argentine was very impressive in his last match against Ram while Wawrinka trained extensively with his new coach in Lausanne and in general it’s not a good news to hear that he is about to change his playing style mid-season. It can only ruin his form, confidence and results. Nalbandian is very unpredictable these days and we would prefer to stay away from betting here.
The Verdict – Nalbandian in two sets.

Chiudinelli v Stepanek

Chiudinelli is a powerful and aggressive baseliner who takes the ball early and likes to finish points fast. Hard courts are his best surface, but his form is pretty bad this season. He is 11-21 overall on the tour and 3-7 on hard. He comes off a second round in Gstaad and will have to adjust to the new conditions and surface now. Stepanek missed three months of tennis earlier in the season with fatigue syndrome and then when he was fit to play again, he injured his knee and missed another month or two. He returned in Prostejov Challenger and reached the final, but had to retire in the final due to illness and fatigue. Stepanek will be a bit rusty as he lacks match practice which would result into inconsistency (higher than usual unforced errors count). Meanwhile the Czech managed to get married to his long time fiancιe Vaidisova, so his preparations to Washington are a bit doubtful.
The Match – Chiudinelli gave little chances to qualifier Dabul and eliminated him in straight sets. The Swiss enjoys the fast surface but it is still early to judge he has improved his form significantly. Stepanek is a fighter on the court and despite lacking match practice he will give his best. On the positive side of being away from the Tour for some time is that his desire to compete is very big.
The Verdict – Stepanek in three sets.

Berdych v Tursunov

Berdych gave himself plenty of time to rest after his Wimbledon final and he missed Davis Cup due to abdominal muscle problems. He looks fit and enthusiastic again heading into Washington draw as No 1 seed. He backs up a 5-2 record here with an ultra-aggressive approach suitable for the fast court conditions. Washington is known for one of the speediest hard courts on the Tour and it can only be an advantage for the talented Czech. Tursunov comes back from ankle surgery and he still needs matches and practice to get in rhythm. He played some matches on grass without success, but then he got hit by a virus and he missed a couple of weeks of tennis. He played in Atlanta a week ago and lost to Devvarman in qualifying. He uses his protected ranking to play here. Hard courts are his best surface and he has the power and the serve to do well on them and he is better than the average baseliner on hard.
The Match – These two are very similar in playing style as both try to finish points earlier going bravely for the winning shot. Berdych is in the form of his life and leads Tursunov 3-1 with all matches having been played on outdoor hard courts. The Russian came back from a set down to oust compatriot Gabashvili but it is still very early for him to be able to compete successfully against top 10 players (Berdych currently No 8 ranked).
The Verdict – Berdych in two sets.

Vliegen v Golubev

Vliegen is a tall powerful server with good baseline skills and solid defence. He plays well on all surfaces, but has played his best on clay. He has been hit by viruses and injuries recently and he admitted that he comes to the US unprepared and still feeling pain in his shoulder which will probably remain with him for the rest of the season. He played three events on hard so far, but lost all three matches. Golubev played great tennis in Hamburg winning the title without losing a set. He lacked time to rest and understandably lost to Schukin right after. Golubev is a powerful and aggressive player and on theory should be capable to compete on fast hard courts. Looking at the variety and quality of the Golubev game, it is hard to understand why he has not made greater results before and one of the main explanations is naturally the lack of self-belief. His rich range of shot-making combined with the confidence he should draw from the title in Hamburg make him a contender to enter deeper into the DC draw.
The Match – Vliegen was lucky to get passed Gasquet who retired after the end of the first set citing back pain. The Belgian is in poor form and will struggle against confident Golubev. The Kazakhstan resident is seeded and it gives him the chance to play lower opposition. His power and pace should be difficult to handle by Vliegen.
The Verdict – Golubev in two sets.

Gasquet v Vliegen

Gasquet comes off a final in Gstaad where he played on clay. He will have just two days to come to the USA and adjust to the hard courts, which is a tough thing to do. He is a powerful offensive player with big serve and backhand and he likes hard courts, but his record on the surface is pretty bad. He lost his last five matches on hard and he has never played here before.
Vliegen is a tall powerful server with good baseline skills and solid defence. He plays well on all surfaces, but has played his best on clay. He has been hit by viruses and injuries recently and he admitted that he comes to the US unprepared and still feeling pain in his shoulder which will probably remain with him for the rest of the season. He played three events on hard so far, but lost all three matches.
The Match – These two have played six matches so far and are tied, but Gasquet won the only match on hard. The Frenchman is the better and in-form player, but he lacks matches on hard and will be jet-lagged. Vliegen is a decent hard courter, but he has his own problems and in his current physical condition he is very hard to back.
The Verdict – Gasquet in three sets.

Benneteau v Malisse

Benneteau is a powerful and physical baseliner who likes long rallies and tough fight. He lacks any big weapons on the ground, but he makes up with consistency and spirit. He is also a powerful server and he can hit great volleys which makes him good on fast surfaces. However, he is good on clay and indoors and grass, but hard courts are his worst surface. He is 4-3 here so far and he has not played on hard since the spring.
Malisse is in very good form at the moment and he likes to play on hard. He is a powerful aggressive baseliner with very good shots off both wings. He lacks consistency and can be very shaky at times. He reached the quarterfinals in fast Atlanta and then lost in the first round at slow LA. He will like the fast surface here and he is capable of using it to make his game dangerous and sharp.
The Match – Malisse is in good form and he defeated Giraldo in a tough fight in the first round. He plays well on these fast hard courts and he has the matches and the experience on the surface. Benneteau on the other hand comes to make his debut on hard and might find it hard to adjust. The Frenchman is solid and powerful while Malisse is more shaky, but also more aggressive and risky. Malisse has the edge as he has played five matches on hard already this summer, but having in mind his shaky nature we would not want to go big on him especially when favoured by the bookies.
The Verdict – Malisse in three sets.

Clement v Tipsarevic

Clement is a veteran on tour with good powerful serve and very solid and consistent ground game. His form is deteriorating recently and he is not playing well. He started the US tour in LA, but lost in qualifying there and gave his opponent Smyczek the incredible 25 breaking chances. He is 8-3 in Washington so far and he is a former champion here from 2006.
Tipsarevic comes from a semifinal in LA and he will have just a couple of days to adjust to Washington. The surface here is faster than that in LA and he might have some difficulties to switch his game, but overall he is a very talented player and can play well on all grounds.
The Match – Tipsarevic is in better form as he finally found his game in LA. He is a good attacker and has a lot of options off both wings. Clement is in a terrible hole and he is not very motivated and focused nowadays as he gives up easily when he is not playing well. The Serbian has the better preparation and the better form on his side and he also has the power and the variety off both sides in his advantage.
The Verdict – Tipsarevic in two sets.

Lu v Falla

Lu is a solid defensive baseliner with fast movement on court and very good angles and counter attack on the ground. He plays most of his tennis on hard and has huge experience on it. He is 1-1 in Washington so far and he has not played on hard for three months.
Falla is a powerful leftie with big serve and attacking ground game. He has a lot of experience on hard courts and he actually prefers faster surfaces to slow ones. He played well on hard last week in LA where he reached the quarterfinals after beating Beck and Gulbis. He is 7-5 in Washington so far and he reached the quarterfinals here two years ago.
The Match – Lu is a solid defensive player, but he has not played for over a month and he lacks matches on hard. Falla on the other hand is match fit and he looked in good form in LA. He is also more aggressive and can rely on serve and well-timed attack. The surface should be fast enough to suit Falla and trouble Lu so we give the South American more chances to progress.
The Verdict – Falla in two sets.

Dabul v Chiudinelli

Dabul is a leftie clay courter with decent powerful serve and good consistent baseline defence. He has the power to stay in rallies and he can even use the hard courts to make some winners. He has enough experience on all surfaces and he is actually in very good form as he got to the semifinals in his last three events (two Challengers on US hard and Newport on grass). He beat Britton and Sijsling in qualifying and played pretty well overall with his serve giving him some cheap points.
Chiudinelli is a powerful and aggressive baseliner who takes the ball early and likes to finish points fast. Hard courts are his best surface, but his form is pretty bad this season. He is 10-21 overall on the tour and 2-7 on hard. He comes off a second round in Gstaad and will have to adjust to the new conditions and surface now.
The Match – In general Chiudinelli should be better on hard as he has the weapons off both wings and he has the power to use the courts well and overcome the defence of his opponent. However, he is in bad form now and he will play his first match on hard so he is not to be trusted. Dabul is not a genuine hard courter, but he did well so far here and he is in good form recently on fast surfaces. That makes him a favourite in this match and we see value for betting.
The Verdict – Dabul in three sets.

Fish v Troicki

Fish had never before won two titles in a season, let alone at consecutive events, but he won the finals in Newport (grass) and Atlanta (outdoor hard) and also reached the final on grass at Queen's Club in June, part of a stretch in which he is 16-2 after going 12-9 to start 2010. Trainer Christian LoCascio: "He gets to basically every drop shot — I can't remember the last time he didn't get to one. And he's in a lot better position to hit shots on the run; balls he would have to hit a defensive shot on in the past, he now gets to with enough time to do something with. He also lasts a lot longer on the court. He knows he can win long points now. If he has to, he can grind it out.” Fish has lost his last four matches in Washington — dating back to 2006 — and never made it past the quarterfinals. Troicki is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with big serve and forehand. He can hold his ground on the line and he plays well on hard courts. He has not played on them since the spring as he took a break after the grass spell and played only Davis Cup. He reached the final here in 2008, but got injured last season and lost in the opener.
The Match – Fish is in the form of his life moving very well behind the baseline and enjoying the hard court conditions in USA. Troicki fired 8 aces and won 78% of his total points on serve against local qualifier and veteran Kevin Kim to beat him for 58 minutes. But Fish would present a completely different approach with more power and resistance. The American is well rested and it is difficult to oppose him right now.
The Verdict – Fish in three sets.

Verdasco v Berrer

Verdasco received a late wild card to make his debut in Washington. He is a quality player with plenty of power and top spin in his shots but is in a slump right now. He has only one ATP victory since French Open and lost his both matches in Davis Cup. He looked a shadow of the energized player during the first half of this season when he won two titles and lost another two finals. Berrer hurt his ankle before Wimbledon and had to skip the grass season which was a big blow for him. He is a very good fast surface player with big serve and nice volleys. He is a leftie and he likes to use the slice and hit flat and rush to the net often. He plays most of his tennis on hard and on fast surfaces in general, but he lost his last eight matches on tour. He improved to 3-1 in Washington so far.
The Match – Berrer finally managed to post a victory after going 0-8 since early April. But the match against Beck was full of errors and poor decision making so Berrer has little to be happy about his own performance. Verdasco on the other hand is under-achieving but it is hard to think Berrer would beat a top 10 player.
The Verdict – Verdasco in three sets.

Istomin v Cilic

Cilic is a tall and powerful player with big serve and flat ground strokes. He likes fast surfaces, but he needs the ball to bounce more in order to set up his big shots. He also does not use the slice a lot and does not respond well to it. He is just 0-1 here so far. The Croat went 1-2 during the grass court season with some poor performance and later beat Troicki but lost to Djokovic in Davis Cup. Istomin is a powerful baseliner with aggressive game and big serve. He plays well on all surfaces and he has done very well on the top level this season. He had a great run on grass and indoors this season and he should like the hard courts after losing in the first round in Gstaad.
The Match – Cilic has both entered a poor run of results and has a poor record in Washington. His match is scheduled for 5 p.m. which means he would probably struggle with the heat and humidity. Istomin is a bit one-dimensional type of player with little variety but his power from serve and forehand is difficult to handle. There is some value in the Uzbek and we are happy to invest in him at odds above 3.0.
The Verdict – Istomin in two sets.

De Bakker v Isner

De Bakker is a tall and powerful baseliner with good movement on court and good angles on the ground. He has a big serve and good solid ground game, but he is also pretty variable and clever on court. He is making the transition to the top level this season and he has done well on clay and hard (8-4 on both). He got to Las Vegas two weeks ago and he has been training on hard there. Isner plays his second event after the loss at Wimbledon and finished runner-up in Atlanta where he did not perform his usual best but still showed mental composure. He had a week off after that and should be fit and rested for his Washington campaign. He is a powerful server with big forehand and good volleys. The American is 14-4 on hard this season and his game is perfectly suited for the fast court conditions where he holds a comfortable 11-3 record with a final appearance in 2007.
The Match – These two met at Wimbledon a month ago right after the record-breaking match between Isner and Mahut. The American had completely no gas in the tank to oppose the Dutch and was an easy victim. But this time he is rested and will player on a favourite central court late in the evening when the heat is less. De Backer is capable opponent with many strong weapons but would find it difficult to handle Isner’s power.
The Verdict – Isner in two sets.

Simon v Kunitsyn

Simon is a very solid baseliner with fast movement on court and a lot of power on the ground. He had a long injury break because of his knee problems and is now making a slow comeback. He beat Almagro in a meaningless match in Davis Cup, then went 1-2 on clay struggling to find his rhythm. The Frenchman is otherwise a great defenseman with solid counter-attacking ground strokes.  Kunitsyn is an aggressive hard courter with big ground strokes and risky game. He likes playing on fast surfaces and he has huge experience on the surface. He is 6-4 in Washington with a semifinal reached in 2007. He played in Atlanta and LA and just managed out of qualifying in the first event while failing to get into the main draw in LA. He beat Balleret and Russell here and he played better on the ground than on serve as his attacking game clicked very well.
The Match – Simon leads Kunitsyn 2-0 in recent meetings and generally fares well against opponents unable to hit through him. The Frenchman arrived earlier here and trained extensively to make his debut in Washington successful. Kunitsyn is desperately trying to improve his ranking (124) but the task seems more than difficult. He has a slim advantage of adjusting to the conditions having already played three matches here.
The Verdict – Simon in three sets.

Sweeting v Llodra

Sweeting is a solid baseliner with fast movement on court and good defensive skills. He differs from the typical hard courter by being more variable and skilled on the ground, but he lacks the big serve and he actually lacks any big weapons on the ground. He is in good form at the moment as he passed qualifications in Atlanta and then passed the first round in LA. He defeated Bogomolov and Jones in qualifying here and he played very well with good first serve and nice retuning stats on the ground. Llodra is a powerful leftie with big serve and very good volleys. He hits the ball flat and with power, but he also has good slices and his volleys are really solid and swift. He likes to play on fast surfaces but prefers indoor so he might struggle with the heat and humidity. He is 0-1 in Washington and generally does not feature well in USA.
The Match – Sweeting is solid and good on the ground but might find difficulties returning powerful left handed shots. For the American to be victorious Llodra needs to help him with a moderate amount of errors which he is capable of, but the odds compilers have already took that into account as the Frenchman is a small favourite to progress and there is completely no value in backing Sweeting who is ranked 119th to beat Llodra ranked 34th in the world.
The Verdict – Sweeting in three sets.

Zemlja v Roddick

Roddick is competing for the ninth time in Washington having won it in 2001, 2005 and 2007 for a 29-5 record. The surface suits his game very well especially when he is well prepared. And after a week off he should be well rested. The American was seen to be highly focused on Sunday training grounds in Washington. Roddick played poor tennis in Atlanta but now would love to go deeper into the draw at a place he enjoys to compete. Zemlja is a solid and powerful baseliner with good defence and dangerous serve. He plays equally on clay and hard, but his better results have come on hard. He plays more on Challenger level and actually this will be his third match on this level on hard. He passed qualification by defeating Copil and Young.
The Match – Everything points to a clear victory for A-Rod who seems to be well prepared and determined to improve his level. Zemlja is pretty much in an unknown zone to face Roddick at the centre court of an ATP 500 event second round. The American is deservedly a huge favourite to progress and anything else can be accepted as a monstrous surprise.
The Verdict – Roddick in two sets.

Tursunov v Gabashvili

Tursunov comes back from ankle surgery and he still needs matches and practice to get in rhythm. He played some matches on grass without success, but then he got hit by a virus and he missed a couple of weeks of tennis. He played in Atlanta a week ago and lost to Devvarman in qualifying. He uses his protected ranking to play here. Hard courts are his best surface and he has the power and the serve to do well on them and he is better than the average baseliner on hard. Gabashvili has become more patient recently and with that he lost his power and aggressive approach on fast surfaces. He turned into a clay courter and he plays more on Challenger level recently. He did well on grass too, but hard courts are not his thing. He played in Atlanta and LA, but lost both matches and won just ten games overall. He is 1-3 in Washington and 1-11 on hard courts in general. The Match – These two have some problems to overcome. Tursunov is not fully fit and prepared for the big stage while Gabashvili is not in form and has been terrible on hard. Both are powerful and aggressive and have the skills to do well on hard, but Tursunov has won both matches between them and he is the better hard courter. That makes him favourite, but we definitely will not risk any money on him at the moment. The Verdict – Tursunov in two sets.

Lacko v De Bakker

Lacko is a powerful baseliner who plays his best tennis on hard courts. He has the skills and the pace to do well on faster hard courts and he has gotten into form recently. He makes the switch to the main tour this season and it has not been a good one, but he did well on hard. He reached the quarterfinals in Atlanta and lost a tight match to Gulbis last week in LA. De Bakker is a tall and powerful baseliner with good movement on court and good angles on the ground. He has a big serve and good solid ground game, but he is also pretty variable and clever on court. He is making the transition to the top level this season and he has done well on clay and hard (7-4 on both). He got to Las Vegas two weeks ago and he has been training on hard there. The Match – This should be a good match to watch between two powerful and aggressive players with great talent and nice hard court skills. Lacko is better used to the hard courts in competitive circumstances and he has beaten De Bakker in the only match between them last season on hard. Lacko should be the favourite because of that, but we need odds above 2.25 to back him. The Verdict – Lacko in three sets.

Beck K v Berrer

Beck is a veteran on tour with good serve and attacking ground game. He had a shoulder injury and some virus problems recently and that hurt his form. He played on hard in the last two weeks, but lost in the first round both times. He is very experienced on hard courts, but has lost the last five matches on the surface on the top level. He is also 0-2 in Washington. Berrer hurt his ankle before Wimbledon and had to skip the grass season which was a big blow for him. He is a very good fast surface player with big serve and nice volleys. He is a leftie and he likes to use the slice and hit flat and rush to the net often. He plays most of his tennis on hard and on fast surfaces in general, but he lost his last eight matches on tour. He is 2-1 in Washington so far. The Match – Both are powerful and aggressive players with big experience on hard and both are coming from injury. Beck played two matches on hard already while Berrer is yet to make a debut on the surface. That gives Beck a slight edge, but Berrer is more aggressive and has the advantage of being a leftie which will level things up. Odds should be even so we are ready to back any of the two who gets priced over that level. The Verdict – Beck in three sets.

Sweeting v Blake

Sweeting is a solid baseliner with fast movement on court and good defensive skills. He differs from the typical hard courter by being more variable and skilled on the ground, but he lacks the big serve and he actually lacks any big weapons on the ground. He is in good form at the moment as he passed qualifications in Atlanta and then passed the first round in LA. He defeated Bogomolov and Jones in qualifying here and he played very well with good first serve and nice retuning stats on the ground. Blake is a powerful aggressive baseliner with big serve and forehand. He has huge experience on these courts and he likes them a lot, but he is still looking to find his form after an injury break. He is a veteran on tour now and he played some shaky matches recently losing to Dent in Atlanta. He did well in LA, but the surface there is much slower so that should not be taken into account. He is 13-4 here so far with a title in 2002 and a final in 2005. The Match – Sweeting did well so far, but he might find his more famous compatriot too much for him to handle. He is solid and good on the ground, but he faces more power and bigger serve. Blake has the weapons to play well on fast hard courts and the question is does he have the form to keep them tamed and controlled. He played well last week and he faces an opponent he knows well so we will give him the credit in this match, but we would not want to bet big on him before seeing him play. The Verdict – Blake in two sets.

Marchenko v Schuettler

Marchenko is a solid baseliner with good defence and fast movement on court. He has nice ground strokes and he is a capable baseliner. He also has enough experience on hard courts as he plays a lot on them on Challenger level. He plays more aggressive tennis this season and he is in good form. He played in Atlanta and LA, but lost to Malisse and Anderson. Schuettler stayed late in LA as he reached the quarterfinal there, but lost to Querrey. He also lost a tight match to Russell in Atlanta and more or less he has himself to blame for these losses as he served for the match twice against Querrey and led by two breaks against Russell. He is a solid baseliner with good defence, but he is a veteran on tour now and lacks the same speed as before. He is in good form this season and played very well on hard. The Match – Both are very good baseliners and both rely on defence and fast movement. That will make winning this match very hard and a pretty big workload for the players. Schuettler played a lot last week and he will lack time to rest and adjust so he might be the underdog in this match, but just slightly so. The Verdict – Marchenko in three sets.

Troicki v Kim

Troicki is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with big serve and forehand. He can hold his ground on the line and he plays well on hard courts. He has not played on them since the spring as he took a break after the grass spell and played only Davis Cup. He reached the final here in 2008, but got injured last season and lost in the opener. Kim is a veteran on tour and he has huge experience on hard courts as he has played almost all his career on the US hard. He is out of form and going down and out recently, but he managed to pass qualifications here by beating Okun and Devvarman. He lacks any big success here from before and this is the second event on hard this season in which he enters the main draw. The Match – Troicki has the power and the serve to do well on this fast hard court and he also has the attack and the volleys. Kim is not in good form and despite his good results in qualifying we do not believe he has resurrected his game. The Serbian should have too much for the local veteran, but still we would not want to back him in his first match on US hard. The Verdict – Troicki in two sets.

Istomin v Mayer L

Istomin is a powerful baseliner with aggressive game and big serve. He plays well on all surfaces and he has done very well on the top level this season. He had a great run on grass and indoors this season and he should like the hard courts after losing in the first round in Gstaad. Mayer is a powerful and very aggressive baseliner with good speedy serve. He likes fast surfaces and likes to finish points fast, which often leads to errors. He did better on clay this season and his form dropped when the grass court spell came. He lost his last five matches in a row and he got beaten by Blake last week in LA. He lost his only match in Washington last season. The Match – Both are powerful and aggressive players with big serves and ground strokes. Istomin did better this season and he played better on the fast surfaces while Mayer progressed on clay and failed on hard. Istomin is also more solid and consistent, but he looked pretty bad on clay last week. We see him as the favourite in this match, but we will not bet on him. The Verdict – Istomin in two sets.

Nalbandian v Ram

Nalbandian is making another return after hamstring injury. He played in Moscow in Davis Cup and he looked heavier, but fit and he admitted he has not fitness problems and just needs matches. He is a very talented and powerful baseliner with great shots off both wings and huge arsenal of weapons. He is more of a clay courter, but he likes hard courts a lot and he should use the fast surface well enough to make winners. Ram is a net rushing big server who likes to finish points fast and plays only on fast surfaces. He is not in good form being 1-5 in his last matches on hard and in general. He lacks solid baseline skills and risks a lot rushing to the net on any occasion. That is a good feat when he is in form, but when he plays poorly it is hard to get his game going. The Match – Nalbandian is definitely the better baseliner and he has the skills and the serve to dominate every part of the game. Ram has his chances if he serves well and volleys even better, but overall the Argentinean is the much better player and the only way for him to lose this match is to beat himself. He has done that before, but Ram is really too bad to be considered a threat. The Verdict – Nalbandian in two sets.

Kunitsyn v Nishikori

Kunitsyn is an aggressive hard courter with big ground strokes and risky game. He likes playing on fast surfaces and he has huge experience on the surface. He is 5-4 in Washington with a semifinal reached in 2007. He played in Atlanta and LA and just managed out of qualifying in the first event while failing to get into the main draw in LA. He beat Balleret and Russell here and he played better on the ground than on serve as his attacking game clicked very well. Nishikori is a very talented baseliner with fast movement on court and good returning skills. He has very solid and variable baseline shots, but he was sidelined with an arm injury for more than a year and that ruined his progress. He is making his comeback now and he won a couple of titles on clay on Challenger level. He lost to Smyczek in qualifying for LA last week, but he managed to get in the main draw now by beating Ore and Anderson. The Match – This should be a match decided on the ground and Nishikori should have the edge in skills there. However, his opponent is more powerful and aggressive and he also has more experience in general and lately on this surface. Kunitsyn is very offensive and his performance depends on his daily form. We think he has better chances in this match, but we will not back him as he can be pretty shaky at times. The Verdict – Kunitsyn in three sets.

Becker v Zemlja

Becker is a very good hard courter with powerful serve and ground strokes. He is also small and fast on court and has decent defensive skills. He is an US college graduate so he knows the surface here perfectly. He had a shoulder injury after Wimbledon, but he played Atlanta and LA so he should be fit by now. He is 1-2 in Washington so far. Zemlja is a solid and powerful baseliner with good defence and dangerous serve. He plays equally on clay and hard, but his better results have come on hard. He plays more on Challenger level and actually this will be his second match on this level on hard. He passed qualification by defeating Copil and Young. The Match – These two met in Melbourne main draw this season and Becker won in straight sets. The German is more powerful and offensive and he has better weapons for hard courts. Zemlja is not to be taken lightly as he beat Young convincingly yesterday, but he lacks experience on the level and he should find the angles and power of his opponent too much for his ground game. The Verdict – Becker in two sets.

Murray v Querrey

The main news around Murray is the drop of coach Maclagan. He has not played since Wimbledon and he arrived in the USA early to get the feeling of the hard courts. He opted for a wild card here and the slow surface will definitely suit his good baseline game and at the same time the hard courts will boost his good serve. He has not played here before and should be a bit rusty, but this is exactly the event he needs for a start. Querrey is a good hard courter with powerful serve and nice offensive skills. He lacks good baseline consistency, but he has the needed weapons in attack and he is very experienced on hard courts. His form is very good this season and he is 28-14 on the tour, but just 3-5 on hard. He is 8-3 here and he won the title in LA last season. The Match – Murray had some troubles this week, but overall he lived up to the expectations and reached the final. The same goes for Querrey, but the American was not convincing and is lucky to be here. Murray is the better baseliner and he will rely on return. Considering the trouble Querrey has on serve this week it should be easy for Murray to handle him. The Brit himself has some difficulties (especially on the second serve), but nevertheless his best weapons are om the ground. Murray is the better player overall and he has made better impressions this week so he should be able to clinch this title. The Verdict - Murray in three sets.

Giraldo v Malisse

Giraldo got well beaten by Tipsarevic last week as he won just one game in the match. He looked shaky and hurt and his form in not very good at the moment. He is a good baseliner with powerful and aggressive ground game, but he plays his best tennis on clay and does not fare well on hard. Malisse is in very good form at the moment and he likes to play on hard. He is a powerful aggressive baseliner with very good shots off both wings. He lacks consistency and can be very shaky at times. He reached the quarterfinals in fast Atlanta and then lost in the first round at slow LA. He will like the fast surface here and he is capable of using it to make his game dangerous and sharp. The Match – Malisse is in better form and he should find the conditions and the opponent to his liking. He should be able to outplay Giraldo with the pace and the variety and power of his shots and he has more experience on this surface. The Verdict – Malisse in two sets.

Przysiezny v Zeballos

Przysiezny is a tall powerful server with big ground strokes and nice baseline skills. He plays most of his tennis on clay and on the Challenger level. He had a back injury after Wimbledon and missed a couple of weeks of tennis, but he played on hard in Atlanta and LA. He lost to Muller in Atlanta and then had to retire with an arm injury in LA. Zeballos is a good fast surface player despite his clay court background. His best event on the top tour so far was indoors and he likes to attack and finish points fast. He is a leftie with powerful serve and good angles and power on the ground. He played a bad match against Dent in Atlanta and then had to retire against Schuettler in LA. He did not look good and he played shaky and erratic tennis in both matches and he did not seem hurt when he retired in LA. The Match – Both players have their problems with injuries and bad form. Zeballos is better used to hard courts and he has the skills and the pressing ground game to trouble the inexperienced Pole. Przysiezny should be more unfit than Zeballos as his injury looked genuine and he will lack training practice before this match. The South American will be the favourite, but as both have problems we will not bet on this match. The Verdict – Zeballos in two sets.

Starace v Ferrero

Starace is a powerful baseliner who plays almost all his matches on clay. He has good serve and baseline strokes and he moves well for a tall man. He relies on baseline consistency, but can also pound some winners in attack. He has played on Challenger level recently, but he improved his game there and he reached the quarterfinals in Hamburg last week after beating Robredo and Riba. Ferrero is a good clay courter with solid defence and sharp counter attacking skills. He started the season very well, but then faded away and he is now struggling to find his form. He went 4-2 in his last two events on clay, but overall more was expected of him. He lost to Mayer in Hamburg and he looked hurt at the end of the match. He is 9-3 here so far and he reached the final last season. The Match – Ferrero lost to Davydenko last season and he hopes to go one better now. He defeated Starace on his way to the final last year here and he also leads the series against the Italian 5-1 so far. The Spaniard is very fast and sharp on the ground and he is obviously fit to play as he handled his last two opponents very well. Starace also plays well this week, but he defeated weaker opponents and he is also more reliant on serve and ground power. Ferrero is more solid and consistent and with the record of his matches against Starace in mind we cannot go against him. The Verdict – Ferrero in two sets.

Gasquet v Almagro

Gasquet is a powerful baseliner with big serve and backhand. He plays well on all surfaces, but his game is too aggressive to be considered competitive on clay. He was sidelined for a month with a back injury, but he claims to be fit now. He won two titles on clay this season and he is a former champion here from 2006. His record here is 11-1. Almagro is a powerful attacking baseliner with big serve and forehand. He hits with a lot of power and takes his chances and he should like the altitude here. He also has a very nice one-handed backhand and he is in great form this season. He won the title in Bastad and then lost early in Hamburg so he should be rested and fit now. The Match – Gasquet was very impressive so far with his serve going very well and his ground game being relatively solid and powerful. Almagro started the event shakily but then picked up the pace and had no trouble reaching the final. The Spaniard is the better clay courter in general and he has the better and more powerful forehand. Both are very spectacular on the backhand side and both serve very well. The two met this season on clay in Acapulco in a very tight 2nd round match decided by a final set tie-break and won by Almagro. He is the slight favourite in this match, but anything can happen. The Verdict – Almagro in three sets.

Murray v Lopez

The main news around Murray is the drop of coach Maclagan. He has not played since Wimbledon and he arrived in the USA early to get the feeling of the hard courts. He opted for a wild card here and the slow surface will definitely suit his good baseline game and at the same time the hard courts will boost his good serve. He has not played here before and should be a bit rusty, but this is exactly the event he needs for a start. Lopez is a powerful leftie with big serve and forehand and sliced backhand. He plays well on fast surfaces where he finishes points fast and often rushes to the net. He has not played on hard since March and he lacks matches in the last few weeks. He is a confidence player and without match practice he is not too good to back. The Match – Murray played better in his second match looking like the player he wants to be. His serve improved and he dominated the proceedings. Another leftie awaits him in the semis. Lopez was second best for most of the match against Blake, but managed to serve well at key moments and finally won. Murray is the better player on the ground and undoubtedly he has the skills to exploit the weaker backhand side of his opponent. Lopez has only the serve to count on and we doubt he can last long with it against one of the best returners on tour. The Verdict – Murray in two sets.

Tipsarevic v Querrey

Tipsarevic took some time off tennis to get married and he is yet to switch to full tennis focus now. He lost early in Atlanta last week and he had the time to get to LA and practice for the new event, but he also took some time to party there too. He is a talented baseliner with good weapons off both wings, but his lack of concentration has always been his big problem. He is a good hard courter and that is his best surface. Querrey is a good hard courter with powerful serve and nice offensive skills. He lacks good baseline consistency, but he has the needed weapons in attack and he is very experienced on hard courts. His form is very good this season and he is 27-14 on the tour, but just 2-5 on hard. He is 7-3 here and he won the title in LA last season. The Match – Tipsarevic was pretty solid against Baghdatis and played much better than in his first match here. Querrey on the other hand was once again lucky to win against Schuettler as his serve is not going well and he is obviously struggling with the surface. The Serbian on the other hand likes the conditions a lot and he should be able to dominate the ground game. Having in mind his better serving so far we cannot help it but make him the favourite in this match against the very shaky and unimpressive local seed. The Verdict – Tipsarevic in two sets.

Chela v Starace

Chela is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with good movement on court and solid defensive coverage. He is a veteran on tour now and he has huge experience on clay. His form is very good this season as he won the title in Houston. He passed the first round in his last four events on clay and he plays good tennis recently. Starace is a powerful baseliner who plays almost all his matches on clay. He has good serve and baseline strokes and he moves well for a tall man. He relies on baseline consistency, but can also pound some winners in attack. He has played on Challenger level recently, but he improved his game there and he reached the quarterfinals in Hamburg last week after beating Robredo and Riba. The Match – Chela did well this week having trouble just against Bolelli. He is very aggressive and pressing on the ground and he has done better on the ground than on serve. Starace has been more solid on serve this week winning 69% behind it. He posted some good victories, but none of his opponent was of the rank of Davydenko. Both are in good form and both have the needed power and consistency to stay alive on clay. Chela has the edge in defence while Starace has more variety, but overall the differences between the two are not that many and the match should be a close one. The Verdict – Chela in three sets.

Ferrero v Seppi

Ferrero is a good clay courter with solid defence and sharp counter attacking skills. He started the season very well, but then faded away and he is now struggling to find his form. He went 4-2 in his last two events on clay, but overall more was expected of him. He lost to Mayer in Hamburg and he looked hurt at the end of the match. He is 8-3 here so far and he reached the final last season. Seppi is a solid clay courter with good defence and fast movement on court. He has a lot of defensive power on the ground and he relies on counter attacks and keeping the ball in play. He is in great form at the moment as he went 6-2 in his last two events on clay and he comes off a semifinal in Hamburg. He is 6-1 in Umag. The Match – Ferrero played very well in his last match, but his opponent was really out of line. He is not in his best form and he might struggle against a good clay courter. Seppi on the other hand is in very good shape as he beat Gonzalez, Rochus and Melzer without any trouble. Both are defensive baseliners with huge experience on clay, but Seppi is in better form recently and he is also fitter and more solid on the ground. He can expose any weakness of his opponent and he has beaten the Spaniard twice already while losing just once. The Verdict – Seppi in three sets.

Schukin v Gasquet

Schukin is a veteran on tour who has spent almost all his career playing Challengers on clay. He is a solid player with decent ground game who relies on defence and ground power. He lacks success on the top tour, but has a number of titles on clay on the lower level including one this season in Zagreb. He passed qualifications here by beating Wolf and Granollers-Pujol and he should be well acquainted with the conditions. Gasquet is a powerful baseliner with big serve and backhand. He plays well on all surfaces, but his game is too aggressive to be considered competitive on clay. He was sidelined for a month with a back injury, but he claims to be fit now. He won two titles on clay this season and he is a former champion here from 2006. His record here is 10-1. The Match – Schukin made the best of his appearance here and as we said the last time it should be his time to go. He managed to beat the tired Golubev, shaky Gil and somewhat disinterested Youzhny, but now he faces a motivated and eager opponent. Gasquet has the will to win and he has the power and the serve to do it. He has a huge edge on the ground with his big backhand and good offensive weapons and he looked very well so far this week. The same goes for Schukin, but we are talking about different class of players here and it would really be a huge surprise if Gasquet does not win this. The Verdict – Gasquet in two sets.

Gimeno v Almagro

Gimeno is a solid clay courter who plays a lot on the dirt. He has a good serve and moves well on court. He plays most of his tennis on Challenger level, but he did well in Bastad where he beat Davydenko and Chardy to reach the semifinal. Almagro is a powerful attacking baseliner with big serve and forehand. He hits with a lot of power and takes his chances and he should like the altitude here. He also has a very nice one-handed backhand and he is in great form this season. He won the title in Bastad and then lost early in Hamburg so he should be rested and fit now. The Match – Both are very good clay courters and both are in form at the moment. Gimeno was more convincing this week and he handled some decent clay courters without dropping a set. Almagro on the other hand lost a set in his first two matches and then had to rely on Chardy to win his last match in straight sets. Gimeno is better on serve and more solid while Almagro relies on more power. The conditions favour power and attack a bit and Almagro could take advantage of that. The match is in his hands and he is a deserved favourite for the victory, but we find no value for betting. The Verdict – Almagro in three sets.

[1/WC] Andy Murray (GBR) - Alejandro Falla (COL)

The main news around Murray is the drop of coach Maclagan. He has not played since Wimbledon and he arrived in the USA early to get the feeling of the hard courts. He opted for a wild card here and the slow surface will definitely suit his good baseline game and at the same time the hard courts will boost his good serve. He has not played here before and should be a bit rusty, but this is exactly the event he needs for a start. Falla is a big serving leftie who likes fast surfaces. He has an aggressive game and likes to play on all surfaces, but his best matches recently were on grass and hard. He played on clay a week ago, but he comes to the US now to start the hard court tour. The Match – Murray had his troubles against Smyczek and they were due to his shaky second serve. He got broken three times in the second set, but apart from that he was in control of the match. Falla got the better of Gulbis with a lot of luck and he has been twice lucky so far. Murray should be too much for Falla in this match as he is solid and has the better serve despite his troubles against Smyczek. Both did not impress so far and we give the Brit some edge because he is the better player. The Verdict – Murray in two sets.

[4] Feliciano Lopez (ESP) - [WC] James Blake (USA)

Lopez is a powerful leftie with big serve and forehand and sliced backhand. He plays well on fast surfaces where he finishes points fast and often rushes to the net. He has not played on hard since March and he lacks matches in the last few weeks. He is a confidence player and without match practice he is not too good to back. Blake is a powerful and attacking baseliner. He plays mostly on hard courts and has the needed serve and forehand to do well on them. He was hit by injuries this season and he has not won a match since March. He played in Atlanta last week and lost to Dent in his opening match. He is 7-3 in LA so far, but he is not in form at the moment. The Match – Lopez started the campaign well with his serve firing 12 aces and winning him 71% of the points on it. Blake continued his good run this week with another victory. He was less impressive than in his first match, but still won the needed 70% on serve and got broken just once. Both are powerful players, but Blake is the more complete one as Lopez has his backhand as a liability. The surface should favour the hard running American and we figure him as a small favourite – just as the bookies do too. The Verdict – Blake in three sets.

[6] Janko Tipsarevic (SRB) - [3] Marcos Baghdatis (CYP)

Tipsarevic took some time off tennis to get married and he is yet to switch to full tennis focus now. He lost early in Atlanta last week and he had the time to get to LA and practice for the new event, but he also took some time to party there too. He is a talented baseliner with good weapons off both wings, but his lack of concentration has always been his big problem. He is a good hard courter and that is his best surface. Baghdatis is a powerful aggressive baseliner with good serve and nice weapons on both wings. He is not very consistent and mentally strong and that is his big setback. He skipped the last months in tennis and lost his last four matches on the tour, but he likes hard courts most and he is in LA for over a week now getting ready for the event. The Match – These two are similar players with great talent on the ground and with some mental issues on court. They like playing on hard, which is their best surface and they came to LA at the same time and practiced together. Both are not in very good form, but Tipsarevic at least has three matches on hard under his belt and he showed some good mental power to come back against Devvarman. Baghdatis failed to impress against Sweeting and the shaky American managed to break him three times and pure luck and experience helped the Cypriot to the victory. The match looks like a tight affair, but Tipsarevic has more matches on hard so far and he looked better than Baghdatis so we would like to take advantage of the good odds offered by the bookies. The Verdict – Tipsarevic in three sets.

Rainer Schuettler (GER) - [2] Sam Querrey (USA)

Schuettler is a veteran on tour who plays well on all surfaces. He has revived his career this season with some good results on hard on the Challenger level and he got back in the top 100. He is a solid baseliner with good defensive skills and nice counter attacking weapons. He should like the slower conditions here as he will have more time to defend. He played in Atlanta last week and beat Gabashvili before losing to Russell (despite leading with a set and a break and then being three times a break up in the decider). Querrey is a good hard courter with powerful serve and nice offensive skills. He lacks good baseline consistency, but he has the needed weapons in attack and he is very experienced on hard courts. His form is very good this season and he is 27-14 on the tour, but just 2-5 on hard. He is 7-3 here and he won the title in LA last season. The Match – Schuettler played his usual solid and defensive game in his matches so far and he was able to defeat Zeballos and Ginepri. Querrey started shakily against Anderson and only the breakdown of his opponent in the third set gave him the victory. He got broken four times and had to save 12 break points against a mediocre baseliner like Anderson and he won just 58% on serve, which is terrible for a powerful serving hard courter like him. Schuettler tends to do well against big servers and he won the only meeting between the two on hard in Melbourne this season (the surface there was similarly slow). The German has consistency and Querrey was very shaky in his first match so we might actually trust Schuettler with some money on odds above 3. The Verdict – Schuettler in three sets.

[1] Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) - Yuri Schukin (KAZ)

Youzhny is a powerful baseliner with aggressive game and solid ground strokes. He is controlled and patient now unlike his previous experience and he plays solid and even defensive tennis nowadays. He likes playing on clay and especially on these altitude events where his shots get more power and speed. He won the event in Munchen this season and he will play his last clay court event in Gstaad this season. He has not played on clay since the Slam. He is just 5-4 here so far. Schukin is a veteran on tour who has spent almost all his career playing Challengers on clay. He is a solid player with decent ground game who relies on defence and ground power. He lacks success on the top tour, but has a number of titles on clay on the lower level including one this season in Zagreb. He passed qualifications here by beating Wolf and Granollers-Pujol and he should be well acquainted with the conditions. The Match – Youzhny had no problems so far, but he faced shaky opposition. However, Schukin might also qualify in that department. The veteran is in unknown territory here after beating the tired Golubev and the shaky Gil. Youzhny has all the weapons on his side and we do not see anything that the Kazakh can do to win this match. The Verdict – Youzhny in two sets.

[4] Albert Montanes (ESP) - [7] Richard Gasquet (FRA)

Montanes is a very good clay courter with solid defence and good attacking options. He has a powerful and technical serve and he also plays well in offense when he has to press opponents. He is in great form this season and he already won two titles on the dirt in Estoril and Stuttgart. Gasquet is a powerful baseliner with big serve and backhand. He plays well on all surfaces, but his game is too aggressive to be considered competitive on clay. He was sidelined for a month with a back injury, but he claims to be fit now. He won two titles on clay this season and he is a former champion here from 2006. His record here is 9-1. The Match – Gasquet has won all three meetings between the two and all three have been on clay. The Frenchman is the more powerful and aggressive player and he played well so far with his serve using the conditions very well. Montanes on the other hand has been shaky recently as he overcame Riba and Haider-Maurer with a lot of difficulty.

Daniel Gimeno-Traver (ESP) - Igor Andreev (RUS)

Gimeno is a solid clay courter who plays a lot on the dirt. He has a good serve and moves well on court. He plays most of his tennis on Challenger level, but he did well in Bastad where he beat Davydenko and Chardy to reach the semifinal. Andreev is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with big forehand and serve. He hits the ball with a lot of spin and he should like the fast conditions here as they will give him more winners and his serve will be more effective. He is 16-5 here so far and this is one of his best clay court events. He has been sidelined with ankle injury for some two months now playing only Wimbledon after the injury in Madrid. He claims to be fit now and he should be as he had more than enough time to recover. The Match – Gimeno played very well this week giving Beck and Hanescu no chance with perfect serving and impressive and pressing ground game. Andreev defeated Serra and Chiudinlelli with a lot of trouble in two three-set matches. He has the power and the spin to do well on clay, but Gimeno is very solid and experienced on clay too. The Spaniard has been serving very well and can match Andreev in that department. He is also in better form at the moment and has impressed more this week so he gets the nod for us in this match. The Verdict – Gimeno in two sets.

Jeremy Chardy (FRA) - [2] Nicolas Almagro (ESP)

Chardy is a good aggressive baseliner who hits with a lot of spin and likes to attack at the net. He has a powerful serve and plays well on all surfaces, but he prefers faster ones. He likes fast clay courts, but his form is pretty bad this season, which is more or less due to mental problems. He lost early in Stuttgart where he had a title to defend and then got beaten in the third round in Hamburg. He is 8-2 in Gstaad so far with a quarterfinal last season. Almagro is a powerful attacking baseliner with big serve and forehand. He hits with a lot of power and takes his chances and he should like the altitude here. He also has a very nice one-handed backhand and he is in great form this season. He won the title in Bastad and then lost early in Hamburg so he should be rested and fit now. The Match – Chardy handled Nieminen and Mathieu quickly, but he had problems with his serve and if his opponents were more solid he could have been in trouble. Almagro had tougher matches and had to come from behind against Lammer. His serve also did not work well and he got broken seven times in the six sets played. Almagro is the better clay courter and he has the more powerful and solid shots. Chardy is a confidence player and he has boosted his game this week, but he might just find Almagro too good and powerful for him. The Spaniard himself did not look too impressive so far so we are not going to back him, but we are also not ready to oppose him as Chardy is generally a shaky player. The Verdict – Almagro in three sets.

[1/WC] Andy Murray (GBR) - Tim Smyczek (USA)

The main news around Murray is the drop of coach Maclagan. He has not played since Wimbledon and he arrived in the USA early to get the feeling of the hard courts. He opted for a wild card here and the slow surface will definitely suit his good baseline game and at the same time the hard courts will boost his good serve. He has not played here before and should be a bit rusty, but this is exactly the event he needs for a start. Smyczek is a local youngster who plays most of his tennis on hard courts on Challenger level. He has the needed powerful and solid serve and decent ground game. His form is pretty good this season as he reached a final and a couple of quarterfinals on the lower level. He is yet to win a match on the top tour. He had a tough route through qualifying facing better opponents in all rounds, but he managed to beat all of them comfortably. The Match – Smyczek expectedly defeated the shaky Gabashvili, but he meets a much tougher opponent now. Murray has not played for over a month and he will need some time to get his rhythm back, but he faces a mediocre opponent. Smyczek did well so far to get to here, but he is new to the occasion and he will meet a solid and capable baseliner and he will have to outplay him. We doubt the rookie can outplay the Brit on this surface and we do not see the top seed losing this one, but we definitely not going to back him at such low odds. The Verdict – Murray in two sets.

Alejandro Falla (COL) - [5] Ernests Gulbis (LAT)

Falla is a big serving leftie who likes fast surfaces. He has an aggressive game and likes to play on all surfaces, but his best matches recently were on grass and hard. He played on clay a week ago, but he comes to the US now to start the hard court tour. Gulbis pulled a hamstring in May and has not played since. He trained hard lately and he came here early to get the feel of the courts. He is a powerful baseliner with big serve and attacking ground game. He is in very good form this season with good results on all surfaces, but overall he is a confidence player and he might need some time to get his game back. The Match – Falla was far from convincing against Beck and only the inability of his opponent to take any of the 11 break points he had saved him. Gulbis on the other hand was tested by Lacko and survived with powerful serving and 11 aces. He is the more powerful and skilful player and he serves much better which is very important on this surface. He is the deserved favourite with his better performance in the opening match and he should win it. The Verdict – Gulbis in two sets.

[4] Feliciano Lopez (ESP) - Dudi Sela (ISR)

Lopez is a powerful leftie with big serve and forehand and sliced backhand. He plays well on fast surfaces where he finishes points fast and often rushes to the net. He has not played on hard since March and he lacks matches in the last few weeks. He is a confidence player and without match practice he is not too good to back. Sela is a small defensive runner with solid serve and nice counter attack. He plays most of his tennis on hard courts and his game is best suited for them. He is 2-2 here so far and he got well beaten by Young last week as he showed no will to play in that match. The Match – Lopez should be avoided as he comes to hard for the first time this summer and he will also hate the slow conditions in LA. Sela on the other hand will like the surface and he handled Malisse well enough in the first round. He also plays well against the big servers and the surface will give him the chance to get many balls back and exploit the weaker backhand side of his opponent. The Verdict – Sela in three sets. 

[WC] James Blake (USA) - Benjamin Becker (GER)

Blake is a powerful and attacking baseliner. He plays mostly on hard courts and has the needed serve and forehand to do well on them. He was hit by injuries this season and he has not won a match since March. He played in Atlanta last week and lost to Dent in his opening match. He is 6-3 in LA so far, but he is not in form at the moment. Becker is a powerful hard courter with big serve and good movement on court. He has the skills to press opponents and attack and he has good net game, but he is also pretty solid on the ground. He plays a lot on hard and he likes the US hard courts. He had an elbow injury after Wimbledon and had to miss two weeks of tennis, but he started training ten days ago in Florida. He lost early to Russell last week in Atlanta. The Match – Blake played very well against Mayer with powerful serving and attack and very solid and passionate defence. Becker had the luck to face Lapentti, but again had some trouble getting past him. His serve went well, but he did not look very solid and impressive on the ground. Blake has the match on his racquet if he plays the same way and Becker is too shaky to be backed at the moment. The Verdict – Blake in two sets.

(3) LJUBICIC, Ivan CRO v (WC) DODIG, Ivan CRO

Ljubicic will make his return to the tour after a long break of more than a month. He had some back issues when he exited Wimbledon and he will probably never get over them as he is a veteran now, but he claims to be fit to play now. He has played a lot of matches in Umag and he likes playing on clay. He is a powerful server with big flat ground strokes and he can easily hit through the clay courts. His form was pretty good before the injury, but he is just 2-4 after that. Dodig is at home in Umag, but he is just 2-3 here so far. He is a powerful baseliner with good defensive skills and speedy serve. He has enough experience on clay, but without any success and he is yet to win a match on the main tour. He prefers faster surfaces and has done his best indoors. The Match – Dodig took advantage of a shaky display from Navarro and won, but he failed to impress and he will have trouble against more powerful and experienced clay courters. Ljubicic is not exactly a clay courter and he should be rusty and shaky after the break. That might even things out between him and Dodig and we do not see any reason to back him before seeing him play. With that said we still think he should be able to press and beat Dodig easily. The Verdict – Ljubicic in two sets.

PHAU, Bjorn GER v STARACE, Potito ITA

Phau is a hard courter with good defence and fast movement on court. He has some experience on clay and he does well on the faster clay courts, but this here should prove too slow for him. He lacks big weapons on the ground and he lacks the consistency to stay competitive on the dirt. Starace is a powerful baseliner who plays almost all his matches on clay. He has good serve and baseline strokes and he moves well for a tall man. He relies on baseline consistency, but can also pound some winners in attack. He has played on Challenger level recently, but he improved his game there and he reached the quarterfinals in Hamburg last week after beating Robredo and Riba. The Match – Phau scored a surprise victory over Fognini, but the Italian played shaky and erratic tennis while the German managed to be very solid in defence and use his good movement to win. Starace was taken to three sets by Stakhovsky as he could not finish the second set, but he did not lose his focus in the decider. The Italian is the better clay courter and unlike Fognini he is not that risky and prone to errors. Phau has suddenly become a good clay courter, but he lacks the power and the experience of his opponent and he should find it hard to keep up with his opponent in this match. The Verdict – Starace in two sets.

ROCHUS, Olivier BEL v SEPPI, Andreas ITA

Rochus is a solid defensive baseliner with fast movement and good counter attack. He plays well on all surfaces, but his tactics make him better on clay. He has the needed power on the ground and he should like the slower conditions here. Seppi is a solid clay courter with good defence and fast movement on court. He has a lot of defensive power on the ground and he relies on counter attacks and keeping the ball in play. He is in great form at the moment as he went 6-2 in his last two events on clay and he comes off a semifinal in Hamburg. He is 4-1 in Umag. The Match – Rochus had an easy match against the hurt net rusher Petzschner and he did well to win in straight sets. Seppi was busier against clay courter Gonzalez, but fought well and won deservedly. Both players are solid baseliners with defensive game, but Seppi has more power and he is in better form at the moment. The Italian has more practice on clay and should be the winner of this baseline contest. The Verdict – Seppi in three sets.

HAJEK, Jan CZE v (2) MELZER, Jurgen AUT

Hajek is a typical clay courter with solid defence and good movement on court. He plays most of his matches on Challenger level and he has huge experience on clay. He started playing more on the top level this season, but without much success. He played Davis Cup in Chile and missed Stuttgart because of that, but then managed to beat Beck in Hamburg before losing to Ferrero. Melzer is 6-2 in Umag with semifinals reached in both his appearances here. He comes off the final in Hamburg and should be tired a bit, but he had three days to rest. He is a powerful leftie with good defence and nice variety on the ground. He likes playing on clay, but he might find the conditions here different and harder to adjust to that last week. The Match – Hajek did well to beat Melzer junior and he showed his usual solid ground game. The second seed is the better player and he has the power and the skills to press and outplay the Czech, but the question remains about his motivation and fitness. He has done well here before and we think he will try to do well once again. He is the favourite and deservedly so, but we will not back him in his first match here. The Verdict – Melzer in two sets.

DAVYDENKO, Nikolay RUS v (8) CHELA, Juan Ignacio ARG

Davydenko came back from wrist injury recently and he still needs time to get his game going. He is a hard worker on court and he needs a couple of tournaments to get his rhythm. He is a powerful baseliner with good angles on court and aggressive game. He lost early in his last two events on clay, but he should like the conditions here and will look towards a deeper run. Chela is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with good movement on court and solid defensive coverage. He is a veteran on tour now and he has huge experience on clay. His form is very good this season as he won the title in Houston. He passed the first round in his last four events on clay and he plays good tennis recently. The Match – Chela leads Davydenko 5-1 in previous meetings, but all matches have been at least four years ago. The South American is in good form, but he did not look very good in his last match here as his serve was very weak and he was lucky to face the shaky Bolelli and win. Davydenko played well against Robert, but the Frenchman was very bad and did not present a challenge. The Russian is more powerful and solid and he likes the conditions here. He has the game to move Chela around and press him hard and if Chela plays close to his last performance he will struggle against the top seed. Davydenko is a deserved favourite in this match, but the bad record will put us off backing him. The Verdict – Davydenko in two sets.

(6) DOLGOPOLOV, Alexandr UKR v (4) FERRERO, Juan Carlos ESP

Dolgopolov is one of the best upcoming players on the tour. He is very talented with a lot of power and technique on the ground and he also has a big serve. He plays more on Challenger level, but has made the step to the top tour recently. He likes clay most, but he had a hip injury at Wimbledon and has played just one match after that. He lost it to Mayer last week in Hamburg. Ferrero is a good clay courter with solid defence and sharp counter attacking skills. He started the season very well, but then faded away and he is now struggling to find his form. He went 4-2 in his last two events on clay, but overall more was expected of him. He lost to Mayer in Hamburg and he looked hurt at the end of the match. He is 7-3 here so far and he reached the final last season. The Match – Both players had injury doubts in their last match, but both came through. Dolgopolov played his usual powerful game and won 70% on serve despite getting just 40% of his first serves in. Ferrero had more trouble against Cuevas and looked weaker and shaky on serve, but his opponent missed nine break points and handled him the win. Both are good on clay with Dolgopolov being the more aggressive and powerful one and Ferrero being more solid in defence. The winner is tough to predict as the injury cloud still surrounds them. Ferrero is the deserved favourite being the more experienced clay courter, but we did not like his last match and will not back him here. Odds above 2.40 on the underdog might present some value as he is more solid on serve and might just take his chances and win. The Verdict – Dolgopolov in three sets.

[1] Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) - [WC] Alexander Sadecky (SUI)

Youzhny is a powerful baseliner with aggressive game and solid ground strokes. He is controlled and patient now unlike his previous experience and he plays solid and even defensive tennis nowadays. He likes playing on clay and especially on these altitude events where his shots get more power and speed. He won the event in Munchen this season and he will play his last clay court event in Gstaad this season. He has not played on clay since the Slam. He is just 4-4 here so far. Sadecky is a local wild card who plays most of his tennis on Futures level. He does better on faster surfaces and he recent won some titles on hard and indoors. He is a tall leftie with good serve and attacking attitude which might do fine on the bouncy and fast surface here. He is 2-3 here so far. The Match – Youzhny had to play Gicquel instead of Korolev, but he won easily anyway and he found the conditions good for his game. Sadecky won a good victory in the first round, but he had to overcome his inexperienced compatriot Marti and he played a clever and calculated game to accomplish the victory. Youzhny should have too much power and talent for his opponent and he should clearly aim at the title so we do not see him losing to Sadecky in this round. The Verdict – Youzhny in two sets.

Yuri Schukin (KAZ) - Frederico Gil (POR)

Schukin is a veteran on tour who has spent almost all his career playing Challengers on clay. He is a solid player with decent ground game who relies on defence and ground power. He lacks success on the top tour, but has a number of titles on clay on the lower level including one this season in Zagreb. He passed qualifications here by beating Wolf and Granollers-Pujol and he should be well acquainted with the conditions. Gil is an attacking baseliner with powerful shots and flashy display. He plays in ups and downs and his level of tennis is more suited for the Challenger level. He plays most of his tennis there on clay and he is 20-10 on the dirt on that level. He comes off a quarterfinal in Poznan and his last clay court event on clay was Estoril where he reached the final. The Match – Schukin overcame the tired Golubev in the first round, but he had a lot of trouble in doing so and he was not convincing on the ground. Gil sprung a great surprise in the first round by beating Robredo. He played a solid game and he outlasted his shaky opponent in all area after the loss of the first set. Both are Challenger players, but Gil definitely won the attention with his victory. He is more powerful on the ground and he moves better on court. He is the better clay courter and should win this one. The Verdict – Gil in two sets.

Jeremy Chardy (FRA) - Jarkko Nieminen (FIN)

Chardy is a good aggressive baseliner who hits with a lot of spin and likes to attack at the net. He has a powerful serve and plays well on all surfaces, but he prefers faster ones. He likes fast clay courts, but his form is pretty bad this season, which is more or less due to mental problems. He lost early in Stuttgart where he had a title to defend and then got beaten in the third round in Hamburg. He is 7-2 in Gstaad so far with a quarterfinal last season. Nieminen is a solid leftie with good power on court and nice serve. He is a fighter with good counter attacking skills and good movement on court. He plays well on all surfaces and he has found some form on clay lately. He got a couple of nice victories over Rochus and Simon last week in Hamburg and he served very well. The Match – Chardy was dominant against Mathieu and he played well with his serve getting him 10 aces and his opponent not being on the needed level. Nieminen on the other hand had problems with his own serve and got broken five times against hard courter Alves. The Finn is the more consistent and powerful player with better defence. Chardy has more aggression in his game and he was better on serve today which should be decisive on the fast clay. The Frenchman should be the favourite in this match, but we do not fancy betting on him as a favourite as he is yet to prove his good form. The Verdict – Chardy in two sets.

[WC] Michael Lammer (SUI) - [2] Nicolas Almagro (ESP)

Lammer is a local wild card with powerful ground game and solid serve. He plays more on Challenger level and he likes to press opponents with power and move them around. He prefers faster surfaces and he has never won a match on clay on this level. He played some Challengers on clay recently, but lost early in all of them. He is 3-8 in Gstaad so far with both victories being in qualifying. Almagro is a powerful attacking baseliner with big serve and forehand. He hits with a lot of power and takes his chances and he should like the altitude here. He also has a very nice one-handed backhand and he is in great form this season. He won the title in Bastad and then lost early in Hamburg so he should be rested and fit now. The Match – Lammer got the job done against Brown due to his solid game and more controlled shots, but his opponent was very messy and shaky apart from the serve. Almagro had trouble getting past Granollers and his serve gave him a hard time, but he prevailed at the end. Almagro is the better clay courter by far as Lammer prefers faster surfaces. The Spaniard is in good form and his tough win in the first round should boost his confidence to overcome the second and easier opponent. We do not see Lammer troubling his opponent in any part of the game. The Verdict – Almagro in two sets.

[6] Janko Tipsarevic (SRB) – Somdev Devvarman (IND)

Tipsarevic took some time off tennis to get married and he is yet to switch to full tennis focus now. He lost early in Atlanta last week and he had the time to get to LA and practice for the new event, but he also took some time to party there too. He is a talented baseliner with good weapons off both wings, but his lack of concentration has always been his big problem. He is a good hard courter and that is his best surface. Devvarman is a solid baseliner with good movement on court and nice power on serve. He plays passive tennis, but covers the courts well and he likes hard courts as he has grown up in them in the US college system. He plays most of his tennis on hard and he recently reached the semis in Aptos. He beat Tursunov, Gong and Lapentti to get into the main draw here. The Match – Tipsarevic dominated the match with Giraldo, but his opponent was really not in shape. Devvarman had some trouble against Johnson, but managed to prevail due to his experience. Both are good baseliners with the Serbian being the more talented and dangerous player while Devvarman relies more on the defence. Tipsarevic defeated the same opponent in India this season and he will surely like the surface here so he is the favourite in this match. The Verdict – Tipsarevic in two sets.

[WC] Ryan Sweeting (USA) - [3] Marcos Baghdatis (CYP)

Sweeting is a local baseliner with good movement and solid ground game. He lacks the usual big serve, but makes up with defence and consistency. He plays mostly on hard and knows the surface very well, but he has spent his career so far on the Challenger level. He reached the first round through qualifying last week in Atlanta and his overall form is pretty good this season. LA is one of his best events as he reached the second round last season after beating three opponents in qualifying. Baghdatis is a powerful aggressive baseliner with good serve and nice weapons on both wings. He is not very consistent and mentally strong and that is his big setback. He skipped the last months in tennis and lost his last four matches on the tour, but he likes hard courts most and he is in LA for over a week now getting ready for the event. The Match – Sweeting played a tough match against Vliegen and he got the victory, but failed to convince as he got broken six times and was lucky to progress. Baghdatis might be a bit rusty now, but he meets a baseliner without big weapons and that should be the perfect comeback opponent for him. He has the power and skills to win this match and Sweeting lacks the game to beat him so the Cypriot is the big favourite to progress. The Verdict – Baghdatis in two sets.

Rainer Schuettler (GER) - Robby Ginepri (USA)

Schuettler is a veteran on tour who plays well on all surfaces. He has revived his career this season with some good results on hard on the Challenger level and he got back in the top 100. He is a solid baseliner with good defensive skills and nice counter attacking weapons. He should like the slower conditions here as he will have more time to defend. He played in Atlanta last week and beat Gabashvili before losing to Russell (despite leading with a set and a break and then being three times a break up in the decider). Ginepri is a local powerful baseliner with good serve and big forehand. He likes and plays well on hard and his game is perfectly suited for it. He has had some injury concerns this season and he is yet to get his game back. He lost early to Fish in Atlanta and his season is bad so far as he lacks matches and wins. He is 11-7 in LA so far. The Match – Schuettler had an easy outing against Zeballos who got injured and retired. Ginepri looked very good against Bozoljac as his serve was on fire and he ran down the ball well in defence and also fired some good winners in attack. The American is more experienced on hard and he has the power and the skills to hit past the German veteran. Schuettler will look to defend and force the extra shots, but if Ginepri plays as well as in his last game the German will be in trouble. The Verdict – Ginepri in three sets.

[SE] Kevin Anderson (RSA) - [2] Sam Querrey (USA)

Anderson is a powerful server with big forehand and aggressive ground game. He likes and plays most of his tennis on hard courts, but he played a lot on clay this season and steadied his ground game. He played well in Atlanta last week and reached the semis by beating Tipsarevic, Young and Lacko. Querrey is a good hard courter with powerful serve and nice offensive skills. He lacks good baseline consistency, but he has the needed weapons in attack and he is very experienced on hard courts. His form is very good this season and he is 26-14 on the tour, but just 1-5 on hard. He is 6-3 here and he won the title in LA last season. The Match – Anderson is in good form in general, but he found the surface here too slow in the first round and he was not as good as usual on serve in his first round match. Querrey had a long break from tennis, but he likes the surface here and should be fit and eager to play. He is more powerful and skilled on the hard courts so he should be the favourite in this match. The Verdict – Querrey in two sets.

Davydenko v Robert

Davydenko came back from wrist injury recently and he still needs time to get his game going. He is a hard worker on court and he needs a couple of tournaments to get his rhythm. He is a powerful baseliner with good angles on court and aggressive game. He lost early in his last two events on clay, but he should like the conditions here and will look towards a deeper run. Robert started playing on the top tour this season after a good spell on the Challenger level on clay last year. He is a powerful flat hitting player with good serve and variable ground game. He has some problems with his serve this season and overall he seems to find it hard to adjust to the top level, especially on clay where he is just 3-8 this season. He lost early in Bastad and Hamburg and he is 2-10 in his last twelve matches on the tour. The Match – Davydenko will look to progress here and he definitely has the power and the angles to do that against a player like Robert. The Frenchman is a good baseliner, but he plays too flat and he does not like to be moved a lot on court. The Russian has the skills to defeat Robert easily and the match depends on his skills. He might falter once again like he did last week, but we think he should have too much for the Frenchman in this match. The Verdict – Davydenko in two sets.

Bolelli v Chela

Bolelli is a powerful baseliner with good backhand and speedy serve. He plays most of his tennis on clay and he did well recently as he won the title in Turin and managed to pass qualifications in Hamburg. He had to play qualifications here too and defeated Raditschnigg, Renevand and Semrajc. The opponents were not very strong, but he needed a lot of time to get past them and his last match went for three hours. Chela is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with good movement on court and solid defensive coverage. He is a veteran on tour now and he has huge experience on clay. His form is very good this season as he won the title in Houston. He passed the first round in his last four events on clay and he plays good tennis recently. The Match – Bolelli is on a good run here and after the tough qualifying campaign he had an easier outing against Veic. He played well, but made his usual errors and gave his opponent too many chances. Chela on the other hand continued his impressive run and beat Ramirez with ease. Both are powerful and aggressive baseliners with huge experience on clay. Chela is the more consistent one and he is in better form at the moment. He should be the favourite in this match and we think he should win with ease. The Verdict – Chela in two sets.

Dolgopolov v Skugor

Dolgopolov is one of the best upcoming players on the tour. He is very talented with a lot of power and technique on the ground and he also has a big serve. He plays more on Challenger level, but has made the step to the top tour recently. He likes clay most, but he had a hip injury at Wimbledon and has played just one match after that. He lost it to Mayer last week in Hamburg. Skugor is a Challengers and Futures player with powerful ground game and good serve. He did well a week ago in Bastad where he started from qualifying and got to the quarterfinals by beating Istomin and Eleskovic before losing to Almagro. These were his first victories on the top tour. He is 7-5 in Umag so far with all wins but one coming in qualifying. The Match – Dolgopolov had many problems with Lorenzi in the first round, but his opponent was in form and he had to dig deep to win. He came through which is good for his confidence as months ago he should have lost such matches. Skugor met the injured Volandri and had no problems with him. The Ukrainian is the better player by far as he has more talent and power and he is also better suited for the clay, but he is said to have suffered a hamstring injury against Lorenzi and that is the reason for the odds on him rising. No bets here. The Verdict – Dolgopolov in two sets.

Cuevas v Ferrero

Cuevas is a powerful baseliner with big serve and forehand. He plays most of his tennis on clay and he has the skills to do well on the top level. He was hit by injuries this season and that ruined his performance, but he came back two weeks ago and actually did well in Bastad where he reached the quarterfinals. He has never played here before, but should like the slow stuff. Ferrero is a good clay courter with solid defence and sharp counter attacking skills. He started the season very well, but then faded away and he is now struggling to find his form. He went 4-2 in his last two events on clay, but overall more was expected of him. He lost to Mayer in Hamburg and he looked hurt at the end of the match. He is 6-3 here so far and he reached the final last season. The Match – Cuevas started slowly against Vagnozzi, but then picked up the pace and won easily. He has the power and the serve to win on clay and he should like the conditions here. Ferrero suffered from thigh tendinitis last week and he had to miss a couple of days of training. Cuevas will be better prepared for the match and he has the skills to stretch and trouble the Spaniard. A fit Ferrero could handle the South American, but the unfit one might lose easily. The Verdict – Cuevas in three sets.

Montanes v Haider-Maurer

Montanes is a very good clay courter with solid defence and good attacking options. He has a powerful and technical serve and he also plays well in offense when he has to press opponents. He is in great form this season and he already won two titles on the dirt in Estoril and Stuttgart. Haider-Maurer is a clay courter with powerful and defensive ground game. He has a powerful serve and plays most of his tennis on Challenger and Futures level. He has not played on this level on clay since 2006, but he was pretty confident in beating veterans Bastl and Vicente in qualifying. He did not lose a serving game and showed some good focus in the key moments. The Match – Montanes had huge trouble against Riba once again, but this time he managed to clinch the decisive tie-break. Haider-Maurer scored a great result against Istomin, but he looked tired at the end and should find the clay courter against him too much to handle. The qualifier faded away in the match and his powerful ground game should find a good match in Montanes. The Spaniard is the natural favourite and despite his recent lapses we do not see him losing to Haider-Maurer. The Verdict – Montanes in two sets.

Brands v Gasquet

Brands is a powerful server with aggressive game and big forehand. He plays well on fast surfaces, but he has a lot of experience on clay as he plays a lot on it on the Challenger level. He likes altitude tennis and he does well on such events, but he has never played here and he lost his last five matches on clay on the top level. Gasquet is a powerful baseliner with big serve and backhand. He plays well on all surfaces, but his game is too aggressive to be considered competitive on clay. He was sidelined for a month with a back injury, but he claims to be fit now. He won two titles on clay this season and he is a former champion here from 2006. His record here is 8-1. The Match – Brands did well to get past Luczak and he was very solid and powerful on serve making 15 aces and winning 75% on serve. Gasquet also looked dominant against Dustov and he went even better with 82% won on serve. The Frenchman has a great record here and he has the serve and the big kicking shots to trouble Brands. He is also very good against big servers and the German should have no weapon to use against the Frenchman in this match. The Verdict – Gasquet in two sets.

Gimeno v Beck

Gimeno is a solid clay courter who plays a lot on the dirt. He has a good serve and moves well on court. He plays most of his tennis on Challenger level, but he did well in Bastad where he beat Davydenko and Chardy to reach the semifinal. Beck is a powerful leftie with big serve and forehand. He plays a lot on clay as he has the needed experience from the European Challenger circuit. He was injured at the start of the season and he is yet to make a good run on tour. He likes faster clay and should love the altitude here. He made his debut in Gstaad last season and reached the final. The Match – Gimeno was very impressive against Hanescu and he dominated the affair from start to end. He made 8 aces and won 85% on serve. Beck also looked impressive, but he faced a rookie and his performance is not surprise. Gimeno is the better clay courter and when his serve is going well he usually does well on clay. Beck also likes clay and he should use the altitude to unleash the serve and the forehand. Gimeno is the more solid player on the ground and with his serve kicking in he should be the favourite. Beck is not to be underestimated here, but he is yet to get his game going on clay and he should lose this one. The Verdict – Gimeno in three sets.

Andreev v Chiudinelli

Andreev is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with big forehand and serve. He hits the ball with a lot of spin and he should like the fast conditions here as they will give him more winners and his serve will be more effective. He is 15-5 here so far and this is one of his best clay court events. He has been sidelined with ankle injury for some two months now playing only Wimbledon after the injury in Madrid. He claims to be fit now and he should be as he had more than enough time to recover. Chiudinelli is an aggressive baseliner who takes the ball early and hits the ball with a lot of power. He likes to move opponents around and dominate rallies, but his game is more suited for fast surfaces. His form this season is very poor and he is 10-20 on tour (6-9 on clay). He has played in Gstaad four times so far with 6-4 record, but just one victory in the main draw. The Match – Andreev had a good match on Sunday and he had the time to get his game going on the altitude as he rested for three days. His serve was on the needed level and he played well for a returning player. Chiudinelli overcame the favourite Bellucci with very powerful serving and solid ground game. Andreev is the better clay courter and he hits with more spin and power. Chiudinelli will have some edge on serve, but he should have problems with the bounce and the spin of his opponent on the ground. Andreev is the favourite in the match, but there is no value in backing him at these odds. The Verdict – Andreev in two sets.

Tim Smyczek (USA) - Teimuraz Gabashvili (RUS)

Smyczek is a local youngster who plays most of his tennis on hard courts on Challenger level. He has the needed powerful and solid serve and decent ground game. His form is pretty good this season as he reached a final and a couple of quarterfinals on the lower level. He is yet to win a match on the top tour. He had a tough route through qualifying facing better opponents in all rounds, but he managed to beat all of them comfortably. Gabashvili was in good form on grass, but he has gone down against as the hard court season starts. He has turned into a clay courter recently playing more patient and controlled tennis. He has a powerful serve and some big ground strokes, but he generally lacks experience and solid attack to do well on hard. He got well beaten by Schuettler in Atlanta last week and he is 1-9 in his last ten matches on hard. The Match – Smyczek comes off an impressive run in the qualifications and he is hard to oppose in this match. Gabashvili has been shaky and unreliable on hard courts and he is not to be trusted against the match fit and solid American. Smyczek lacks experience on this level and that makes him hard to back in this match, but we might try him at odds above 2. The Verdict – Smyczek in three sets.

Karol Beck (SVK) - Alejandro Falla (COL)

Beck is a veteran on tour who plays mostly on fast surfaces. He has a big serve and likes to attack on the ground, but he has been hit by illness and injuries this season. He had a shoulder injury a week ago and he lost early in Atlanta to Ram. Falla is a big serving leftie who likes fast surfaces. He has an aggressive game and likes to play on all surfaces, but his best matches recently were on grass and hard. He played on clay a week ago, but he comes to the US now to start the hard court tour. The Match – Both are powerful servers with aggressive game, but Beck has been hit by injuries and lacks matches. Falla on the other hand comes from clay and lacks matches on the hard. the match is hard to predict with both having their pluses and minuses, but Falla is healthy and likes the surface so he should be the favourite. The Verdict – Falla in three sets.

Leonardo Mayer (ARG) - [WC] James Blake (USA)

Mayer is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with good serve and very big ground strokes. He lacks patience on the ground and goes for his shots especially on the forehand side. He started playing on the top tour last season and did well on hard. He reached the semis on his debut in LA, but he has not played on hard since March. Blake is a powerful and attacking baseliner. He plays mostly on hard courts and has the needed serve and forehand to do well on them. He was hit by injuries this season and he has not won a match since March. He played in Atlanta last week and lost to Dent in his opening match. He is 5-3 in LA so far, but he is not in form at the moment. The Match – Blake is still rusty and lacks match practice at the moment. His game depends on form and he is definitely not to be backed here. Mayer also lacks matches on hard, but he is in some form at least and he has the power and the skills to beat a rusty opponent. Odds present no value and we will stay away. The Match – Mayer in three sets.

Steve Johnson (USA) – Somdev Devvarman (IND)

Johnson is an unknown name in the tennis world, but he got a wild card for the qualies here and he managed to beat Matosevic, Zheng and Guccione and get into the main draw. He did that with solid game and relied more on return that on serve. He has no ranking in the ATP and his experience consists of a couple of first round losses in the Challengers and a couple of semifinals reached on the Futures level on clay. Devvarman is a solid baseliner with good movement on court and nice power on serve. He plays passive tennis, but covers the courts well and he likes hard courts as he has grown up in them in the US college system. He plays most of his tennis on hard and he recently reached the semis in Aptos. He beat Tursunov, Gong and Lapentti to get into the main draw here. The Match – Johnson is a local college boy and he knows the surface and the conditions well, but the same goes for Devvarman. The Indian is a solid player and he has the skills and the power to keep the ball in play and at the same time to press his opponent with good angles. Johnson is new on this level and despite his good display in qualifying he now enters a territory which is better known to his opponent and we doubt he can pull off another surprise. The Verdict – Devvarman in two sets.

Kristof Vliegen (BEL) - [WC] Ryan Sweeting (USA)

Vliegen was hit by a virus last season and he then had to overcome shoulder injury. He admitted he is not fully fit before going to the US for the hard court spell, but he played well in Atlanta and lost a tight match to Marchenko. He then reached the final in doubles alongside Bopanna and he had to stay in Atlanta until Sunday. He is a powerful server with good speedy ground strokes. He plays more on clay and indoors, but he has the needed experience on hard courts too. Sweeting is a local baseliner with good movement and solid ground game. He lacks the usual big serve, but makes up with defence and consistency. He plays mostly on hard and knows the surface very well, but he has spent his career so far on the Challenger level. He reached the first round through qualifying last week in Atlanta and his overall form is pretty good this season. LA is one of his best events as he reached the second round last season after beating three opponents in qualifying. The Match – The match will be difficult to read as Vliegen is not in the best form in singles, but at the same time he played some matches in doubles last week and got the needed feeling of the courts. He will have just two days to recover and travel though. Sweeting is at home here and he has the solid and consistent game to stay in rallies and force errors out of his tired and shaky opponent. Vliegen lost to the same type of solid opponent last week and he should be weaker this week because of his limited preparation. The Verdict – Sweeting in three sets.

Ilia Bozoljac (SRB) - Robby Ginepri (USA)

Bozoljac is a powerful server with good ground game who hits the ball double handed off both wings. He is a tall and lacks fast movement on court, but he makes up with power and aggression. He plays most of his tennis on Challenger level and he prefers faster surfaces. He passed qualifications here by beating Kosakowski, Klahn and Okun. His serve was going pretty well with 20 aces and he won 85% on his first serve. Ginepri is a local powerful baseliner with good serve and big forehand. He likes and plays well on hard and his game is perfectly suited for it. He has had some injury concerns this season and he is yet to get his game back. He lost early to Fish in Atlanta and his season is bad so far as he lacks matches and wins. He is 10-7 in LA so far. The Match – Ginepri has the game and the skills to do well here, but he does poorly against big servers and his recent form is bad. Bozoljac looked good in qualifying and he has the serve and the power to hit past this opponent. The match looks hard to predict, but Ginepri is not to be backed in his terrible form. Bozoljac might be worth a punt on odds above 3. The Verdict – Bozoljac in three sets.

[SE] Kevin Anderson (RSA) - Illya Marchenko (UKR)

Anderson is a powerful server with big forehand and aggressive ground game. He likes and plays most of his tennis on hard courts, but he played a lot on clay this season and steadied his ground game. He played well in Atlanta last week and reached the semis by beating Tipsarevic, Young and Lacko. Marchenko is a solid baseliner with good movement and powerful shots. He plays most of his tennis on hard and indoors and he has the skills to defend well and press opponents on counter attack. He played in Atlanta last week and lost early to Malisse, but he beat Vliegen before that. The Match – Anderson is the better hard court player and his serve is on fire at the moment. He should find the conditions here to his liking and his recent results support him as the favourite. Marchenko also started the hard court season early, but he is less used to playing on the outdoor hard and he should struggle against the big serve of his opponent. Odds are correctly set so we do not find value for betting, but Anderson should win. The Verdict – Anderson in two sets.

ROBERT, Stephane FRA v PATIENCE, Olivier FRA

Robert started playing on the top tour this season after a good spell on the Challenger level on clay last year. He is a powerful flat hitting player with good serve and variable ground game. He has some problems with his serve this season and overall he seems to find it hard to adjust to the top level, especially on clay where he is just 2-8 this season. He lost early in Bastad and Hamburg and he is 2-10 in his last twelve matches on the tour. Patience is a veteran on tour who has spent most of his career playing on Challenger level. He is a solid and powerful player likes clay and it is his best surface. He has not done anything significant recently, but he played in the semis in Braunschweig three weeks ago. His last victory on clay on this level was in 2008. He passed qualifications here by beating Obradovic, Draganja and Stebe, but his last match was very long and tiresome. The Match – Both are French and both play better on the Challenger level. Robert is in bad form while Patience is in better, but he is not used to playing on this level. Robert has the more aggressive and simple game and he should hold an edge because of his experience on the tour, but we cannot really trust him in this match and will not bet. The Verdict – Robert in three sets.

(WC) VEIC, Antonio CRO v BOLELLI, Simone

Veic is a local Challenger player who plays most of his tennis on clay. He has decent defence and solid ground strokes, but he is yet to make an impression on the tour. He has never won a match on the top level on clay and has actually played such a match just once – here in 2008. He is in good form this season and he reached a couple of semifinals on clay on the lower level, but his recent results are not very good as he got beaten early in Lugano and Poznan. Bolelli is a powerful baseliner with good backhand and speedy serve. He plays most of his tennis on clay and he did well recently as he won the title in Turin and managed to pass qualifications in Hamburg. He had to play qualifications here too and defeated Raditschnigg, Renevand and Semrajc. The opponents were not very strong, but he needed a lot of time to get past them and his last match went for three hours. The Match – Bolelli is the better player by far as he has the skills and the power to handle Veic. He is also shaky in the long term and his long match might prove too much for him here. Veic is a decent clay courter, but he is far from the class of his opponent. Despite the fatigue we think Bolelli has what it takes to handle the local. The Verdict – Bolelli in two sets.

NAVARRO, Ivan ESP v (WC) DODIG, Ivan CRO

Navarro is a net rushing clay courter who has a lot of experience on the dirt, but plays unorthodox and risky tennis. He is a veteran on tour now, but he has not done anything significant so far. He played in Germany in the last two weeks, but managed to qualify just for Stuttgart where he blew a set and a break lead to lose to Garcia-Lopez. Dodig is at home in Umag, but he is just 1-3 here so far. He is a powerful baseliner with good defensive skills and speedy serve. He has enough experience on clay, but without any success and he is yet to win a match on the main tour. He prefers faster surfaces and has done his best indoors. The Match – Navarro is the better clay courter and he has the needed matches and good form to do well here. Dodig is not used to playing on the slow clay, but he might actually capitalize on the net rushing by his opponent. Navarro is the natural favourite in this match as Dodig has not done well here overall, but we will not back him as he is too hazardous at times. The Verdict – Navarro in three sets.

FOGNINI, Fabio ITA v PHAU, Bjorn GER

Fognini is a powerful and aggressive clay courter with good offensive weapons off both wings. He is in good form at the moment and when his game goes well he is hard to stop. His main setback is the lack of consistency and that has prevented him from getting into the top 50. He played well in his last tournaments and reached the third round in Hamburg where he beat Ramirez and Gicquel. He is 4-2 here so far. Phau is a hard courter with good defence and fast movement on court. He has some experience on clay and he does well on the faster clay courts, but this here should prove too slow for him. He lacks big weapons on the ground and he lacks the consistency to stay competitive on the dirt. The Match – Fognini is the better player for clay and he has the good form to progress here. He should not be troubled by Phau who lacks the solid clay court skills to force many extra shots. The Italian has the match in his hands and only he can lose it, but we think he should be able to race through this one. The Verdict – Fognini in two sets.

STARACE, Potito ITA v (7) STAKHOVSKY, Sergiy UKR

Starace is a powerful baseliner who plays almost all his matches on clay. He has good serve and baseline strokes and he moves well for a tall man. He relies on baseline consistency, but can also pound some winners in attack. He has played on Challenger level recently, but he improved his game there and he reached the quarterfinals in Hamburg last week after beating Robredo and Riba. Stakhovsky is a powerful server with aggressive and net rushing game. He likes fast surfaces and polays his best tennis indoors and on hard. He has the skills to stay in rallies, but overall his game is built around serve and attack and he has difficulties doing that on clay. He lost his last four matches on the dirt and his clay court form is pretty poor. The Match – Starace is clearly the better player on the dirt as he has the solid baseline shots as well as the serve and the power to press his opponent. Stakhovsky is not at home here and he has not shown any will to win on the dirt so he should get a quick beating here and head for the States. The Verdict – Starace in two sets.

CUEVAS, Pablo URU v VAGNOZZI, Simone ITA

Cuevas is a powerful baseliner with big serve and forehand. He plays most of his tennis on clay and he has the skills to do well on the top level. He was hit by injuries this season and that ruined his performance, but he came back two weeks ago and actually did well in Bastad where he reached the quarterfinals. He has never played here before, but should like the slow stuff. Vagnozzi is a very solid clay courter with huge experience on the Challenger level. He plays the typical clay court stuff with solid defence and powerful attack. He won the title in Marburg recently and he qualified for this event comfortably by beating Karanusic, Westerhof and Tosic easily. He has just one victory on clay on the tour and that was back in 2004. The Match – Vagnozzi is a decent dirtballer and he has the skills to do well here, but he meets a tough opponent in the main draw. Cuevas has the power and the serve to outplay his inexperienced (on the level) opponent and he is actually fit and in good from at the moment. We expect Vagnozzi to give a good fight, but he lacks the power and the skills to defeat Cuevas. The Verdict – Cuevas in three sets.

(5) PETZSCHNER, Philipp GER v ROCHUS, Olivier BEL

Petzschner is a fast surface player with powerful and tricky serve and good volleys. He is very good in doubles and he has taken his doubles form to singles this season as he did very well on the tour. He likes to finish points fast, but he also has decent baseline skills although he lacks a good backhand and resigns to slice there. He lost early in Stuttgart and Hamburg and he played in the Bundesliga during the weekend. He hurt his finger in a match against Chela and had to retire. Rochus is a solid defensive baseliner with fast movement and good counter attack. He plays well on all surfaces, but his tactics make him better on clay. He has the needed power on the ground and he should like the slower conditions here. The Match – Petzschner is not good on clay and on the slow stuff in Umag he should be easy target at the net. He admitted he needs rest and this event should be a quick one for him in order to prepare for the hard courts. Rochus is a fast and solid player and he should like a hurt and net rushing opponent as he has the angles and the power to expose him. Odds have dropped on the Belgian and present no value at the moment, but he will most probably take this one. The Verdict – Rochus in two sets.

SEPPI, Andreas ITA v GONZALEZ, Maximo ARG

Seppi is a solid clay courter with good defence and fast movement on court. He has a lot of defensive power on the ground and he relies on counter attacks and keeping the ball in play. He is in great form at the moment as he went 6-2 in his last two events on clay and he comes off a semifinal in Hamburg. He is 3-1 in Umag. Gonzalez is a powerful baseliner with good aggressive shots. He plays mostly on clay and on Challenger level where he has seven titles on clay so far. He was hit by injuries this season, but still managed to come back strong and he reached the third round in Hamburg last week by beating Rochus and Ramos before losing to Mayer. He played in the Bundesliga this Friday and he comes to Umag match fit and eager to win. The Match – Gonzalez won the only meeting between the two so far, but he comes as the underdog in this match. Seppi is in good form and he plays well on this slow clay. Gonzalez is the more aggressive player and he will look to break the defence of his opponent, but on these courts he should find it hard to do. The Italian is the favourite because of his good form and consistency and we fully agree. The Verdict – Seppi in two sets.

HAJEK, Jan CZE v MELZER, Gerald AUT

Hajek is a typical clay courter with solid defence and good movement on court. He plays most of his matches on Challenger level and he has huge experience on clay. He started playing more on the top level this season, but without much success. He played Davis Cup in Chile and missed Stuttgart because of that, but then managed to beat Beck in Hamburg before losing to Ferrero. Melzer is a Futures player who plays most of his tennis on clay, but he has not done anything significant on the lowest level so far as he rarely gets deep in the draw there. He got a wild card for qualifying here and managed to beat Ruzic, Sabate and Bardoczky fairly easy as his serve worked well and he played well in general. This will be his debut on this level as he has played on Challenger level just once so far. The Match – Hajek is a very good clay courter and he has the skills and the stable game to handle a weaker and less experienced opponent. Melzer faced minor opposition so far and he should find the Czech too much for his skills. Hajek is a solid player who will not get fooled by the ranking of the opponent and we do not see him losing this one. The Verdict – Hajek in two sets.

[1] Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) - Evgeny Korolev (KAZ)

Youzhny is a powerful baseliner with aggressive game and solid ground strokes. He is controlled and patient now unlike his previous experience and he plays solid and even defensive tennis nowadays. He likes playing on clay and especially on these altitude events where his shots get more power and speed. He won the event in Munchen this season and he will play his last clay court event in Gstaad this season. He has not played on clay since the Slam. He is just 3-4 here so far. Korolev is a very aggressive baseliner with big serve and forehand. He likes faster surface where he has the skills to make quick winners and he is pretty bad on clay. He is 1-11 on clay on the top level in his last matches and he beat just the injured Russell in Belgrade this season. He played in the Bundesliga last Friday and had to retire with undisclosed injury. The Match – Both are powerful and aggressive players, but Youzhny is the more solid one and he is in much better form on the dirt. Korolev should wait for the hard court season to begin as he is helpless on clay now. The Verdict – Youzhny in two sets.

Andrey Golubev (KAZ) – Yuri Schukin (KAZ)

Golubev played great tennis last week and dominated the event in Hamburg winning the title without losing a set. He will lack time to rest and recover and he has to switch to more bouncy and fast surface this week. He is a powerful and aggressive player and with his game going on so smoothly he might actually use the bounce and speed to make more and faster winners. Schukin is a veteran on tour who has spent almost all his career playing Challengers on clay. He is a solid player with decent ground game who relies on defence and ground power. He lacks success on the top tour, but has a number of titles on clay on the lower level including one this season in Zagreb. He passed qualifications here by beating Wolf and Granollers-Pujol and he should be well acquainted with the conditions. The Match – Golubev is definitely to be avoided as he has the fatigue to fight off as he played six matches in the last seven days. He also has to adjust to a totally different conditions and he has to overcome the excitement of the first title in his career. Schukin is a decent player on clay and he has the needed preparation for the event. He might be backed here on odds above 3 as his opponent will surely look to rest. The Verdict – Schukin in three sets.

[6] Victor Hanescu (ROU) - Daniel Gimeno-Traver (ESP)

Hanescu is a tall and powerful baseliner who likes to play on clay. He hits the ball flat and has the power to hit through the courts even on clay. He won the title here in 2008 and he is 7-2 in Gstaad so far. His form is not too good this season as he lost his last three matches on clay and got beaten by Reister and Chiudinelli. He beat Troicki in the Bundesliga this Friday though. Gimeno is a solid clay courter who plays a lot on the dirt. He has a good serve and moves well on court. He plays most of his tennis on Challenger level, but he did well in Bastad where he beat Davydenko and Chardy to reach the semifinal. The Match – Hanescu has more power and bigger serve and he should like the conditions here. His form is a concern as Gimeno proved very solid and reliable against players out of form. The Spaniard is not a regular on this level and he might struggle under the altitude so we will not back him here and will skip the match for betting. The Verdict – Hanescu in three sets.

[WC] Agustin Velotti (ARG) - Andreas Beck (GER)

Velotti is a small and fast clay courter who is yet to make his way to the men’s circuit. He won the junior Roland Garros title without dropping a set this season and he is No 6 in the junior ranking. He plays Futures among the men and he got a couple of semifinals there this season on clay, but he lacks experience among the men. Beck is a powerful leftie with big serve and forehand. He plays a lot on clay as he has the needed experience from the European Challenger circuit. He was injured at the start of the season and he is yet to make a good run on tour. He likes faster clay and should love the altitude here. He made his debut in Gstaad last season and reached the final. The Match – Velotti is undoubtedly a future star on the clay as he has the skills and the movement to do well, but he lacks power and experience to do well among the men at the age of 18. Beck is not in good form, but he has the power and the serve to do well and he has the game to use the conditions in his favour so we do not see him losing to the youngster. The Verdict – Beck in two sets.

Marco Chiudinelli (SUI) - [3] Thomaz Bellucci (BRA)

Chiudinelli is an aggressive baseliner who takes the ball early and hits the ball with a lot of power. He likes to move opponents around and dominate rallies, but his game is more suited for fast surfaces. His form this season is very poor and he is 9-20 on tour (5-9 on clay). He has played in Gstaad four times so far with 5-4 record, but just one victory in the main draw. Bellucci is a powerful leftie with big serve and forehand. He hits with a lot of top spin and likes fast and bouncy surfaces. He plays most of his tennis on clay and he is 19-9 on the dirt this season. He had a month off tennis, but came back last week in Hamburg and reached the quarterfinals. He played here just once before, but came from qualifying to win the title last season. The Match – Bellucci likes the conditions here and he had a good run-up to the event last week. He has the skills and the power to do well on the clay while his opponent is more or less poor on clay. In addition Chiudinelli is in poor form while Bellucci looks great so the Brazilian should have no problem to win. The Verdict – Bellucci in two sets.

[8] Paul-Henri Mathieu (FRA) - Jeremy Chardy (FRA)

Mathieu comes back from injury this season, but he is still unfit and has pain and discomfort to fight off. He is a powerful baseliner with very good backhand and solid serve, but his game is off the track lately and he lost eleven of his last twelve matches on clay. He got beaten by Cuevas and Riba in the last two weeks. He is 10-5 here so far and he is a former champion from 2007 Chardy is a good aggressive baseliner who hits with a lot of spin and likes to attack at the net. He has a powerful serve and plays well on all surfaces, but he prefers faster ones. He likes fast clay courts, but his form is pretty bad this season, which is more or less due to mental problems. He lost early in Stuttgart where he had a title to defend and then got beaten in the third round in Hamburg. He is 6-2 in Gstaad so far with a quarterfinal last season. The Match – Both are pretty shaky at the moment and the victory will be a question of whoever finds his game faster and managed to keep it up for the duration of the match. Chardy has been in better form as he played well in Germany last week while Mathieu is just terrible. The two know each other very well as they played doubles together last week so no surprises should be expected between them. Chardy gets the nod in our eyes, but we do not recommend any bets on this unpredictable affair. The Verdict – Chardy in three sets.

Thiago Alves (BRA) - Jarkko Nieminen (FIN)

Alves got the last direct acceptance in the main draw so he should be the weakest of the list. He is a good solid baseliner who likes to hit winners and he actually plays more and better on hard courts. He has not played a lot on clay on the top level. He has just one victory on clay on the ATP level and that was a win over unfit Moya in 2007. He reached a couple of semifinals on Challenger level on clay this season, but they were on South American clay. Nieminen is a solid leftie with good power on court and nice serve. He is a fighter with good counter attacking skills and good movement on court. He plays well on all surfaces and he has found some form on clay lately. He got a couple of nice victories over Rochus and Simon last week in Hamburg and he served very well. The Match – Alves is a hard courter by game and experience and he lacks matches and skills for this level on clay. He should struggle against the solid defence of his opponent and he lacks the consistency to keep up with the Finn. Nieminen played well lately and he has the power and the angles to press Alves enough to win this match. The Verdict – Nieminen in two sets.

Marcel Granollers (ESP) - [2] Nicolas Almagro (ESP)

Granollers is a powerful baseliner with big serve and forehand. He plays a lot on clay and has the skills for it, but he prefers to be aggressive and he has the power to hit through the court. He is not in good form recently as he lost early in his last events on clay. He is 8-12 on the dirt this season and he lost in his opening main draw match in both Bastad and Hamburg. Almagro is a powerful attacking baseliner with big serve and forehand. He hits with a lot of power and takes his chances and he should like the altitude here. He also has a very nice one-handed backhand and he is in great form this season. He won the title in Bastad and then lost early in Hamburg so he should be rested and fit now. The Match – Almagro has won all three meetings between the two so far. Both are powerful players with big serves, but Almagro has more power on the backhand side and he is generally better on clay. Granollers lacks the same movement on court and he is also weaker in defence. Both will look to take control of the rallies and win points, but Almagro has better skills to do so and he should be able to win this one. The Verdict – Almagro in two sets.

Lukas Lacko (SVK) - [5] Ernests Gulbis (LAT)

Lacko is a hard courter with powerful serve and attacking ground game. He switched to the top tour this season without great success, but fast surfaces are his forte and he did well in Atlanta last week. The courts here are slower than last week, but he has the match practice and he should do well. Gulbis pulled a hamstring in May and has not played since. He trained hard lately and he came here early to get the feel of the courts. He is a powerful baseliner with big serve and attacking ground game. He is in very good form this season with good results on all surfaces, but overall he is a confidence player and he might need some time to get his game back. The Match – These two are similar type of players who count on serve and big powerful ground strokes. Gulbis definitely has more talent and he is more experienced on this level, but he lacks matches while his opponent has boosted his game recently. Gulbis is made favourite by the bookies and he should have the power and the serve to win it, but we definitely do not advice backing him after a long break from tennis. The Verdict – Gulbis in three sets.

Xavier Malisse (BEL) - Dudi Sela (ISR)

Malisse is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with big talent and very good shots off both wings. He is a veteran on tour now and he plays well on all fast surfaces. He did well on grass and he managed to get to the quarterfinals in Atlanta last week. He has played a lot in LA before and he is 7-6 so far with a semifinal reached back in 2001. Sela is a small defensive runner with solid serve and nice counter attack. He plays most of his tennis on hard courts and his game is best suited for them. He is 1-2 here so far and he got well beaten by Young last week as he showed no will to play in that match. The Match – Malisse is in better form at the moment and he comes off a good run. He knows and likes the surface, but the same goes for Sela. The Israeli will look to stay in rallies and force errors out of his opponent and with Malisse being a bit shaky mentally he might succeed. However, the Belgian is in the form of his life now and we are ready to put some trust in him to keep the error count low and win this match. The Verdict – Malisee in two sets. [6]

Janko Tipsarevic (SRB) - Santiago Giraldo (COL)

Tipsarevic took some time off tennis to get married and he is yet to switch to full tennis focus now. He lost early in Atlanta last week and he had the time to get to LA and practice for the new event, but he also took some time to party there too. He is a talented baseliner with good weapons off both wings, but his lack of concentration has always been his big problem. He is a good hard courter and that is his best surface. Giraldo is a powerful baseliner with aggressive game and some nice angles on the ground. He likes to play on fast surfaces, but he has not played on hard since March. He recently played a Challenger on clay in Bogota and reached the quarterfinals. He should like the slower conditions in LA, but he will need time to adjust and shake off the hard court rust. The Match – Tipsarevic has the power and the skills to fight off the opponent and he should start winning at some point. He has the edge in talent and hard court skills and he has played some sets on hard recently while Giraldo comes off clay. That makes the Serbian favourite for this match, but we will not risk any money on him. The Verdict – Tipsarevic in three sets.

[7] Horacio Zeballos (ARG) - Rainer Schuettler (GER)

Zeballos is a Challenger player who started playing on the top level this season. He plays most of his tennis on clay, but he likes faster surfaces and his game is well suited for them. He is a powerful leftie with attacking attitude. He likes to finish points fast and even rush to the net at times. He played in Atlanta last week, but lost to Dent after totally breaking down in the second and third set of the match. Schuettler is a veteran on tour who plays well on all surfaces. He has revived his career this season with some good results on hard on the Challenger level and he got back in the top 100. He is a solid baseliner with good defensive skills and nice counter attacking weapons. He should like the slower conditions here as he will have more time to defend. He played in Atlanta last week and beat Gabashvili before losing to Russell (despite leading with a set and a break and then being three times a break up in the decider). The Match – Both lost embarrassingly last week and will look to make up. Shcuettler is more experienced on hard and his defensive game will look better on the slow hard. Zeballos should actually like the conditions a bit faster for his attacking game and he might struggle against a capable baseliner like the German. Schuettler gets the nod in this match as he is more solid and he is a better hard courter in general. The Verdict – Schuettler in three sets.

[WC] Alexander Sadecky (SUI) – Yann Marti (SUI)

Sadecky is a local wild card who plays most of his tennis on Futures level. He does better on faster surfaces and he recent won some titles on hard and indoors. He is a tall leftie with good serve and attacking attitude which might do fine on the bouncy and fast surface here. He is 1-3 here so far. Marti is a local qualifier who plays mostly Futures events at the moment. He has never played on the top level, but he earned his place by beating Dupuy and Gicquel. He plays well on the baseline and does not possess a big serve. Naturally he won just 58% on serve in qualifying and got broken nine times in five sets, but he won 47% on return. The Match – This match is hard to predict as both players are more or less unknown to the public. Marti has the needed match practice here and his victory over Gicquel must mean a thing. Sadecky will be better on serve as he has more power in that department while Marti will be better on the ground and in return. Marti is better on clay and his matches here will make him favourite for the victory, but we will not bet in this enigmatic encounter. The Verdict – Marti in three sets.

Frederico Gil (POR) - [5] Tommy Robredo (ESP)

Gil is an attacking baseliner with powerful shots and flashy display. He plays in ups and downs and his level of tennis is more suited for the Challenger level. He plays most of his tennis there on clay and he is 19-10 on the dirt on that level. He comes off a quarterfinal in Poznan and his last clay court event on clay was Estoril where he reached the final. Robredo is a very good clay courter with nice defence and good counter attacking options. He plays most of his tennis on the dirt and he comes off a back injury. He needs match practice and he plays the last clay court events in order to get it. He reached the semis in Bastad a week ago and he ran out of gas for Hamburg where he lost in the first round to Starace. The Match – Both are experienced clay courters, but naturally Robredo is the better one as he is much more solid and powerful on court. Gil lacks the consistency to succeed on the top level and against a solid and experienced opponent like Robredo he stands no chance. The Verdict – Robredo in two sets.

Denis Istomin (UZB) – Andreas Haider-Maurer (AUT)

Istomin is a powerful server with big ground strokes. He plays a lot on clay on the Challenger level and he did well in Hamburg last week. He beat Almagro and Reister before losing to eventual champion Golubev. His form is relatively good and he has the power and the skills to handle inexperienced and shaky opponents. Haider-Maurer is a clay courter with powerful and defensive ground game. He has a powerful serve and plays most of his tennis on Challenger and Futures level. He has not played on this level on clay since 2006, but he was pretty confident in beating veterans Bastl and Vicente in qualifying. He did not lose a serving game and showed some good focus in the key moments. The Match – Both are powerful servers, but Istomin naturally has more power and experience on this level. The Uzbek is in good form at the moment and he is the more aggressive player which should do well on these fast courts. The qualifier should be used to the conditions by now, but he meets a more powerful and experienced opponent and we do not think he has the skills to progress. The Verdict – Istomin in two sets.

Daniel Brands (GER) - Peter Luczak (AUS)

Brands is a powerful server with aggressive game and big forehand. He plays well on fast surfaces, but he has a lot of experience on clay as he plays a lot on it on the Challenger level. He likes altitude tennis and he does well on such events, but he has never played here and he lost his last five matches on clay on the top level. Luczak is a powerful baseliner with good ground game and nice serve. He is a veteran on tour and he has huge experience on clay, but he is in bad form this season. He lost his last ten matches on clay on the top level, but he strung together some wins last week on the lower level in Poznan where he beat Janowicz and Cervenak. The Match – Both players are in poor form on clay and the winner is hard to predict. Brands is more powerful and aggressive with bigger serve and that should pay off on the altitude. Luczak also has a useful serve and good movement on court, but he is in worse state of tennis so we will give the nod to Brands, but we do not recommend any betting. The Verdict – Brands in three sets.

Farukh Dustov (UZB) - [7] Richard Gasquet (FRA)

Dustov is a Challenger and Futures player who plays most of his matches on clay. He has a decent serve and the usual solid ground game for his level, but he has never gone on the top level so far. His only match on the top tour last season was here and he lost to Navarro. He passed qualifications this weekend by beating Vogeli and Bemelmans. His serve was going very well and he won 70% behind it. Gasquet is a powerful baseliner with big serve and backhand. He plays well on all surfaces, but his game is too aggressive to be considered competitive on clay. He was sidelined for a month with a back injury, but he claims to be fit now. He won two titles on clay this season and he is a former champion here from 2006. His record here is 7-1. The Match – Dustov is a solid player for his level, but he should find things too hard against Gasquet. The Frenchman might be rusty and impatient for clay, but he has the serve and the good ground strokes to handle the qualifier. The Verdict – Gasquet in two sets.

Dustin Brown (JAM) - [WC] Michael Lammer (SUI)

Brown is a Challenger player with big serve and attacking game. He has a powerful forehand and likes to finish points fast, but he has enough experience on clay on the European Challenger level. He lacks patience and skills to stay in long rallies and he has not won a match on clay on the top level. He lost his last six matches on the dirt and he is not in good form recently. Lamer is a local wild card with powerful ground game and solid serve. He plays more on Challenger level and he likes to press opponents with power and move them around. He prefers faster surfaces and he has never won a match on clay on this level. He played some Challengers on clay recently, but lost early in all of them. He is 2-8 in Gstaad so far with both victories being in qualifying. The Match – Both players are pretty helpless on clay and lack experience on the level. The altitude should boost their serves and Lammer should be more familiar with the conditions as he is at home here. He is also a bit better on clay and can exploit the shaky baseline game of his opponent. However, both are too weak on clay to back any of them here and we need really good odds to back the local player in this match. The Verdict – Lammer in two sets.

RAMIREZ HIDALGO , Ruben ESP v (8) CHELA, Juan Ignacio ARG

Ramirez is a typical clay courter with solid baseline game and nice attacking options. He has the skills to stay in rallies, but he also exploits his chances when he has to press opponents. He has huge experience on clay, but plays mostly on the Challenger level. He won a couple of Challenger titles in clay this season. He is 4-5 here so far with just two wins in the main draw. Chela is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with good movement on court and solid defensive coverage. He is a veteran on tour now and he has huge experience on clay. His form is very good this season as he won the title in Houston. He passed the first round in his last four events on clay and he plays good tennis recently. The Match – The slow surface will suit both players as it will give them time to set up their shots. Chela is in better form at the moment and he has played more matches on the top level while Ramirez has gone more to the lower flight. Chela leads the past meetings 3-1 and he is the natural favourite because of his form, experience and more power. The Verdict – Chela in two sets.

(6) DOLGOPOLOV, Alexandr UKR v LORENZI, Paolo ITA

Dolgopolov is one of the best upcoming players on the tour. He is very talented with a lot of power and technique on the ground and he also has a big serve. He plays more on Challenger level, but has made the step to the top tour recently. He likes clay most, but he had a hip injury at Wimbledon and has played just one match after that. He lost it to Mayer last week in Hamburg. Lorenzi is a solid baseliner with huge experience on clay. He plays only on the dirt and mostly on Challenger level as his attempt at hitting the top tour at the start of the year did not succeed. He is in good form at the moment as he won the title in Rimini on clay and then got to the quarterfinals in Orbetello. He defeated some good clay courters on the way (Del Bonis, Naso, Junqueira), but they were all below the class of the tour guys. The Match – The match could be an intriguing one as the Ukrainian is still rusty and Lorenzi is on fire. However, Dolgopolov should have too much power and talent for the Italian who has done well, but on the lower level. The question here is whether Dolgopolov has shaken off the stiffness of the time off and judging from his last match we think he has and we will give him the nod in this match. The Verdict – Dolgopolov in three sets.

(WC) SKUGOR, Franco CRO v VOLANDRI, Filippo ITA

Skugor is a Challengers and Futures player with powerful ground game and good serve. He did well a week ago in Bastad where he started from qualifying and got to the quarterfinals by beating Istomin and Eleskovic before losing to Almagro. These were his first victories on the top tour. He is 6-5 in Umag so far with all wins coming in qualifying. Volandri is a very good clay courter who plays mostly on Challenger level. He is a veteran on tour who has been hit by injuries and even a ban to drop to the lower level. He is a solid baseliner with good defence and he also has the needed power and angles to press his opponent on the ground. He won two titles in Rome this season, but he got fever in his last event two weeks ago and has not played since. He is 18-7 in Umag so far and he has lost in the first round just once here (last season). The Match – Volandri has the skills and the power to win this match, but his condition is not certain. He claims to have recovered from the flu and he had ten days to do so. Skugor has the serve and the power to hold off an unfit opponent and he did well in Sweden, but overall Volandri has too much experience and expertise for the local wild card. We think Volandri should be fit enough to win this one. The Verdict – Volandri in two sets.

Fish v Isner

Fish is a natural hard courter who has the perfect combination of serve and attacking forehand, which is the best weapon of the US hard courters. He likes fast surfaces and his form is pretty good as he comes off a title in Newport. Isner plays his first event after the loss at Wimbledon and he should be fit and rested for his favourite hard court season. He is a powerful server with big forehand and good volleys, but he has improved the ground game a bit so he should be even better than before. He is 13-3 on hard this season and his game is perfectly suited for the conditions. The Match - Both are powerful servers with attacking game scheme, but Fish is more skillful on the ground. He is also in better form as he stormed through the draw so far while Isner had too much trouble with limited opponents. Isner was far from impressive so far and he looked shaky and clumsy at times while his opponent has been very focused and dominant. Fish has beaten Isner in their only meeting so far and he should be able to do it once again. The Verdict - Fish in two sets.

[4] Albert Montanes (ESP) - Pere Riba-Madrid (ESP)

Montanes is a very good clay courter with solid defence and good attacking options. He has a powerful and technical serve and he also plays well in offense when he has to press opponents. He is in great form this season and he already won two titles on the dirt in Estoril and Stuttgart. Riba is a solid baseliner with good defence and nice movement on court. He plays almost all his tennis on clay and he does it on the Challenger level. He did very well in Hamburg last week as he passed qualifications to get to the third round beating some good opponents like Mathieu and Montanes on the way. The Match – Riba just beat Montanes last week in Germany, but his opponent was tired and despite that the youngster was close to losing a set and a break lead in the match. Montanes is the better player as he is more aggressive and powerful and that will be crucial in Gstaad where the altitude makes the ball faster. He should be rested and better prepared for the event while Riba will have less time to adjust and he will lack the element of surprise. The Verdict – Montanes in two sets.

Igor Andreev (RUS) - Florent Serra (FRA)

Andreev is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with big forehand and serve. He hits the ball with a lot of spin and he should like the fast conditions here as they will give him more winners and his serve will be more effective. He is 14-5 here so far and this is one of his best clay court events. He has been sidelined with ankle injury for some two months now playing only Wimbledon after the injury in Madrid. He claims to be fit now and he should be as he had more than enough time to recover. Serra is a good baseliner who takes the ball early and moves well on court. He has good angles and solid defence and he plays well on all surfaces, but prefers faster ones. He is not in good form this season and he beat only poor fast surface players on clay so far. He is 3-3 in Gstaad, but he usually plays well on such smaller altitude events. The Match – Andreev has the power and the serve to use the altitude well and he is also more experienced and better equipped for the surface. However, his setback is the lack of match practice and therefore he cannot be backed before seen in play. Serra is in poor form, but he has the solid ground game and defensive stability to stay in rallies and force errors out of opponents so he is not to be written off in this match. The Verdict – Andreev in three sets.

Golubev v Melzer

Golubev is a powerful serving hard courter with attacking game and nice volleys. He likes to finish points fast and he is much better on faster surfaces, but he did well on clay this season by reaching two Challenger semifinals so he should know how to handle the dirt. Melzer is a powerful leftie with good baseline game and a lot of variety on court. He can use his serve, volleys, drop shots and slices as weapons, but he is also good in defence and can stay in rallies long enough. He is having a great season and he did well on clay before the grass spell. He lost to Montanes last week in Stuttgart, but he will like the low bouncing conditions here better. The Match - Golubev has found his rhythm this week pounding some mighty winners and good angles on the ground. His serve also works well, but he needs bounce and rhythm to get his shots going. Melzer plays his usual powerful and hard-working and he had no problem in getting to the final. He will stress on variety and slice against the power of his opponent and the question is whether Golubev can keep up the same level he produced so far. He is the one who plays exceptionally well and have to be at his best to win while Melzer has the skills to win with his usual game. That makes the Austrian favorite for the title and odds reflect that well. The Verdict - Melzer in two sets.

Roddick v Fish

Roddick chose to ask for a wild card here as late as last Thursday, but he needs matches after the short grass court season and some injury breaks before that. He is a powerful server with aggressive ground game and he has the perfect package for hard courts. He knows how to play on them and he is more patient and controlled nowadays. He has lost some power on the forehand side, but he should be able to hit through the hard courts easily. Fish is a natural hard courter who has the perfect combination of serve and attacking forehand, which is the best weapon of the US hard courters. He likes fast surfaces and his form is pretty good as he comes off a title in Newport. The Match - Roddick had trouble beating Ram and Malisse and he did not look too solid on his serve. He is also a bit helpless on the ground as he lacks his previous power. Fish on the other hand has been impressive and powerful as he overcame three opponents giving them just 12 games so far. The two know each other very well and Roddick leads previous meetings 9-2. The match looks like a tight one and Fish is in better form at the moment. We might fancy betting on him at odds around 3. The Verdict - Fish in three sets.

Anderson v Isner

Anderson is a powerful server with big forehand and attacking game. He plays a lot on Challenger level and he recently improved his baseline game being more patient and relying more on his backhand side. He has played a lot on hard and he likes the fast US hard courts. He is used to them and his last event here brought him a title in Baton Rouge on the lower level. Isner will play his first match after the loss at Wimbledon and he should be fit and rested for his favourite hard court season. He is a powerful server with big forehand and good volleys, but he has improved the ground game a bit so he should be even better than before. He is 13-3 on hard this season and his game is perfectly suited for the conditions. The Match - Both are powerful servers who will rely on their own serve to win games. The match should feature a couple of tie-breaks and whoever helds his nerve better will prevail. Anderson looked impressive this week as he beat better players like Tipsarevic and Young while Isner had no trouble against Russell, but was very lucky to beat another big server in Muller. Isner is much better than Anderson in tie-breaks so he should hold the edge in this match, but we would not recommend any betting on him on these low odds. The Verdict - Isner in three sets.

Golubev v Mayer

Golubev is a powerful serving hard courter with attacking game and nice volleys. He likes to finish points fast and he is much better on faster surfaces, but he did well on clay this season by reaching two Challenger semifinals so he should know how to handle the dirt. Mayer did very well last week as he reached the reached the quarterfinals in Stuttgart. However, he admitted some fatigue at the end of the event and the conditions here will be different from last week. Mayer is a very talented baseliner with good variety on the ground and powerful ground strokes. He is 8-5 in Hamburg so far. The Match – Both players are in very good form at the moment. Mayer continued his run from last week and improved it a bit. He knows the clay better and he has more variety in his game. He is better on return while Golubev relies on his smoothly going serve. The Kazakh is more aggressive and powerful and his results this week have been pretty impressive too. The match looks like a close one, but Mayer holds the edge because of his better ground game as this is after all clay where serve should not be decisive. The Verdict – Mayer in three sets.

Melzer v Seppi

Melzer is a powerful leftie with good baseline game and a lot of variety on court. He can use his serve, volleys, drop shots and slices as weapons, but he is also good in defence and can stay in rallies long enough. He is having a great season and he did well on clay before the grass spell. He lost to Montanes last week in Stuttgart, but he will like the low bouncing conditions here better. Seppi is a defensive baseliner with good returning skills and nice counter attack. He relies a lot on opponent’s power to use it in his own shots and he plays well on clay. He has passed the first round on six of the seven occasions on clay this season and he is a semifinalist here from 2007. His overall record in Hamburg is 16-6. The Match – Seppi leads the previous meetings 2-1 having won both matches on clay. The Italian is in good form, but Melzer just beats him in that area as he is in much better overall form. The Austrian has the power and the variety to trouble Seppi and he also has the consistency and the slice to take him off his comfort zone. Seppi was impressive so far, but he is just solid and he had to work for more than 3 hours against Bellucci which will spoil his stability a bit. Melzer was dominant this week and we see him overpowering and outplaying his opponent in this match by pure power and change of rhythm. The Verdict – Melzer in two sets.

Roddick v Malisse

Roddick chose to ask for a wild card here as late as last Thursday, but he needs matches after the short grass court season and some injury breaks before that. He is a powerful server with aggressive ground game and he has the perfect package for hard courts. He knows how to play on them and he is more patient and controlled nowadays. He has lost some power on the forehand side, but he should be able to hit through the hard courts easily. Malisse is a powerful baseliner with great technique and solid weapons off both wings. He likes fast surfaces and plays a lot on hard. His only setback is his inconsistency and lack of patience at times. He played well on grass and that should boost his confidence for the upcoming hard court season. The Match – Roddick took more time than needed to handle Ram, but he was a bit rusty and overall needed the exercise. He still stayed unbroken and dispatched 15 aces in as many serving games. Malisse was faster against Marchenko, but he was less impressive as both player made many errors and served badly. The Belgian kept a low first serving percentage and won just 58% on serve. Roddick has won all nine meetings between the two so far and with their performances so far this week in mind we do not see him losing this one. He is far too solid on serve to be broken and Malisse is far too shaky to be considered a threat. The Verdict – Roddick in two sets.

Dent v Fish

Dent is a classic serve and volley player with attacking attitude. He plays a lot on fast surfaces and he likes hard courts, but he has been going down in the recent seasons. He overcame injuries and surgery, but he is just 7-13 on tour this season and he lost to Soeda on grass in his last match before coming here. Fish is a natural hard courter who has the perfect combination of serve and attacking forehand, which is the best weapon of the US hard courters. He likes fast surfaces and his form is pretty good as he comes off a title in Newport. The Match – Dent was lucky to win both his matches as he started badly, but picked up his game while his opponents faded away. He made a lot of errors and despite the speed his serve is not as accurate as it should be. Fish showed great form so far as he beat Ward and Ginepri without hesitation. Both are powerful servers and both know how to play on hard, but Fish is more stable and solid and he has been in much better form lately. He gets the nod in this match as Dent was too shaky to be trusted. The Verdict – Fish in two sets.

Anderson v Lacko

Anderson is a powerful server with big forehand and attacking game. He plays a lot on Challenger level and he recently improved his baseline game being more patient and relying more on his backhand side. He has played a lot on hard and he likes the fast US hard courts. He is used to them and his last event here brought him a title in Baton Rouge on the lower level. Lacko is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with good serve and forehand. He plays most of his tennis on hard courts and he just climbed onto the top level this season. He is not doing too well as he is just 14-15 and 5-5 on hard, but he has picked up some victories recently. The Match – Anderson produced another good serving performance to beat Young and he has been very solid winning 70% on serve so far. Lacko threw the bomb in the second round beating Hewitt. The Aussis was terrible in all aspects of the game and Lacko had to do little to win the match. Anderson will have the edge on serve and Lacko will definitely hold some advantage on the ground as he is more capable of making winners from the backhand side. Both have done well so far, but Anderson served better and he did more to impress with his game. With the serve being a great weapon on hard we give the South African and his experience a slight edge in this match. The Verdict – Anderson in three sets.

Russell v Isner

Russell is a veteran on tour with huge experience on hard. He is a small and fast defensive player and he likes to keep the ball in play and rely on counter attacks. He is not in good form this season, but his best results have been on hard. He played in Winnetka Challenger on hard a week ago and reached the semis. Isner will play his first match after the loss at Wimbledon and he should be fit and rested for his favourite hard court season. He is a powerful server with big forehand and good volleys, but he has improved the ground game a bit so he should be even better than before. He is 12-3 on hard this season and his game is perfectly suited for the conditions. The Match – Russell did well so far, but he met modest opposition and he had the skills to outplay his opponents. Isner started his hard court campaign against Muller with a hard fought victory. He fired 33 aces in 17 serving games and managed to win 72% on serve, but could not break his opponent. Isner has the serve and the power to blow his opponent off court and Russell despite his defence and movement will not be able to stand the pressure. The Verdict – Isner in two sets.

Golubev v Istomin

Golubev is a powerful serving hard courter with attacking game and nice volleys. He likes to finish points fast and he is much better on faster surfaces, but he did well on clay this season by reaching two Challenger semifinals so he should know how to handle the dirt. Istomin made his breakthrough season last year and finished 16-18 in ATP tournaments with two quarter-final appearances. This season he improved his record by reaching the semis in San Jose and Eastbourne. He fares well on all surfaces, but he really likes faster ones more. The Match – Golubev proved to be playing his best tennis so far as he beat Davydenko yesterday, but his opponent made too many errors to be competitive. Istomin played another tough match against Reister, but he showed tough nerves to return yet another break and save himself in the decider. Both are powerful players with solid serving and aggressive game. Istomin has more experience on clay, but Golubev was more impressive so far which makes him a slight favourite. The Verdict – Golubev in three sets.

Mayer v Ferrero

Mayer did very well last week as he reached the reached the quarterfinals in Stuttgart. However, he admitted some fatigue at the end of the event and the conditions here will be different from last week. Mayer is a very talented baseliner with good variety on the ground and powerful ground strokes. He is 7-5 in Hamburg so far. Ferrero is 16-6 in Hamburg and he reached the final way back in 2001. He is a very solid baseliner with good defence and nice counter attacking skills. He also has the needed power on the ground and he has good angles on court. He is not in good form at the moment, but he found some lost momentum last week in Stuttgart where he reached the semifinal. The Match – Mayer is in great form at the moment and he showed great variety and skills in his matches here so far. Ferrero just found his form too and he is making a run for the title looking as good as at the start of the season. Ferrero is the better clay courter and he should find the surface good for his game. Mayer on the other hand has good shots and can move his opponent around well. Ferrero is the better player and he should be able to win with less effort while Mayer has to be at his best to stand a chance here. We give the Spaniard the favorite’s spot, but the odds seem correct without value for betting. The Verdict – Ferrero in three sets.

Starace v Melzer

Starace is a very good clay courter with powerful serve and good ground game. He has the skills to attack well, but he is not in good form at the moment, especially on the top level. He has done well on Challenger level, but he looked shaky last week in Bastad and lost early to Seppi. He is 5-3 in Hamburg so far and should like the slower conditions here. Melzer is a powerful leftie with good baseline game and a lot of variety on court. He can use his serve, volleys, drop shots and slices as weapons, but he is also good in defence and can stay in rallies long enough. He is having a great season and he did well on clay before the grass spell. He lost to Montanes last week in Stuttgart, but he will like the low bouncing conditions here better. The Match – Starace played well enough to beat three opponents so far and he seems in good form on this clay. Melzer overcame just two players, but he looked more impressive and on fire. The Austrian has been great this season so far and he has the power and consistency as well as the variety and serve to do well on clay. Starace also plays well recently, but on the lower level and he lacks the mentality and the stability to be trusted in this situation. The Verdict – Melzer in two sets.

Bellucci v Seppi

Bellucci is a powerful aggressive leftie with big serve and forehand. He plays mostly on clay and he likes to hit with a lot of spin. He is in good form this season being 19-8 on clay so far with a title in Chile, but he has not played for more than a month on the dirt. Seppi is a defensive baseliner with good returning skills and nice counter attack. He relies a lot on opponent’s power to use it in his own shots and he plays well on clay. He has passed the first round on six of the seven occasions on clay this season and he is a semifinalist here from 2007. His overall record in Hamburg is 15-6. The Match – Bellucci followed a good serving performance against Bolelli with a bad one against Kohlschreiber, but his opponent was even worse and allowed him to win. Seppi on the other hand made another good effort and beat Fognini in straight sets. The Italian is in good form here as he has always been and he is playing very solid and controlled tennis. He has his chances in this match as Bellucci relies on his serve a lot and another poor serving day might open the door for his opponent. Value is on the Italian, but at odds above 2.40. The Verdict – Seppi in three sets.

Roddick v Ram

Roddick chose to ask for a wild card here as late as last Thursday, but he needs matches after the short grass court season and some injury breaks before that. He is a powerful server with aggressive ground game and he has the perfect package for hard courts. He knows how to play on them and he is more patient and controlled nowadays. He has lost some power on the forehand side, but he should be able to hit through the hard courts easily. Ram is a good fast surface player with big serve and aggressive net rushing attitude. His form is very bad this season and he has rarely done anything on the main tour. He comes off a first round loss to Matosevic (1-6 1-6) on hard in Aptos last week. He should like the fast conditions here, but his recent form makes him un-backable against almost anyone. The Match – Roddick is the force on hard courts and there is little to say that will justify a bet against him in this match. Ram managed a victory against Beck, but he got broken four times in two sets and for a big server that tells a tale. Roddick should play horrible tennis to lose this one and we do not think he can fall so low. The Verdict – Roddick in straight sets.

Marchenko v Malisse

Marchenko is a solid baseliner with good defensive skills and nice power on the ground. He has gone more into the offense this season and did well even on grass. However, his best surfaces are hard and indoors. He had a shoulder injury at Wimbledon and has not played since, but he claims to be fit now. Malisse is a powerful baseliner with great technique and solid weapons off both wings. He likes fast surfaces and plays a lot on hard. His only setback is his inconsistency and lack of patience at times. He played well on grass and that should boost his confidence for the upcoming hard court season. The Match – Marchenko took quick care of Vliegen, but he did not play too well as he got broken twice by the unfit Belgian. Malisse also handled Sweeting fast, but he was outplayed at times and his first serve was a disaster (38% in). The Belgian is the better player as he has better shots off both wings and he is also more variable and experience on the surface. That makes him the favourite in this match, but unless he steps up with the serve he can be in trouble against the relatively solid Ukrainian. The Verdict – Malisse in three sets.

Anderson v Young

Anderson is a powerful server with big forehand and attacking game. He plays a lot on Challenger level and he recently improved his baseline game being more patient and relying more on his backhand side. He has played a lot on hard and he likes the fast US hard courts. He is used to them and his last event here brought him a title in Baton Rouge on the lower level. Young is a former Wimbledon junior champion, but his future as the next best thing out of the USTA is in big doubt. He is a solid leftie with good movement and nice power on his ground strokes. He plays mostly on hard andupj can be very tough to beat on a good day, but he has not made it to the top level yet as he seems to lose focus when he steps under the lights. He played four Challenger events in the US in the last two months and won one title going 16-3 overall with victories over the likes of Kendrick, Harrison and Devvarman. He just lost the final in Aptos to Matosevic. The Match – These two know each other pretty well from the US hard courts and Young leads the meetings 3-2, but Anderson won the last two matches this season. He beat Tipsarevic impressively and won 70% on serve while Young had more trouble against Sela and only the shaky performance of his opponent gave him the victory. All in all, Anderson is more powerful and aggressive and his game works better at the moment. He is a deserved favourite in this one and we think he will win against the generally shaky local youngster. The Verdict – Anderson in three sets.

Lacko v Hewitt

Lacko is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with good serve and forehand. He plays most of his tennis on hard courts and he just climbed onto the top level this season. He is not doing too well as he is just 13-15 and 4-5 on hard, but he has picked up some victories recently. Hewitt has not played on hard since the Aussie Open, but that should not be a problem to him as he is a solid baseliner and he relies on baseline consistency which is natural to him. He is a fast mover on court and he keeps the ball in play and presses opponents hard. He played well on grass before the hard court spell so his overall form is very good. The Match – Lacko had a lot of trouble against Kunitsyn and he tried to dominate the match, but failed for most of the time. He should find it too hard to boss a solid player like Hewitt around. The Aussie is much better on hard courts and he has the experience and stability to win the match easily. The Verdict – Hewitt in two sets.

Davydenko v Golubev

Davydenko is the reigning champion here, but he comes off a long injury period and he is not match fit at the moment. He is a very good baseliner with aggressive game and great angles on court. He played in Stuttgart last week and lost early to Gimeno. Golubev is a powerful serving hard courter with attacking game and nice volleys. He likes to finish points fast and he is much better on faster surfaces, but he did well on clay this season by reaching two Challenger semifinals so he should know how to handle the dirt. The Match – Davydenko started the campaign on a high with a very good performance against Serra. Golubev proved himself as an above the average clay courter by beating Zverev and Granollers. His serve is going very well and his aggressive game also proves suitable for the surface. Davydenko is the best opponent Golubev meets this week and he should have problems taking control of the match as he likes to do as the Russian is also aggressive and mobile and his class is better. All in all, Davydenko has better angles and shots than Golubev and he will not be imtimidated by the serve of the Kazakh so we do not see him losing this one. The Verdict – Davydenko in two sets.

Reister v Istomin

Reister is a powerful server with decent ground game and a lot of pace on the ground. He plays more on Challenger level and has grown up near Hamburg. He likes to play on clay and he has the weapons to do well on all surfaces in general. He is in good form at the moment having reached two semis in his last two events on clay. He has played qualifications three times here and always failed in the first round. Istomin made his breakthrough season last year and finished 16-18 in ATP tournaments with two quarter-final appearances. This season he improved his record by reaching the semis in San Jose and Eastbourne. He fares well on all surfaces, but he really likes faster ones more. Istomin has a powerful serve and attacking ground game but had difficulties to make the transition from grass onto clay. The Match – Reister was very solid against Brands and Hanescu. He held his serve well and used his power to win the needed points on the ground. Istomin also played well in his last match against the tired Almagro, but he got lucky to win both tie-breaks at the end. Both rely on serve and power, but Reister looked a bit better so far. He is more used to the conditions here and he has more power on the ground. The match is very hard to predict and odds are accurately set, but we give the local wild card just a slight edge. The Verdict – Reister in three sets.

Gonzalez v Mayer

Gonzalez is a Challenger player with powerful and solid game. He lacks experience on the main level and he got well beaten by Golubev last week in Bastad, which does not speak well of his form. He played here only last season and lost in the first round. Mayer did very well last week as he reached the reached the quarterfinals in Stuttgart. However, he admitted some fatigue at the end of the event and the conditions here will be different from last week. Mayer is a very talented baseliner with good variety on the ground and powerful ground strokes. He is 6-5 in Hamburg so far. The Match – Gonzalez managed to win two tough matches so far and he did not look too good in both. He has trouble holding serve against Ramos and only the fatigue of his opponent gave him the match. Mayer is in good form at the moment and he proved that by beating a good clay courter in Dolgopolov. The German plays unorthodox tennis and he is used to the level and the surface. Gonzalez needs to step up in order to stay competitive against a player in form and we doubt he can do it so Mayer looks like the favourite in this match. The Verdict – Mayer in two sets.

Nieminen v Ferrero

Nieminen is a powerful leftie with defensive game and fast movement on court. He relies on rallies and keeping the ball in play as he has good counter attacks and enjoys physical challenges. He is better on faster surfaces, but he has a lot of experience on clay. He lost in Bastad last week to the eventual champion Almagro. He is 8-4 in Hamburg with two third round appearances in the past. Ferrero is 15-6 in Hamburg and he reached the final way back in 2001. He is a very solid baseliner with good defence and nice counter attacking skills. He also has the needed power on the ground and he has good angles on court. He is not in good form at the moment, but he found some lost momentum last week in Stuttgart where he reached the semifinal. The Match – Niemien had to come from a break down to beat Simon and he did it as his opponent faded away at the end of the match. Ferrero also came from a break down in the first set to fight off Hajek. Nieminen is not in good form, but he is a fighter and knows how to play on clay. Ferrero is a great clay courter and he seems to have gained his confidence back. Both are powerful baseliners and Ferrero has the clay court skills to keep Nieminen running and missing. The Spaniard is the better clay courter and by the performance of the Finn so far we do not see him winning this one. The Verdict – Ferrero in two sets.

Riba v Starace

Riba is a youngster who plays his tennis on clay and on the Challenger level. He won four titles on the surface on the lower level and two of them were this season. He is a good baseliner with solid defensive skills. He lacks experience on the top level and is desperately trying to make his transition to ATP level (5-6 on clay ATP tour in 2010). Now Riba passed qualifications in Hamburg just like he did last year beating Navarro and Moriya without dropping a set. Starace is a very good clay courter with powerful serve and good ground game. He has the skills to attack well, but he is not in good form at the moment, especially on the top level. He has done well on Challenger level, but he looked shaky last week in Bastad and lost early to Seppi. He is 4-3 in Hamburg so far and should like the slower conditions here. The Match – Riba did well to beat Mathieu and Montanes and these are the best results in his career so far. He almost blew it against Montanes as he missed match point and then lost the second set, but he managed to return the break in the decider and win the tie-break. Starace also broke through the draw as he beat Robredo in the second round. Both are good clay courters with tons of experience, but Starace is the better one. He is more powerful and aggressive while Riba is better in defence. The Italian has the edge in matches and he is in good form lately and that will make him the favourite. Riba is not to be underestimated, but he should have a let off after the big win and his task against Starace will be tougher than before. The Verdict – Starace in three sets.

Chardy v Melzer

Chardy had to defend his title in Stuttgart last week, but his shaky form and a minor shoulder injury prevented him from doing that and he lost in the first round to Gimeno. He is a powerful baseliner with good aggressive game. He has the skills to stay in rallies, but he is also a good finisher of points. His confidence is low this season and his game is bad. Melzer is a powerful leftie with good baseline game and a lot of variety on court. He can use his serve, volleys, drop shots and slices as weapons, but he is also good in defence and can stay in rallies long enough. He is having a great season and he did well on clay before the grass spell. He lost to Montanes last week in Stuttgart, but he will like the low bouncing conditions here better. The Match – Chardy managed to hold off the hurt Chiudinelli and the out of sorts Petzschner so far and that should give him the needed confidence to progress in the rankings. Melzer on other hand had no trouble against Schwank. He should be too solid and variable for the shaky Frenchman in this match. The Austrain is in great form this season, especially on clay while Chardy has been struggling to find his way. Melzer is the natural favourite in this match and we cannot oppose him. The Verdict – Melzer in two sets.

Bellucci v Kohlschreiber

Bellucci is a powerful aggressive leftie with big serve and forehand. He plays mostly on clay and he likes to hit with a lot of spin. He is in good form this season being 18-8 on clay so far with a title in Chile, but he has not played for more than a month on the dirt. Kohlschreiber is just 5-7 in Hamburg with just three victories in the main draw. He is a powerful baseliner with good weapons off both wings and nice serve, but his recent form is very bad. He has trouble with his serve and he also makes a lot of errors which makes his attacking game a pain to watch. He lost early last week to Mayer and he looked very bad. The Match – Bellucci used his powerful serve well enough to hold off Bolelli and he should have tuned his game to the courts by now. Kohlschreiber also had some trouble in getting past Chela, but finally prevailed mostly due to his opponent’s errors after the first set. Bellucci has been much better on clay this season and he has the serve and the attacking power to stay solid and press the local favourite hard. Kohlschreiber on the other hand has been too shaky and unsure lately to be backed against a powerful clay courter so we give the visitor the nod in this match. The Verdict – Bellucci in two sets.

Seppi v Fognini

Seppi is a defensive baseliner with good returning skills and nice counter attack. He relies a lot on opponent’s power to use it in his own shots and he plays well on clay. He has passed the first round on six of the seven occasions on clay this season and he is a semifinalist here from 2007. His overall record in Hamburg is 14-6. Fognini is a clay courter with aggressive attitude but inconsistent game. His lack of stability has prevented him from getting at the top of the rankings. He has a lot of power on the ground and when in good form he can beat almost anyone. He has improved his game recently and he did pretty well since French Open. 2010 started very bad for him and he was hardly been able to pass the first round but there are positive signs in his game during the last two months. The Match – Both are very good clay courters with Seppi being the more passive one and Fognini the more risky and offensive. Seppi has won all four meetings between the two so far and he looks better for this one too. He beat Robert and Berrer without any hesitation and looks in great form. Fognini defeated Ramirez and Gicquel, but he had luck with the draw and he will have a hard time breaking the defence of his compatriot. The Verdict – Seppi in two sets.

Zeballos v Dent

Dent is a classic serve and volley player with attacking attitude. He plays a lot on fast surfaces and he likes hard courts, but he has been going down in the recent seasons. He overcame injuries and surgery, but he is just 6-13 on tour this season and he lost to Soeda on grass in his last match before coming here. Zeballos is a clay courter with distinct liking to faster surfaces. He is a leftie with powerful and tricky serve and aggressive attitude on court. He likes to finish points fast and even rush to the net at times and he does well in doubles where his ranking is even higher than in singles. He lacks huge experience on hard, but has played a few top events on the surface and a lot of Challengers. The Match – Dent managed to beat Blake in a bad match full of errors. He got broken twice but had to save 12 break points and he made more double faults than aces (8 to 13). Zeballos lacks matches on hard recently and he comes off the clay in Stuttgart, which might be a setback to him, but he has the skills to hold off Dent and if the American plays as shaky as he has done recently we give Zeballos a big chance to progress. This should be a bet against Dent who is no good at the moment. The Verdict – Zeballos in two sets.

Ginepri v Fish

Ginepri won the Indianapolis tournament last season and this season it got moved to Atlanta so he has to be the defending champion here. He lives close by so he knows the conditions very well and his game is perfectly suited for hard courts. He is a powerful aggressive baseliner with good serve and forehand. He has been hit by injuries this season, but he managed to post some good runs on grass and clay and that means his form is back. Fish is a natural hard courter who has the perfect combination of serve and attacking forehand, which is the best weapon of the US hard courters. He likes fast surfaces and his form is pretty good as he comes off a title in Newport. The Match – These two are good hard courters who know each other very well and will present no surprises to each other. Fish has been in better form recently, but on the other hand Ginepri leads the past meetings 5-1 which should ring a bell. Fish played better in his opener and based on his current form he should be favourite. However, Ginepri is not to be underestimated as the trend in their matches in that the lower ranked played always wins. The Verdict – Fish in three sets.

Russell v Schuettler

Russell is a veteran on tour with huge experience on hard. He is a small and fast defensive player and he likes to keep the ball in play and rely on counter attacks. He is not in good form this season, but his best results have been on hard. He played in Winnetka Challenger on hard a week ago and reached the semis. Schuettler is 34 now, but he is enjoying a late surge in his career thanks to his performances on hard and grass courts. He reached a couple of Challengers finals on hard and he reached the semis in London on grass which brought him back on track with his ranking. He is a solid baseliner with fast legs and good defence. He relies on counter attacks, but he keeps the ball in play well and he is very tough mentally. The Match – Russell recorded a good victory in his first match, but the truth is his opponent could not serve well at all and looked messy on court. Schuettler also had an easy outing against Gabashvili and did the job in straight sets. Both are solid baseliners and plays defensive and clever tennis. Both have a lot of experience on hard courts and both are veterans with shaky recent results. The winner is very hard to predict, but Russell is younger and has better knowledge of the US hard so he gets the nod. The Verdict – Russell in three sets.

Muller v Isner

Muller is a powerful leftie with huge serve and aggressive net rushing ground game. He likes to play on fast surfaces and he has a lot of experience on hard, but injuries kept him off the tour this season and he is now down in the rankings. He had to qualify for this event and made it impressively as he fired 21 aces and won 85% on serve without getting broken in three matches (against Wettengel, Lewis and Levy). Isner will play his first match after the loss at Wimbledon and he should be fit and rested for his favourite hard court season. He is a powerful server with big forehand and good volleys, but he has improved the ground game a bit so he should be even better than before. He is 11-3 on hard this season and his game is perfectly suited for the conditions. The Match – Muller doubled his aces against Przysiezny as he fired another 21 and won 75% on serve. He looks in good form at the moment and he has enough match practice under his belt here. Both are powerful servers with big attacking shots and the match should be a tight one without many breaks of serve. Muller is a leftie, which might trouble Isner who lacks matches against lefties in his career (13-14 since 2006). Muller is 129-90 (70%) in tie-breaks in his career and Isner is 111-71 (64%). The match is surely going to be a tight one and Muller might just get that extra edge because of his match practice. The Verdict – Muller in three sets.

Hanescu v Reister

Hanescu is a tall and powerful clay courter who hits the ball rather flat and has a big serve. He needs time to move well on court and set up his shots, which makes him better on slower surfaces. He has a lot of experience on clay, but he does better on smaller events and he lost early last week in Stuttgart. Reister is a powerful server with decent ground game and a lot of pace on the ground. He plays more on Challenger level and has grown up near Hamburg. He likes to play on clay and he has the weapons to do well on all surfaces in general. He is in good form at the moment having reached two semis in his last two events on clay. He has played qualifications three times here and always failed in the first round. The Match – Hanescu will use the serve well and the low bouncing slow surface will also suit his game. Reister defeated Brands in the opening round and he was pretty impressive on serve winning 77% of the points behind it. Both are powerful player with big serves and attacking ground game. Hanescu is the better player overall and he has more experience on the surface and on the level. That makes him favourite in this match, but this will be his debut while Reister already has a victory under his belt so we will not rush any bets on him. The Verdict – Hanescu in three sets.

ISTOMIN, Denis UZB v (5) ALMAGRO, Nicolas ESP

Istomin made his breakthrough season last year and finished 16-18 in ATP tournaments with two quarter-final appearances. This season he improved his record by reaching the semis in San Jose and Eastbourne. He fares well on all surfaces, but he really likes faster ones more. Istomin has a powerful serve and attacking ground game but had difficulties to make the transition from grass onto clay. Almagro won the title in Bastad and he needs some rest, but he will have just two days to get used to the conditions in Hamburg. He likes to play here as the surface suits his power and the air is good for his powerful serve. He is 9-4 in Hamburg so far and he needs the points as this is one of the last clay courts events this season. The Match – Istomin had quite a few problems against Rosol, but his serve managed to bail him out. He is a lower level of player than Almagro and normally he would not stand a chance as the Spanaird is better in the areas which are main strengths for the Uzbek – serve and attack. Almagro might be tired and that is the catch in this match so we would not recommend any betting despite feeling that Almagro will win. The Verdict – Almagro in two sets.

(8) MONTANES, Albert ESP v (Q) Riba, Pere ESP

Montanes comes off a title in Stuttgart and he had an easy way through the final so he should be well rested for this week. The surface is slower here and that might actually suit his game better. He is a very good clay courter and he has the defence and the angles and counter attack to do well on the dirt. He is 4-4 in Hamburg so far, but he got to the quarterfinals in his last appearance in 2008. Riba is a youngster who plays his tennis on clay and on the Challenger level. He won four titles on the surface on the lower level and two of them were this season. He is a good baseliner with solid defensive skills. He lacks experience on the top level and is desperately trying to make his transition to ATP level (5-6 on clay ATP tour in 2010). Now Riba passed qualifications in Hamburg just like he did last year beating Navarro and Moriya without dropping a set. The Match – Riba played a strange match against Mathieu as he lost the first set badly, but then his opponent fell apart and he dominated the rest of the proceedings. Montanes is the better clay courter as he has more power and better skills for the surface. Riba is still inexperienced and shaky and the only chance for him is his opponent to be tired. However, we do not think Montanes will give up on the event so easy and we see him as the more likely winner. The Verdict – Montanes in two sets.

(13) PETZSCHNER, Philipp GER v CHARDY, Jeremy FRA

Petzschner is a doubles player who has become a very good singles one too recently. He is a fast surface player as he uses the slice a lot and he rushes to the net often. He has a powerful serve and solid baseline game, but lacks weapons and defensive skills for clay. He did well on the fast altitude German clay in the spring, but Hamburg is slower although it bounces low and the air is thin. Chardy had to defend his title in Stuttgart last week, but his shaky form and a minor shoulder injury prevented him from doing that and he lost in the first round to Gimeno. He is a powerful baseliner with good aggressive game. He has the skills to stay in rallies, but he is also a good finisher of points. His confidence is low this season and his game is bad. The Match – Chardy defeated a very shaky Chiudinelli in the first round and he will look to string together a couple of confidence boosting victories. His opponent is a tricky one and Chardy might find it hard to handle the serve and the slice as he hits with spin. Petzschner is not very good on clay, but he has confidence and mental power while Chardy is not a solid player and he is out of form. The match looks like a tight one with just the home soil giving Petzschner some edge. The Verdict – Petzschner in three sets.

SCHWANK, Eduardo ARG v (3) MELZER, Jurgen AUT

Schwank is a powerful server with aggressive game and big ground strokes. He plays most of his matches on clay and he is well used to the surface, but his recent form is pretty bad. He had some shoulder problems and he lost his last five matches on the tour. He got well beaten by Chela last week in Stuttgart, but managed to win the title in doubles alongside Berlocq. Melzer is a powerful leftie with good baseline game and a lot of variety on court. He can use his serve, volleys, drop shots and slices as weapons, but he is also good in defence and can stay in rallies long enough. He is having a great season and he did well on clay before the grass spell. He lost to Montanes last week in Stuttgart, but he will like the low bouncing conditions here better. The Match – Schwank got no resistance from Kamke and won in straight sets, but his serve was not impressive and he almost blew a two breaks’ lead in the second set. Melzer will move him around well and use his leftie serve to exploit the weaker backhand side of the Argentinean. The Austrian has the better skills and he is in better form on clay this season so we will vote for him here, but beware of the late start factor. The Verdict – Melzer in two sets.

(7) BELLUCCI, Thomaz BRA v (Q) Bolelli, Simone ITA

Bellucci is a powerful aggressive leftie with big serve and forehand. He plays mostly on clay and he likes to hit with a lot of spin. He is in good form this season being 17-8 on clay so far with a title in Chile, but he has not played for more than a month on the dirt. Bolelli is an aggressive baseliner with powerful ground game and beautiful one-handed backhand. He lacks consistency and that makes him too unpredictable overall. There was a time when he was playing successfully in ATP Tour but as it happens usually injuries stop his serge and after that it is even more difficult to retain the previous form. He passed the qualies here by defeating Zay and Crivoi. The Match – Bolelli already played three matches here and that is a big plus for him. He served well so far and his aggressive game paid off. Bellucci is also an aggressive player and he will look to play on the Italian’s backhand, but that is actually a good part of Bolelli’s game. The Italian will use the courts well and he has the matches here in his favour so we might fancy a bet on him as the Brazilian has not played here so far and might find the low bounce a bit tough for his spin. The Verdict – Bolelli in three sets.

CHELA, Juan Ignacio ARG v (10) KOHLSCHREIBER, Philipp GER

Chela is a powerful aggressive clay courter with good serve. He is a veteran on tour now, but he found some form this season and he is playing very well this season. He should like the slower conditions here as he is a solid defender too. He played well last week in Stuttgart and he also played some matches in the Bundesliga so he is well trained and ready for the German clay. Kohlschreiber is just 4-7 in Hamburg with just two victories in the main draw. He is a powerful baseliner with good weapons off both wings and nice serve, but his recent form is very bad. He has trouble with his serve and he also makes a lot of errors which makes his attacking game a pain to watch. He lost early last week to Mayer and he looked very bad. The Match – Chela is in very good form on clay and he took Stakhovsky apart in his first match here. The German is not in form and he has not done too well here as the surface does not suit his game. Chela is the better player at the moment and he gets the nod in this match. The verdict – Chela in two sets.

(16) BERRER, Michael GER v SEPPI, Andreas ITA

Berrer is a powerful serving leftie who plays more on fast surfaces and likes to finish points fast. Clay is his worst surface as he lacks patience and defensive consistency to dominate rallies and his slice and dice rarely works on clay. In addition he had an ankle injury which stopped him from playing on grass this season. He returned in Stuttgart last week, but lost to Greul. He is 1-4 in Hamburg so far and 0-6 in his last matches on the dirt. Seppi is a defensive baseliner with good returning skills and nice counter attack. He relies a lot on opponent’s power to use it in his own shots and he plays well on clay. He has passed the first round on six of the seven occasions on clay this season and he is a semifinalist here from 2007. His overall record in Hamburg is 14-6. The Match – Seppi had to overcome a break deficit at the start of his match with Robert, but he recovered and never looked back. He is in good form and he has the patience and solid defence to handle Berrer. The German is too shaky on clay to be backed here and Seppi looks like a probable winner. However, the Italian does not handle lefties, big servers and slicers well and Berrer is a combination of the three so despite the justified favourite spot in this match we do not fancy betting on Seppi. The Verdict – Seppi in three sets.

SWEETING, Ryan (USA) v (7) MALISSE, Xavier BEL

Sweeting is a tall player with powerful serve and good solid ground game. He plays mostly on hard courts and on Challenger level and he know the US hard by heart. He passed qualifications here by beating Shabaz and Smyczek. He was not challenged hard and yet he had some trouble making it past the second hurdle. He has not done well on the top tour this season being 1-5 on all surfaces. Malisse is a powerful baseliner with great technique and solid weapons off both wings. He likes fast surfaces and plays a lot on hard. His only setback is his inconsistency and lack of patience at times. He played well on grass and that should boost his confidence for the upcoming hard court season. The Match – Both will rely more on baseline exchanges than on serve and Malisse has a huge advantage there. He is the more experienced player and his recent form suggests that he should have no problems against the modest local qualifier. The Verdict – Malisse in two sets.

DENT, Taylor USA v BLAKE, James USA

Dent is a classic serve and volley player with attacking attitude. He plays a lot on fast surfaces and he likes hard courts, but he has been going down in the recent seasons. He overcame injuries and surgery, but he is just 5-13 on tour this season and he lost to Soeda on grass in his last match. Blake has been out of the competitive tennis for more than ten weeks this season and he made his return from knee injury on grass. He admitted that he made that prematurely and he needed a month more to rest after that, but he confirms he is free of any pain now. He is a powerful aggressive baseliner with big serve and forehand and that is pretty much all he needs to be good on hard. The Match – These two have gone through some hard times and they are not in good form. Blake should be rusty and will need matches while Dent is not focused and he is out of form. Blake is made the favourite as he is more solid overall while Dent risks too much. In addition Blake leads previous matches 4-1, but naturally we will not want to risk any money on this coin toss of a match. The Verdict – Blake in three sets.

GINEPRI, Robby USA v LINDAHL, Nick (AUS)

Ginepri won the Indianapolis tournament last season and this season it got moved to Atlanta so he has to be the defending champion here. He lives close by so he knows the conditions very well and his game is perfectly suited for hard courts. He is a powerful aggressive baseliner with good serve and forehand. He has been hit by injuries this season, but he managed to post some good runs on grass and clay and that means his form is back. Lindahl is an Aussie hard courter with a lot of matches on hard and no victories on the top tour. he plays all his tennis on Challenger level, but he started to get more ambitious this season and he already played four matches in the main draw on the tour this season (lost them all without winning a set). He passed qualifications here by beating Dancevic and Sajous and he played very good hard court tennis winning 75% on serve and pressing opponents on the return. The Match – Ginepri is a real hard courter and he has the skills and the class to win this one, but he lacks matches on the surface. Lindahl has the matches and the serve, but he lacks experience and skills to match the American. Ginepri should be motivated and eager to start the local season well so he is the favourite in this match, but having in mind the impressive qualifying of Lindahl we would like to see the local favourite play before backing him. The Verdict – Ginepri in three sets.

(5) TIPSAREVIC, Janko SRB v ANDERSON, Kevin RSA

Tipsarevic got married recently and that along with some health problems should be blamed for his shaky form as he went 0-7 in seven of his last eight tournaments. He played Davis Cup last and beat Veic in a dead rubber. He is a solid baseliner with good powerful weapons of both sides and great talent on the ground. He likes and plays his best tennis on hard courts, but he will need some time to get back his winning form. Anderson is a powerful server with big forehand and attacking game. He plays a lot on Challenger level and he recently improved his baseline game being more patient and relying more on his backhand side. He has played a lot on hard and he likes the fast US hard courts. He is used to them and his last event here brought him a title in Baton Rouge on the lower level. The Match – Tipsarevic has the skills and the power to handle the serve and the ground attack of his opponent. Anderson on the other hand will rely on serve and his form is pretty good recently. Tipsarevic is questionable form-wise as he has had too much to distract him lately. He should be favourite if he brings his best game, but we doubt he can suddenly start in fifth gear. The Verdict – Anderson in three sets.

(WC) YOUNG, Donald USA v SELA, Dudi ISR

Young is a former Wimbledon junior champion, but his future as the next best thing out of the USTA is in big doubt. He is a solid leftie with good movement and nice power on his ground strokes. He plays mostly on hard and can be very tough to beat on a good day, but he has not made it to the top level yet as he seems to lose focus when he steps under the lights. He played four Challenger events in the US in the last two months and won one title going 16-3 overall with victories over the likes of Kendrick, Harrison and Devvarman. He just lost the final in Aptos to Matosevic. Sela is a hard courter with very solid defence and fast movement on court. He likes the surface and he plays a lot on it. He relies a lot on counter attacks, but he also has a powerful serve and some nice angles on the ground. He is in decent form this season and he did very well on hard, but mostly on the Challenger level. The Match – Both players have played more on the Challenger level hard courts recently and Young tends to be more successful there, but his opponents have not been close to the quality of Sela. Both are solid and defensive and on the fast courts in Altanta one has to be on top of his game to handle the opponent. Sela has more experience on this level and he is also more complete as a player so he gets the nod in this match, but despite his mental weakness Young is not to be underestimated at home. The Verdict – Sela in three sets.

LACKO, Lukas SVK v KUNITSYN, Igor (RUS)

Lacko is a powerful and aggressive baseliner with good serve and forehand. He plays most of his tennis on hard courts and he just climbed onto the top level this season. He is not doing too well as he is just 12-15 and 3-5 on hard, but he has picked up some victories recently. Kunitsyn is a powerful attacker from the baseline who likes fast surfaces. He plays his best tennis indoors and he is known as an impatient and risky player. His form is pretty poor this season and he had to pass qualification for this event. He defeated Thompson and Evans, but failed to impress as he got broken five times in the two matches and played shaky tennis. The Match – Kunitsyn did not impress so far and he is not in good form. For a risky and aggressive player like him to be out of form is fatal and he needs a decent opponent to drop out. Lacko is a decent player and he is slowly getting to know the top level and to string some wins together. The Slovak has the serve and the power to press his opponent and he is in better shape than the Russian, which makes him favourite for the victory. The Verdict – Lacko in two sets.

PRZYSIEZNY, Michal POL v MULLER, Gilles (LUX)

Przysiezny is a tall player with big serve and attacking flat ground strokes. He plays most of his tennis on Challenger level and he divides his time between hard and clay. His best surfaces should be the fast ones as he has the power and the serve to do well on them, but the European calendar has made him a good clay courter too. He lost to Robredo in Bastad last week and now has to play on hard, which might be hard for him in such short notice. Muller is a powerful leftie with huge serve and aggressive net rushing ground game. He likes to play on fast surfaces and he has a lot of experience on hard, but injuries kept him off the tour this season and he is now down in the rankings. He had to qualify for this event and made it impressively as he fired 21 aces and won 85% on serve without getting broken in three matches (against Wettengel, Lewis and Levy). The Match – Both are tall and powerful and both will rely heavily on serve. Muller has more experience on this level and on this surface and he also has the matches under his belt. He was unbreakable in qualifying and he will have the upper hand in this match as his opponent comes off clay and lacks the experience and matches to do well in his first match in the US. The Verdict – Muller in two sets.

(1) DAVYDENKO, Nikolay RUS v SERRA, Florent FRA

Davydenko is the reigning champion here, but he comes off a long injury period and he is not match fit at the moment. He is a very good baseliner with aggressive game and great angles on court. He played in Stuttgart last week and lost early to Gimeno. Serra is a good all court player with simple flat game and solid defence. He moves well on court taking the ball early, which makes him dangerous, but also predictable and skilled opponents are able to adjust to his game fairly easy. The Frenchman has a lot of experience on clay and he is 3-3 here. The Match – Serra beat Korolev in the first round, but he will have more trouble now. Both are powerful and aggressive players with similar style. The Russian is better in every department as he has better angles, more power and better serve. He is also more experienced on clay, but Serra has a big edge in match practice. However, Davydenko should get a victory at some point and an average clay courter like Serra is a perfect opportunity for that. The Verdict – Davydenko in two sets.

GOLUBEV, Andrey KAZ v GRANOLLERS, Marcel ESP

Golubev is a powerful serving hard courter with attacking game and nice volleys. He likes to finish points fast and he is much better on faster surfaces, but he did well on clay this season by reaching two Challenger semifinals so he should know how to handle the dirt. Granollers is a powerful baseliner with big serve and good attacking skills. He likes to finish points fast and despite having grown up on clay he plays better on faster surfaces. He has played some good events on clay, but mostly on the Challenger level. He has passed the second round in just one of the eleven attempts to do that on the main tour on clay. He is 5-2 here with just one victory in the main draw and he lost in qualifying this season to Rochus, but got lucky as Garcia-Lopez withdrew. The Match – Both prefer faster surfaces and have more weapons for them. Granollers has more experience on clay and he has the serve and the power to dominate the rallies, but Golubev also has some weapons and he played well against Zverev. The match is not easy to predict and we are leaning towards the experience of the Spaniard, but his poor form will probably prevent us from backing him. The Verdict – Granollers in three sets.

(WC) BRANDS, Daniel GER v (WC) REISTER, Julian GER

Brands is a tall and powerful player with big serve and big ground strokes. He plays most of his tennis on clay and on Challenger level, but he started getting more on the top level in the recent seasons. He had no success there, but he gathered experience. He reached the third round in Hamburg last season and the surface here should suit his big serve. Reister is a powerful server with decent ground game and a lot of pace on the ground. He plays more on Challenger level and has grown up near Hamburg. He likes to play on clay and he has the weapons to do well on all surfaces in general. He is in good form at the moment having reached two semis in his last two events on clay. He has played qualifications three times here and always failed in the first round. The Match – Both are similar type of players with powerful shots and good serves. They have a lot of experience on this type of clay and they are in decent form on clay at the moment. Brands has more experience on this level and he is also better suited for the event as he has nice memories from last season. The Verdict – Brands in three sets.

(LL) RAMOS-VINOLLAS, Albert ESP v GONZALEZ, Maximo ARG

Ramos-Vinolas is a lucky loser in the main draw as he capitalized on the numerous withdrawals from the event. He is a solid baseliner with the needed power and attacking weapons for clay, but naturally he relies on defence and stability. He lost to Ramirez in the second qualifying round and he was well beaten in that match. His best event so far was Barcelona where he beat Russell and Gonzalez to get to the third round and lose to Gulbis. This is his second appearance in the main draw on tour. Gonzalez is a Challenger player with powerful and solid game. He lacks experience on the main level and he got well beaten by Golubev last week in Bastad, which does not speak well of his form. He played here only last season and lost in the first round. The Match – Both are experienced clay courters who love the dirt and the slow rallies. Gonzalez has more power and he is more aggressive. Ramos is not experience on this level and he did not look impressive in qualifying while Gonzalez did well to hold off Rochus. The South American got lucky with the draw and he is the natural favourite in this match. The Verdict – Gonzalez in two sets.

MAYER, Florian GER v (15) DOLGOPOLOV, Alexandr UKR

Mayer did very well last week as he reached the reached the quarterfinals in Stuttgart. However, he admitted some fatigue at the end of the event and the conditions here will be different from last week. Mayer is a very talented baseliner with good variety on the ground and powerful ground strokes. He is just 5-5 in Hamburg so far. Dolgopolov is a Challenger player with great talent. He plays a lot on clay and he has a big serve and huge power on the ground. He is also a clever player who uses the slice and the drop shot a lot. He is slowly getting on the main tour now and he played well in his last events on the dirt. He picked up a hip injury at Wimbledon and he has not played since. He was scheduled to play in Stuttgart last week, but could not do it as he had not recovered fully. The Match – Both are powerful players with good serves and both play clever and tricky tennis. Dolgopolov has more power on serve and on the ground and he is more used to playing on clay. His season form is also better, but Mayer has the edge in recent form and he played well to beat Cuevas yesterday. The match looks like a tight one and we cannot determine the winner with any certainty, but might go with Mayer based on his recent run. The Verdict – Mayer in three sets.

(9) SIMON, Gilles FRA v NIEMINEN, Jarkko FIN

Simon is a very solid baseliner with fast movement on court and a lot of power on the ground. He had a long injury break because of his knee and he is now making a slow comeback. He has not played on clay recently and he had a hard time beating Brown last week. He is 6-5 in Hamburg, but he will look forward to getting on hard courts where he is better. Nieminen is a powerful leftie with defensive game and fast movement on court. He relies on rallies and keeping the ball in play as he has good counter attacks and enjoys physical challenges. He is better on faster surfaces, but he has a lot of experience on clay. He lost in Bastad last week to the eventual champion Almagro. He is 7-4 in Hamburg with two third round appearances in the past. The Match – Simon has lost his last four matches against lefties and he might struggle against the Finn. Nieminen is the same type of solid and stubborn player like the Frenchman and he did well against Rochus. He fired 12 aces and put in 77% of his first serve. He is experienced on clay and he has the skills to move Simon around and make him play a lot of balls. Nieminen should be better physically and that is the key on clay so we see him as the more likely winner. The Verdict – Nieminen in three sets.

HAJEK, Jan CZE v (6) FERRERO, Juan Carlos ESP

Hajek is a very solid baseliner with good defensive skills and fast movement on court. He plays his best tennis on clay, but he does better on the Challenger level and after a shaky start on the top tour he returned to the Challengers this season. He played Davis Cup a week ago and helped his country defeat Chile on clay. Ferrero is 14-6 in Hamburg and he reached the final way back in 2001. He is a very solid baseliner with good defence and nice counter attacking skills. He also has the needed power on the ground and he has good angles on court. He is not in good form at the moment, but he found some lost momentum last week in Stuttgart where he reached the semifinal. The Match – Hajek worked hard to get past Beck and he looked shaky and vulnerable at times. Ferrero also looked shaky at times last week, but he managed to get over that and played well enough to reach the semis. Both are good clay courters, but on this level and on this event Ferrero should be a class above Hajek. The Spaniard is better in everything and with his form coming back he should be able to shake off the Czech challenge. The Verdict – Ferrero in two sets.

STARACE, Potito ITA v (11) ROBREDO, Tommy ESP

Starace is a very good clay courter with powerful serve and good ground game. He has the skills to attack well, but he is not in good form at the moment, especially on the top level. He has done well on Challenger level, but he looked shaky last week in Bastad and lost early to Seppi. He is 3-3 in Hamburg so far and should like the slower conditions here. Robredo was in a bad spell recently as he tried to shake off a back injury, but he trained hard and played well in Bastad and that gave the needed results. He reached the semis beating Verdasco on the way. He is a solid baseliner with great movement and defence, but he also has a decent serve and good angles on the ground. He is a former champion here from 2006. The Match – Both are good clay courters and both will enjoy the surface. However, the Spaniard is more solid and fast on court while Starace tends to risk too much at times and his form is not very good at the moment. Robredo played better last week and that makes him the favourite in this match. In addition he has won all five meetings between the two so far. The Verdict – Robredo in two sets.

SCHWANK, Eduardo ARG v (WC) KAMKE, Tobias GER

Schwank is a powerful server with aggressive game and big ground strokes. He plays most of his matches on clay and he is well used to the surface, but his recent form is pretty bad. He had some shoulder problems and he lost his last five matches on the tour. He got well beaten by Chela last week in Stuttgart, but managed to win the title in doubles alongside Berlocq. Kamke is a typical German clay courter who plays more on the Challenger level. He has powerful shots and very good strong serve and he plays a lot on the dirt. He recently played in the Bundesliga and he also reached the final in Furth and the quarterfinals in Scheveningen. The Match – Schwank got a needed boost by winning the doubles title in Stuttgart, but he will now have just a day to get back to singles and adjust to the slower grounds. Kamke on the other hand is familiar with the conditions and he has the game to match the powers of his opponent. This looks like a tough match to pick, but the local should be better equipped for the conditions and that along with the bad form of the Argentinean makes Kamke a slight favourite. The Verdict – Kamke in three sets.

CHELA, Juan Ignacio ARG v STAKHOVSKY, Sergiy UKR

Chela is a powerful aggressive clay courter with good serve. He is a veteran on tour now, but he found some form this season and he is playing very well this season. He should like the slower conditions here as he is a solid defender too. He played well last week in Stuttgart and he also played some matches in the Bundesliga so he is well trained and ready for the German clay. Stakhovsky is an aggressive fast surface player with big serve and nice volleys. He has the skills to stay in rallies, but he does not like sticking to the baseline and he is better equipped for indoor surfaces. He also played some matches in the Bundesliga and he played in Stuttgart last week, but he lost to shaky Zverev there and he did not look too solid on clay. The Match – Chela is the better player for clay as he has the serve and power and the defence to do well on the dirt. Stakhovsky on the other hand should fare better on the hard as he is too risky and impatient for clay. The match looks like an easy one to predict with Chela being the big favourite. The Verdict – Chela in two sets.

ROBERT, Stephane FRA v SEPPI, Andreas ITA

Robert is a powerful baseliner with flat shots and nice pace on them from the back. He has a good serve also, but struggles when his first one does not work well enough. He played well on clay last season on the Challenger level, but when he tried to play on the main tour he did better on hard. He is 2-7 on clay this season and he beat only Kouber and Dasnieres de Veigy. Seppi is a defensive baseliner with good returning skills and nice counter attack. He relies a lot on opponent’s power to use it in his own shots and he plays well on clay. He has passed the first round on six of the seven occasions on clay this season and he is a semifinalist here from 2007. His overall record in Hamburg is 13-6. The Match – Judging from the recent form and the overall record so far Seppi should be favourite. He is better on slower clay and he should use the flat power of his opponent to make him move a lot and even to hit winners. The Italian enjoys the conditions here and his game should be much better than that of the Frenchman. The Verdict – Seppi in two sets.

FOGNINI, Fabio ITA v (LL) GICQUEL, Marc FRA

Fognini is a clay courter with aggressive attitude but inconsistent game. His lack of stability has prevented him from getting at the top of the rankings. He has a lot of power on the ground and when in good form he can beat almost anyone. He has improved his game recently and he did pretty well since French Open. 2010 started very bad for him and he was hardly been able to pass the first round but there are positive signs in his game during the last two months. Gicquel had a long injury lay-off and he is now back on tour. He is slowly getting back to form, but he is just 2-6 after his return having beaten only the shaky Russell on grass and Kloer in the qualifying here. He is a solid baseliner with tough physical game, he moves well on court and he has good attacking skills including nice volleys. He likes very fast surfaces as well as clay and he has a lot of experience on the dirt. The Match – Fognini had some trouble getting past Ramirez, but he showed the needed maturity and stability and won after being a break down in the second set. Gicquel on the other hand lost to Phau in qualifying and he is not in good form. Fognini is slowly getting some confidence back and he has the power and the clay court skills to win this match against the rusty Frenchman. The Verdict – Fognini in three sets.

RAM, Rajeev USA v BECK, Karol SVK

Ram is a good fast surface player with big serve and aggressive net rushing attitude. His form is very bad this season and he has rarely done anything on the main tour. He comes off a first round loss to Matosevic (1-6 1-6) on hard in Aptos last week. He should like the fast conditions here, but his recent form makes him unbackable against almost anyone. Beck is a powerful server with attacking ground game. He likes faster surfaces and plays well on hard courts. He was tormented by injuries this season, but he came strong on the hard courts last week and reached the second round in Aptos after starting from qualifying, but then had to retire because of a sore shoulder. The Match – Ram is in bad form and the hard courts probably will not bail him out of it. Beck on the other hand showed some signs of improvement, but his shoulder might be a setback. We are leaning towards the Slovak, but under the circumstances we will skip this match. The Verdict – Beck in three sets.

MARCHENKO, Illya UKR v VLIEGEN, Kristof BEL

Marchenko is a solid baseliner with good defensive skills and nice power on the ground. He has gone more into the offense this season and did well even on grass. However, his best surfaces are hard and indoors. He had a shoulder injury at Wimbledon and has not played since, but he claims to be fit now. Vliegen has gone throw a very rough year as he was hit by viruses and injuries. He finally started to play at full strength this summer, but a shoulder pain appeared when he played a Challenger in Holland a week ago and he is now once again under question. He will play in the US hard court spell, but he is not fully fit. He has not played on the surface since January and has not won a match on hard since the spring of 2009. The Match – Vliegen is once again hurt and unfit and he should not be trusted here. He has the power and the skills to do well on hard, but overall Marchenko is more solid and has more power on the ground. The Ukrainian has his own injury concerns, but he says he is fit and he gets the favorite’s spot in this match, but once again we will not bet. The Vedict – Marchenko in two sets.

(WC) WARD, James GBR v (6) FISH, Mardy USA

Ward is a youngster with powerful serve and attacking ground game. He has trained a lot on clay in Spain, but he is a natural on fast surfaces and he knows how to attack on them. He played well on grass this season and he played a couple of Challengers on the US hard this spring so he is familiar with the surface. Fish is a natural hard courter who has the perfect combination of serve and attacking forehand, which is the best weapon of the US hard courters. He likes fast surfaces and his form is pretty good as he comes off a title in Newport. The Match – Ward has a decent game and should do well on hard, but his draw here is pretty bad. Fish is one of the local favourites on hard and he has found his serve and good form recently so we are pretty sure he will handle the wild card easily. The Verdict – Fish in straight sets.

(8) BECKER, Benjamin GER v RUSSELL, Michael USA

Becker is a very good hard courter with powerful serve and nice baseline skills. He is aggressive when he has to be, but he also moves fast and defends well. He is an US college graduate so he knows the surface here very well. He had an elbow injury after Wimbledon and has not played since, but he trained in Florida and should be prepared for the hard court spell. Russell is a veteran on tour with huge experience on hard. He is a small and fast defensive player and he likes to keep the ball in play and rely on counter attacks. He is not in good form this season, but his best results have been on hard. He played in Winnetka Challenger on hard a week ago and reached the semis. The Match – Becker is the more aggressive player and he is in better form, which makes him more dangerous in this match, but his lack of matches is a concern. Russell has the skills to make him run and play extra shots, which might trouble the rusty German. We cannot trust the local veteran in his current terrible form, but we also should stay away from Becker so we will not bet on this encounter. The Verdict – Becker in three sets.

GABASHVILI, Teymuraz RUS v SCHUETTLER, Rainer GER

Gabashvili is a pretty bad hard courter as his record on the surface in the last three seasons is just 4-12. He lacks matches on hard and he does not like the fast conditions. He is a powerful baseliner who likes to attack and he also has a fast serve, but he has gone more defensive lately and he likes to have time for his shots which makes him better on clay. He also did pretty well on clay this season, but hard is not his forte. Schuettler is 34 now, but he is enjoying a late surge in his career thanks to his performances on hard and grass courts. He reached a couple of Challengers finals on hard and he reached the semis in London on grass which brought him back on track with his ranking. He is a solid baseliner with fast legs and good defence. He relies on counter attacks, but he keeps the ball in play well and he is very tough mentally. The Match – Gabashvili is mentally shaky and does not like hard while Schuettler is very solid and tough. Despite his age the German is in better form than his opponent here and he has huge advantage in experience and skills for hard courts. That makes him the favourite in this match. The Verdict – Schuettler in two sets.

Ruben RAMIREZ HIDALGO (ESP) v Fabio FOGNINI (ITA)

Ramirez Hidalgo is a veteran on the Tour and his ranking (No 94 in the world) does not give him many options to enter main draw ATP tournaments. He is a clay court specialist with limited attacking options and good retrieving skills. He was a winner in Pozoblanco on hard courts three weeks ago but his opponents were really mediocre. Now he passed qualifications in Hamburg but again was lucky to meet fairly weak players and took advantage of their inconsistency. Fognini is a clay courter with aggressive attitude but inconsistent game. His lack of stability has prevented him from getting at the top of the rankings. He has a lot of power on the ground and when in good form he can beat almost anyone. He has improved his game recently and he did pretty well since French Open. 2010 started very bad for him and he was hardly been able to pass the first round but there are positive signs in his game during the last two months. The Match – Fognini got some much needed victories recently to lift his confidence and the court conditions would suit his fairly aggressive approach. The spectators will witness plenty of baseline exchanges with little risk but ultimately it is the Italian who possesses better skills and is the deserved favorite. The Verdict – Fognini in two sets.

Jarkko NIEMINEN (FIN) v Christophe ROCHUS (BEL)

Nieminen is a powerful leftie with defensive game and fast movement on court. He relies on rallies and keeping the ball in play as he has good counter attacks and enjoys physical challenges. He is better on faster surfaces, but he has a lot of experience on clay. He lost in Bastad last week to the eventual champion Almagro. He is 6-4 in Hamburg with two third round appearances in the past. Christophe Rochus is in a very poor form. He is a defensive baseliner who plays more on Challenger level now due to his low ranking and needed to pass qualifications in order to enter the main draw in Hamburg. He is in bad form this season having lost all ten matches played on the ATP tour. Apart from that he is investigated by ATP for match fixing after his match against Bloomfield in Newport. The Match – Nieminen is by far the better player right now while Rochus lacks both weapons and confidence to establish a winning approach. The Verdict – Nieminen in two sets.

Pere RIBA (ESP) v Paul-Henri MATHIEU (FRA)

Riba is a youngster who plays his tennis on clay and on the Challenger level. He won four titles on the surface on the lower level and two of them were this season. He is a good baseliner with solid defensive skills. He lacks experience on the top level andis desperately trying to make his transition to ATP level (4-6 on clay ATP tour in 2010). Now Riba passed qualifications in Hamburg just like he did last year beating Navarro and Moriya without dropping a set. Mathieu came back from injury in the spring, but he failed to win a match in a long time. He is a good baseliner with powerful serve and nice fluent backhand. He plays well and likes clay, but he went 1-7 on the dirt after his return. He actually did much better on grass by reaching the fourth round at Wimbledon. He skipped Davis Cup the following week as he had some back pains and his general fitness is always a concern, but he went to Bastad for a first round exit in a competitive match against Pablo Cuevas 6-7 6-7. The Match – Mathieu beat Riba last year at the same venue but needed a tie-break in the decider to eliminate the youngster. The Frenchman has the skills and experience on his side while Riba – the fitness and form. Unlike last year when odds between these two were strongly in favour of Mathieu, now odds compilers have given the Frenchman a slight advantage which certainly makes more sense. The Verdict – Mathieu in three sets.

Simone BOLELLI (ITA) v Simon GREUL (GER)

Bolelli is an aggressive baseliner with powerful ground game and beautiful one-handed backhand. He lacks consistency and that makes him too unpredictable overall. There was a time when he was playing successfully in ATP Tour but as it happens usually injuries stop his serge and after that it is even more difficult to retain the previous form. He passed the qualies here by defeating Zay and Crivoi. Greul is a powerful player with tricky kick serve which he uses well on the bouncy clay. He has a useful attacking forehand and good movement on court and he has a lot of matches on clay as he plays mostly on the European Challenger tour. He reached some excellent form by his standards since he played in Oberstaufen and reached the semis and then the quarter-finals in Stuttgart last week. The Match – Bolelli was a winner in Turin Challenger on clay last month, but failed to qualify for Stuttgart while Greul played some high-standard tennis. Bolelli got some practice on the courts and is well adjusted to the conditions and the match seems quite close. We don’t want to be involved in that clash as both are pretty unpredictable. The Verdict – Greul in three sets.

Denis ISTOMIN (UZB) V Lukas ROSOL (CZE)

Istomin made his breakthrough season last year and finished 16-18 in ATP tournaments with two quarter-final appearances. This season he improved his record by reaching the semis in San Jose and Eastbourne. He fares well on all surfaces, but he really likes faster ones more. Istomin has a powerful serve and attacking ground game but had difficulties to make the transition from grass onto clay. Rosol is a Challengers player with insignificant experience on main draw tournaments. The Czech has just 4 main draw appearances in his career so far and is about to make his debut in an ATP 500 event. He passed qualifications a bit lucky because Rufin retired injured in the second set. The Match – Istomin should have had enough time to adjust to playing on clay courts after his first round exit last week. He is more powerful and has plenty of experience between low ranked opponents like Rosol. The Verdict – Istomin in two sets.

Florent SERRA (FRA) v Evgeny KOROLEV (KAZ)

Serra is a good all court player with simple flat game and solid defence. He moves well on court taking the ball early, which makes him dangerous, but also predictable and skilled opponents are able to adjust to his game fairly easy. The Frenchman has a lot of experience on clay and he is 2-3 here. Korolev is a powerful server who plays ultra aggressive tennis. He goes for his shots every time and lacks patience on the ground, which makes him very inconsistent and shaky at times especially on clay courts. His form is pretty poor this season going 9-17 (1-6 on clay). He retired in Wimbledon second round due to shoulder injury but is already fully fit. The Match – Both players are in a slump but Korolev’s troubles tend to be worse. His lack of confidence is so deep that he runs into plenty of unforced errors. Serra is not a top performer either but at least his last three defeats on clay came at the likes of players like Starace and Verdasco (twice). The Frenchman is in good condition right now and has better chances to progress. The Verdict – Serra in two sets.

CHARDY, Jeremy FRA v CHIUDINELLI, Marco SUI

Chardy had to defend his title in Stuttgart last week, but his shaky form and a minor shoulder injury prevented him from doing that and he lost in the first round to Gimeno. He is a powerful baseliner with good aggressive game. He has the skills to stay in rallies, but he is also a good finisher of points. His confidence is low this season and his game is bad. Chiudinelli has been in very bad form this season and he is not making any progress after his stunning 2009. He is an aggressive player who takes the ball early and likes to move opponents around and finish points fast which makes him better on hard courts. He did well on clay last week in Stuttgart, but Hamburg is slower and that will make it tougher for the Swiss man. The Match – Chardy played Bundesliga in the weekend and despite his loss to Nieminen he proved himself fit to play here. Both are aggressive baseliners and will find the conditions bad for their game. However, Chardy is a bit better on clay and he is more patient on court. We give him just a slight edge in this match, but overall both men are too shaky this season to be trusted. The Verdict – Chardy in three sets.

STARACE, Potito ITA v PHAU, Bjorn GER

Starace is a very good clay courter with powerful serve and good ground game. He has the skills to attack well, but he is not in good form at the moment, especially on the top level. He has done well on Challenger level, but he looked shaky last week in Bastad and lost early to Seppi. He is 3-3 in Hamburg so far and should like the slower conditions here. Phau is a hard courter who plays mostly on Challenger level. He is a solid and powerful baseliner who relies on defense, but uses his attacking opportunities well. He had to qualify for this event and beat Vicente and Gicquel with impressive serving and some good baseline display. He has a bad record here so far. The Match – Starace is the better clay courter and he will see the slower conditions as a good sign for his game. Phau on the other hand is not used to playing on slow clay, but he has done well on the dirt this season and he was rather impressive in qualifying. Starace is the favorite just because he is the more experienced clay courter, but we will not back him here. The Verdict – Starace in three sets.

HAJEK, Jan CZE v BECK, Andreas GER

Hajek is a very solid baseliner with good defensive skills and fast movement on court. He plays his best tennis on clay, but he does better on the Challenger level and after a shaky start on the top tour he returned to the Challengers this season. He played Davis Cup a week ago and helped his country defeat Chile on clay. Beck is a powerful server with attacking ground game. He is a leftie and he likes playing on clay, but he needs more bounce and faster conditions to do well. He had injury problems this season and has not done well so far. He lost to Zeballos in Stuttgart last week and he is just 1-4 here so far. The Match – The outcome is difficult to predict as both are not in their prime coming into the event. Hajek is the better clay courter with his game being better for the slow conditions, but he lacks matches on the European clay lately. Beck on the other hand played on clay last week and he played the Bundesliga this weekend (beat Clement), but apart from the serve he will have no other weapon in Hamburg. Hajek gets the nod as the better clay courter, but the German might surprise him so we will not recommend any big bets on this match. The Verdict – Hajek in three sets.

ROCHUS, Olivier BEL v GONZALEZ, Maximo ARG

Rochus is a small defensive baseliner with solid ground game and good counter attack. He plays well on all surfaces and recently did very well on grass, but his type of game is better for clay. He has played a lot in Hamburg and he is 11-9 here so far. He has not played on the dirt after the green season. Gonzalez is a Challenger player with powerful and solid game. He lacks experience on the main level and he got well beaten by Golubev last week in Bastad, which does not speak well of his form. He played here only last season and lost in the first round. The Match – Hamburg is a slow surfaced clay tournament and that might suit Gonzalez as he has more power, but overall Rochus is too fast and solid to be outplayed easily on clay. Both have not done very well on clay this season and cannot be trusted easily. Gonzalez is in worse form and that makes the Belgian a slight favorite, but we will not bet on any of the two now. The Verdict – Rochus in three sets.

CUEVAS, Pablo URU v MAYER, Florian GER

Cuevas is a powerful server with big ground strokes and a lot of spin in his shots. He likes clay and plays his best tennis on it and he is now making a good transition to the top level in Europe. He did well in Bastad last week by beating Mathieu and Riba before losing to Ferrer. Eh reached the semis here last season so he knows the conditions well. Mayer did very well last week as he reached the reached the quarterfinals in Stuttgart. However, he admitted some fatigue at the end of the event and the conditions here will be different from last week. Mayer is a very talented baseliner with good variety on the ground and powerful ground strokes. He is just 4-5 in Hamburg so far. The Match – Cuevas should like the slow surface and the thin air more as his serve will do more damage and his ground game will be suited better. Mayer on the other hand will use the lower bounce, but Cuevas has played him once before and knows his game and in addition the Uruguayan obviously likes the conditions here. He is made underdog in this match as Mayer is in form and at home, but with his serve going well last week and with his record here being very impressive we see Cuevas as the favorite. The Verdict – Cuevas in two sets.

(WC) ZVEREV, Mischa GER v GOLUBEV, Andrey KAZ

Zverev is a powerful serving leftie with attacking ground game. He likes to rush to the net and finish points fast and he does better on hard courts. He is not in good form and he lacks experience on clay. He beat Stakhovsky last week, but then lost to Melzer. He is 1-5 here so far. Golubev is a powerful serving hard courter with attacking game and nice volleys. He likes to finish points fast and he is much better on faster surfaces, but he did well on clay this season by reaching two Challenger semifinals so he should know how to handle the dirt. The Match – Zverev is out of form and although he can use his serve to win some points here he should be bad in long rallies on the slow dirt. Golubev is also a powerful server, but he also has the ground power and confidence to rule the ground and that will make him favorite in this match. However, both are not on their own territory so we will skip this one for betting. The Verdict – Golubev in two sets.

Montanes v Monfils

Montanes is a solid clay courter with powerful serve and good ground game. He has good angles on court and he is very good in defence. He plays most of his tennis on clay and he likes the slow surface. He won a title on the dirt this season and he is 5-2 in Stuttgart. He played in the Bundesliga last week and got some much needed games on the clay. Monfils improved to 4-2 in Stuttgart so far and he is 8-3 on clay this season. The Frenchman is a powerful server with good movement on court and very powerful ground strokes. He can mix up his game well and when he is fit and motivated he is a danger to anyone. He played Davis Cup on hard last weekend, but he had three days to adjust to the clay. He will like the faster conditions and he looks fit at the moment. The Match – The weather was very rainy and it made conditions tough while players needed to wait for hours to come out on court and compete. Montanes finally managed to post a victory over his compatriot Ferrero at his sixth attempt. Ferrero missed two set points during the second set tie-break and handed Montanes a match point opportunity which he did not miss. Monfils reached his first ATP final this season after beating Gimeno-Traver 6-4 4-6 6-0. The Frenchman is fit and physically strong, he fights for every point and one needs to consistently outplay him in order to have a shot at the victory. Montanes serves solid all week long and is not afraid of playing many balls to his one-handed backhand which is an attacking weapon. The match-up between Monfils and Montanes seems to be very close but the Frenchman's physical approach could be just what it's needed in such battles. The Verdict - Monfils in three sets.

Soderling v Almagro

Soderling is 18-9 here and he is the reigning champion in Bastad. He is in very good form this season and he likes the bouncy and slow clay that gives him time and height for his big shots. He is also a powerful server and he knows the surface and the place really well. Almagro is 11-4 in Bastad so far. He is a powerful attacking clay courter with big serve and very good one-handed backhand. He is in good form this season and he went 18-9 on clay so far reaching the quarterfinals in Paris. He lacks matches on clay recently and played on hard last weekend for his country. The Match – Soderling lost the first set against Ferrer but then came back stronger and determined to be more aggressive and powerful. The Swede wasn't playing his best tennis this week as his serve was predictable while the unforced errors count was untypically high for his standards. But he managed to come out victorious and now is able to defend his title against a tough opponent like Almagro. The Spaniard is still to lose a set in Bastad after he crashed his compatriot RObredo 6-1 6-3. Soderling leads Almagro 3-2 in previous meetings but lost their last encounter, which came on clay in Madrid earlier this year. The slow surface will favour the Swede who will have enough time to prepare his big shots but Almagro is able to dictate play with deep aggressive baseline ground strokes. The stats favour Soderling and he is deservedly made a slight favorite. The Verdict - Soderling in three sets.

Ferrero v Montanes

Ferrero struggled with form recently as he lost to Ginepri in Paris and then was beaten by Meffert and Malisse on grass. This is his second time here and he is 3-1 in Stuttgart. He is a solid defensive baseliner with good angles and counter attack and he has huge experience on clay. He won two clay court titles in the spring but did not look that impressive this week in Stuttgart. Still, he managed to reach the semis and will have a shot at winning the title. Ferrero placed 73% of his first serves in play against Greul and was broken only once. Montanes is a solid clay courter with powerful serve and good ground game. He has good angles on court and he is very good in defence. He plays most of his tennis on clay and he likes the slow surface. He won a title on the dirt this season and he is 4-2 in Stuttgart. He played in the Bundesliga last week and got some much needed games on the clay. The Match – Ferrero leads Montanes 5-0 in career meetings having surrendered just 2 sets and seems to find the match-up with his compatriot relatively easy. Both these are well set-up on the dirt with solid baseline display. The stats speak in favour of Ferrero who should be bigger favorite than he was made by the bookies but we find no value in backing him. The Verdict - Ferrero in three sets.

Gimeno v Monfils

Gimeno is a good clay courter with powerful serve and good ground game. He has a lot of matches on the surface and he likes the slow conditions, but he does better on the lower Challenger level. He is on a run there with a semifinal and a final in Italy in the last two weeks, but he played ten matches in the last 15 days which might prove a bit harsh. He already beat former champion Chardy and tournament favorite Davydenko en route to his first career semi-final. Gimeno-Traver hit eight aces, dropped 10 points on serve and saved both break points he faced against Chiudinelli for just 63 minutes. Monfils improved to 3-2 in Stuttgart so far and he is 7-3 on clay this season. The Frenchman is a powerful server with good movement on court and very powerful ground strokes. He can mix up his game well and when he is fit and motivated he is a danger to anyone. He played Davis Cup on hard this weekend, but he had three days to adjust to the clay. He will like the faster conditions and he looks fit at the moment. The Match – Gimeno played some impressive tennis this week and is running high in confidence. He is not known for his strong serving abilities but had plenty easy points. Monfils will present a stern test for the Spaniard as plays solid behind the baseline. The Frenchman is tactically and technically better whle Gimeno is swimming in unknown waters when it comes to ATP semi-finals. The Verdict - Monfils in three sets.

Soderling v Ferrer

Soderling is 17-9 he