ATP Genova, Alphen aan den Rijn, Medellin Challenger Previews, Predictions
Chris De Waard, Tennis East Coast

AON Open Challenger

ATP Challenger Tour
Genova, Italy
2-7 September
Prize Money: €85,000

Seeds (ATP ranking in parentheses)

1: Albert Ramos-Vinolas (95)
2: Dustin Brown (97)
3: Benoit Paire (98)
4: Albert Montanes (114)
5: Andreas Beck (115)
6: Damir Dzumhur (119)
7: Aljaz Bedene (133)
8: Gastao Elias (142)

The last direct acceptance is Pedro Sousa, ranked 312th. Viktor Troicki entered this tournament on a special exempt after his victorious run last week and plays second seed Dustin Brown in the first round.

First round match-ups to watch

(2) Dustin Brown – (SE) Viktor Troicki

Obviously. This is a match that easily could’ve taken place at Grand Slam or 500 level, but in a way it’s better for us on Challenger level since we are now guaranteed a stream. Brown must hate his draw. Not only did he as the second seed draw someone who won a Challenger last week, he is the defending champion and now there is a very reasonable chance he crashes out in the first round. Brown currently sits just inside the top 100 at #97, but if Troicki beats him he would drop out of the top 120, so it’s a crucial match for him. He has to hope for one of his good days, since he’ll need to overpower Troicki while keeping the unforced error count lower than he usually does.

Top Half

#4 seed Albert Montanes starts off with a tricky match against Marton Fucsovics, a man who is twelve years his junior and is well capable of upsetting him. However, after moving away from the main tour, Montanes has picked up his results again, winning the Cordenons Challenger two weeks ago, so he should still be favored to get past Fucsovics. After that, a potential meeting with Gastao Elias awaits him should the Portuguese beat Volandri, who beat him 6-4 6-3 at Hamburg earlier this year. Top seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas should be able to get through his section, although seventh seed Aljaz Bedene may put up some stiff resistance. After all, the last clay Challenger Bedene played he won, in Italy, even: Todi in early July.

Bottom Half

This is an interesting one. Second seed Brown could fall to Troicki and with third seed Benoit Paire, you never know what you are going to get. Put some dangerous floaters like Marco Cecchinato and Potito Starace in the mix and it becomes a very difficult half to predict. The other two seeds, Damir Dzumhur and Andreas Beck, are in pretty good form as well, so it’s basically anyone’s final to reach. Nevertheless, I have to pick someone, but I wouldn’t advise putting your house on it.

Predictions

Semis:

Ramos-Vinolas > Elias
Paire > Dzumhur

Final:

Ramos-Vinolas > Paire

Ramos-Vinolas has played Elias twice already this year, with Ramos-Vinolas winning both matches in three sets. He also played against Paire, in Umag, where he beat him 7-5 6-3, so Ramos-Vinolas has to be favored over his opponents partially due to this 2014 head to head advantage.

TEAN International 2014

ATP Challenger Tour
Alphen aan den Rijn, The Netherlands
2-7 September
Prize Money: €42,500

Seeds (ATP ranking in parentheses)

1: Robin Haase (70)
2: Igor Sijsling (72)
3: Daniel Gimeno-Traver (101)
4: Thiemo de Bakker (140)
5: Victor Hanescu (150)
6: Axel Michon (180)
7: Matteo Viola (193)
8: Roberto Carballes Baena (212)

The last direct acceptance is Inigo Cervantes, ranked 303rd.

First round match-ups to watch

(1) Robin Haase – Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo

Haase has been playing on hardcourt in past weeks and his last clay court match didn’t leave him with pleasant memories, as he lost 6-2 6-3 to Paolo Lorenzi in Kitzbühel, a tournament where he normally excels. To play a solid veteran grinder like Ramirez Hidalgo isn’t ideal when you have a lack of rhythm and he might make Haase pay here. Haase’s previous Dutch Challenger didn’t end all that well either, as he needed three sets to beat world #494 Dino Marcan in the first round and fell in straights to Jesse Huta Galung in the next round.

Top Half

There is quite the ranking difference between the two top seeds, Haase and Gimeno-Traver, and the rest of the field, making them the clear favorites to face off against each other in the semi-final. The second highest seed, Michon, is ranked eighty ranking spots below Gimeno-Traver and a massive 110 above Haase. That said, Haase is projected to play Huta Galung in the second round, who beat him at the Sport1 Open in July. Although Huta Galung pulled out injured in his qualifying match at the US Open, when he is healthy he may well beat Haase.

Bottom Half

Thiemo de Bakker is in a perfect position to make a run here, with two relatively easy first rounds and a projected match against slumping fifth seed Victor Hanescu or Hans Podlipnik-Castillo in the quarterfinal. Second seed Igor Sijsling, despite his form crisis, should be the slight favorite to reach the semi-final from the other section, but against De Bakker he will be the underdog, as De Bakker is quite clearly the more natural clay court player.

Predictions

Semis:

Gimeno-Traver > Huta Galung
De Bakker > Sijsling

Final:

Gimeno-Traver > De Bakker

This final would be a repeat of last year’s semi-final, when Gimeno-Traver managed to oust De Bakker in three sets. Top seed Haase has a tricky draw with Ramirez Hidalgo and Huta Galung back to back, with especially his countryman being a real danger as shown in past meetings.

Claro Open Medellin 2014

ATP Challenger Tour
Medellin, Colombia
2-7 September
Prize Money: $50,000

Seeds (ATP ranking in parentheses)

1: Alejandro Gonzalez (100)
2: Facundo Bagnis (109)
3: Joao Souza (113)
4: Guido Pella (155)
5: Wayne Odesnik (176)
6: Guilherme Clezar (190)
7: Gonzalo Lama (198)
8: Austin Krajicek (202)

The last direct acceptance is Martin Cuevas, ranked 376th.

First round match-ups to watch

(7) Gonzalo Lama – Kevin King

Not only does his name remind one of his legendary countryman Fernando Gonzalez, Gonzalo Lama’s game shows similarities as well, most notably his forehand, on which he can create similar rotation. The 21 year old won his first Challenger title in Colombia in April of this year, so he should feel comfortable coming back to the country. He plays Kevin King, who made an interesting choice coming here to play on clay, a surface which he hasn’t played on since April, when he reached the second round of the San Luis Potosi Challenger in Mexico.

Top Half

Top seed Alejandro Gonzalez should cruise through his section, which contains #8 seed Austin Krajicek, who isn’t impressive on clay in the slightest. #4 seed Guido Pella might look threatening in name, but has been struggling with injury for quite some time and probably isn’t ready yet to pose a serious challenge. It should, however, be an interesting battle between him and Wayne Odesnik for a semi-final spot.

Bottom Half

#2 seed Facundo Bagnis performed above expectations at the US Open, coming through the qualification draw and falling to Philipp Kohlschreiber in the first round. He most likely will face Lama in the quarterfinal, a match which I’m looking forward to very much. They have already played earlier this year at Caltanissetta in Italy, with Bagnis winning 6-4 6-4. In the other section third seed Joao Souza will probably get through to the semi-final, considering the good form he is in. In his last three Challenger events he made two semi-finals and a quarterfinal.

Predictions

Semis:

Gonzalez > Pella
Bagnis > Souza

Final:

Bagnis > Gonzalez

In a match-up between Bagnis and Gonzalez, it’s hard to ignore their previous match, played at a Challenger in Santiago last year, where Bagnis absolutely hammered Gonzalez 6-0 6-3.