ATP Acapulco

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Busy Month on ATP Tour Sees Federer Claim Title #100, Monfils Return to Form

Posted by Admin on March 4, 2019
Posted in: Acapulco, ATP, Australian Open, buenos aires, Cordoba, Delray Beach, Dubai, Marseille, Montpellier, New York, New York Open, Rio, Rotterdam, Sao Paolo, Sofia, Steen Kirby. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Busy Month on ATP Tour Sees Federer Claim Title #100, Monfils Return to Form
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

After Novak Djokovic claimed the Australian Open title, the ATP season roared into February with multiple 500 level events and a number of 250s on clay and hard courts across the globe. Here is your look at all the action for the month that was.

ATP Montpellier

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Veteran Jo-Wilfried Tsonga won an all French final in this indoor 250 6-4 6-2 against Pierre-Hugues Herbert. The veteran beat Gilles Simon, Jeremy Chardy and Radu Albot in consecutive matches to reach the final, overall he defeated four French players to win the tournament. PHH upset Denis Shapovalov and Tomas Berdych to reach the final.

ATP Sofia

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Bulgaria’s only ATP event was won by the in-form Daniil Medvedev 6-4 6-3 against Marton Fucsovics. Fucsovics had a breakthrough after upsetting Andreas Sepi and getting a walkover against Roberto Bautista Agut in the quarters (then edging Matteo Berrettini in the semis). Medvedev got past Gael Monfils in the semis and prior to that he scored wins against Robin Haase and Martin Klizan in consecutive matches. Medvedev’s win helped him reach the top 15, he’s now 1-1 in ATP finals this year.

ATP Cordoba

On clay in Argentina home hero and wild card Juan Ignacio Londero won his first ever ATP title prevailing against Guido Pella 3-6 7-5 6-1 in a huge moment for him. Londero’s breakthrough pushed him to a new career high in the top 70 and he beat clay courters Nicolas Jarry and Federico Delbonis most notably to make the final. Pella had a good month edging Paolo Lorenzi, Diego Schwartzman, Albert Ramos, and Pablo Cuevas to reach the final in what was a tough path for a 250.

ATP New York

The first ATP 250 in the States this year saw Reilly Opelka lift his first title in three sets 6-1 6-7 7-6 against maiden finalist Brayden Schnur, a Canadian. Opelka also upset top American John Isner, while Schnur edged Sam Querrey in the semis. Opelka’s powerful serve was a difference maker and he should be a factor in Indian Wells and Miami coming up.

ATP Buenos Aires

The 250 on clay in Buenos Aires resulted in Marco Cecchinato’s third career ATP title 6-1 6-2 against home player Diego Schwartzman. Schwartzman upset Dominic Thiem and also beat Aljaz Bedene and Albert Ramos to reach the final. Cecchinato beat Christian Garin, Roberto Carballes Baena, and Guido Pella to reach the final, three accomplished clay courters. This was a great result for Cecchinato outside of Europe.

ATP Rotterdam

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Gael Monfils returned to form winning his 8th career title 6-3 1-6 6-2 against fellow veteran Stan Wawrinka. It was a thrilling moment played in good spirits and filled with joy for both players who have overcome injuries and adversity to return to the top of the game. Monfils 500 level title included wins against Daniil Medvedev, and David Goffin. Wawrinka upset Milos Raonic, Denis Shapovalov, and Kei Nishikori before falling short in the final. Both players would love to contend at the slam level again.

ATP Rio

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The Rio 500 on clay was the top event on the Golden Swing and Serbia’s Laslo Djere claimed his first title 6-3 7-5 against young gun Felix Auger-Aliassime. FAA played well but Djere was the player of the week, as he upset Dominic Thiem and also claimed wins against clay courters Casper Ruud and Aljaz Bedene to reach the final. FAA defeated Fabio Fognini, Christian Garin, Jaume Munar, and Pablo Cuevas to reach the final, showing his all court talent that is set to make him a top 20 player in the near future. Djere broke into the top 40 with the win, the tournament was filled with upsets.

ATP Marseille

Young gun Stefanos Tsitsipas found form and got past Mikhail Kukushkin 7-5 7-6 in the final after defeating David Goffin, and Sergiy Stakhovsky in the late rounds to reach the final. Kukushkin upset Denis Shapovalov and Andrey Rublev before getting a winnable semi against Ugo Humbert. This indoor hard court 250 saw some early round upsets but in the end the #1 seed Tsitsipas won his second career title.

ATP Delray Beach

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Radu Albot made history, winning his first career title and breaking into the top 60 with a 3-6 6-3 7-6 win against Dan Evans in a battle of journeymen in the Delray 250 hard court final. Evans edged John Isner in the semis and upset Frances Tiafoe in round 1 while Albot got past big servers Ivo Karlovic and Nick Kyrgios before nipping Americans Steve Johnson and McKenzie McDonald to reach the final.

ATP Dubai

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Roger Federer won his 100th career title at the Dubai 500 6-4 6-4 on hard courts against the in-form Stefanos Tsitsipas. Federer found form late in the tournament after dropping sets against Philipp Kohlschreiber and Fernando Verdasco in the first two matches. Marton Fucsovics and Borna Coric were his quarterfinal and semifinal opposition, while Tsitsipas had a relatively easy path until Gael Monfils was his semifinal opponent and he prevailed in that match in a third set tiebreak. The young Greek played well but Federer was just too good.

ATP Acapulco

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The Acapulco 500 was won by the struggling big server Nick Kyrgios 6-3 6-4, as he defeated Alexander Zverev in a battle of talented finalists. Kyrgios was focused on the week, edging John Isner in the semis, Rafael Nadal in the second round, and Stan Wawrinka in the quarters while Zverev had a smooth path that included Alex De Minaur in the quarters and Cam Norrie in the semis. Kyrgios has always had the talent to be an elite player, if he can keep this form he will contend in both upcoming Masters tournaments, but that can’t be predicted.

ATP Sao Paulo

Argentina’s Guido Pella won his first ATP title, winning the 250 on clay to close the Golden Swing 7-5 6-3 against Christian Garin. Pella edged Laslo Djere in the semis, while Garin upset Ruud. Pella didn’t have the toughest draw (Roberto Carballes Baena and Marco Trungelliti) but it was still a massive accomplishment to win his first title.

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Del Potro and Bautista Agut Rise Up to Capture ATP 500 Level Titles

Posted by Admin on March 4, 2018
Posted in: Acapulco, ATP, Dubai, Sao Paolo, Steen Kirby. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Del Potro and Bautista Agut Rise Up to Capture ATP 500 Level Titles
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

ATP Acapulco

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Juan Martin Del Potro won his biggest title in 5 years as he eased past Kevin Anderson 6-4 6-4 in the final. Anderson didn’t appear entirely fit in the final and Del Potro handled his big serve with relative ease.

JMDP defeated Mischa Zverev, David Ferrer (in 3 sets), Dominic Thiem, and Alexander Zverev to reach the final, the last three wins high quality results for the veteran Argentine. Anderson reached his third ATP final of the year by defeating Radu Albot, Adrian Mannarino, Hyeon Chung, and Jared Donaldson, the win over Donaldson coming in three sets.

Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares won doubles against the Bryan brothers.

ATP Dubai

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It was Roberto Bautista Agut’s finest week on the ATP Tour yet. The 29 year old Spaniard defeated Lucas Pouille 6-3 6-4 in the final, and dropped just one set on the week. Despite a weakened field in Dubai, RBA still scored quality wins against Florian Mayer, Pierre-Hugues Herbert, Borna Coric, and Malek Jaziri to reach the final. Jaziri’s dream run in the Middle East coming up short despite upsetting Grigor Dimitrov, Robin Haase, and Stefanos Tsitsipas in consecutive matches.

Pouille defeated Ernests Gulbis, Karen Khachanov, Yuichi Sugita, and Filip Krajinovic to reach the final, dropping sets against everyone but Gulbis and showing his mettle in key third setters. His results in Dubai resulted in his third final of 2018 as the Frenchman has been roaring this year.

Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau defeated Cerretani/Paes in the doubles final.

ATP Sao Paulo

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Fabio Fognini staved off a valiant effort from the rising Nicolas Jarry to take the Sao Paulo 250 final 1-6 6-1 6-4. The result is the 5th career ATP title for the Italian #1 who wrapped up the golden swing with straight set wins over Joao Domingues, Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, and Pablo Cuevas to reach the final.

Jarry had a remarkable golden swing, gaining ranking points by reaching the quarters or better in the three tournaments that he played. He had a very tough week in Sao  Paulo as he played five three set matches in total. Dusan Lajovic, Guido Pella, Albert Ramos, and Horacio Zeballos were the players who stood in his path, and he took them all down, winning over Pella and Ramos in third set tiebreaks. Jarry rises to #61 in the rankings, a new career high.

Maximo Gonzalez and Federico Delbonis defeated Koolhof/Sitak in the doubles final.

 

Rafael Nadal Brings Starpower to @AbiertoTelcel 500 in Mexico

Posted by Admin on February 26, 2018
Posted in: Acapulco, ATP, Steen Kirby. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Rafael Nadal Brings Starpower to ATP Acapulco 500 in Mexico
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

The ATP 500 level hard court tournament in Acapulco has a solid field lead by Rafael Nadal. It’s the tournament of the week for fans of the ATP. Here is your full preview with predictions.

Top Half:

Rafael Nadal is the main attraction and will begin against his good friend Feliciano Lopez. Thanasi Kokkinakis or Alexander Bublik will follow. He should face New York finalist Sam Querrey in the quarters. Querrey needs to defeat Matt Ebden and either Nikoloz Basilashvili or Jared Donaldson in round 2. With everyone but Querrey struggling, he should get that far before falling to Nadal.

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Jack Sock badly needs to find form. He opens with Ernesto Escobedo, then Hyeon Chung or Donald Young in round 2. I’ll back Chung to upset Sock given he’s been the better player in 2018. Kevin Anderson plays great on this surface. Anderson should defeat Radu Albot and Adrian Mannarino/Ricardas Berankis. I’ll back Anderson over Chung in the quarters.

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Bottom Half:

Alexander Zverev opens with Steve Johnson in an interesting opening round match. Johnson made semis in Delray and could upset Zverev but I’ll back Zverev to beat Johnson and his countryman Peter Gojowczyk to reach the quarters. Gojowczyk faces local player Lucas Gomez in round 1, he’s coming off a run to the finals in Delray. Two struggling American’s, John Isner and Ryan Harrison will face off. Fernando Verdasco lost to Diego Schwartzman in the Rio final. On hard courts I’ll give Verdasco the edge to get revenge, and upset a struggling Isner to reach the quarters. Zverev over Verdasco is my pick at that stage.

 

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The third section of the draw is star packed. Juan Martin Del Potro should defeat Mischa Zverev to setup a big second round match against either Andrey Rublev or David Ferrer. Rublev is playing well enough that I’ll back him to get past Ferrer and upset Del Potro to reach the quarters. Kei Nishikori and Denis Shapovalov will face off in a massive round 1 matchup. Nishikori should be fresher than the Delray semifinalist Shapovalov. I’ll go with Dominic Thiem to defeat Cam Norrie, then Nishikori and Rublev to reach the semifinals.

 

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Predictions

Semis
Nadal d. Anderson
Thiem d. Zverev

I’m not entirely confident picking Nadal but he’s the most accomplished player in the field. Presuming fitness he should win the title. Thiem isn’t the favorite to reach the final but I’ll back him in a tough field.

Final
Nadal d. Thiem

Querrey Stuns Nadal for Acapulco Title, Murray Strengthens Hold on World #1

Posted by Admin on March 7, 2017
Posted in: Acapulco, ATP, Dubai, Sao Paolo, Steve Fogleman. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Querrey Stuns Nadal for Acapulco Title, Murray Strengthens Hold on World #1
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

ATP Acapulco

29 year old Sam Querrey won the biggest title of his career and returned to the ATP top 30 after a stunning run in the Acapulco 500 level tour stop. Querrey made it nine career ATP titles with a masterful serving performance against Rafael Nadal, prevailing 6-3 7-6 in upset fashion over the fan-favorite Spaniard. Nadal struggled on return and in the second set tiebreak it was Querrey who was clutch.

Now 10-4 on the season, Querrey dropped sets against Kyle Edmund and fellow big server Nick Kyrgios on the week, while defeating top 15 players David Goffin and Dominic Thiem in straight sets to reach the final. His serve was strong all week, and perhaps the best match of the tournament was a showdown against Kyrgios where he was able to power past the young gun.

Kyrgios upset Novak Djokovic earlier in the week, after Djokovic had survived Juan Martin Del Potro’s challenge. Djokovic’s loss hurts his bid to reclaim the world #1 ranking anytime soon.

Nadal moved to 12-3 on the season after posting routine victories over Mischa Zverev, Palo Lorenzi, Yoshihito Nishioka, and Marin Cilic. Despite suffering a shocking defeat, Nadal still has a shot to equal his number of hard court wins last season (18), before the clay court season begins. Rafa has made big strides in 2017 and seems healthier, fitter, and more focused compared to recent years.

Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares defeated John Isner and Feliciano Lopez to take home the doubles trophy.

ATP Dubai

Andy Murray claimed his first title of the season and extended his hold on the world #1 ranking with a routine 6-3 6-2 victory against Fernando Verdasco in Dubai. Murray was unthreatened throughout the week, except for two sets of a thrilling contest with Philipp Kohlschreiber. Murray defeated Malek Jaziri, Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, and Lucas Pouille with ease over the course of the week.

Kohlschreiber had more than a half dozen match points in a second set tiebreak that finished 20-18 in favor of Murray. The Brit conceded plenty of chances to the German veteran, but he as unable to take them. Kohlschreiber has always been talented, but hasn’t risen as high as he probably should have in his career because of losses like the one he suffered against Murray.

With two critical Masters 1000 tournaments coming up, Murray is looking to be in solid form compared to his main rivals at the top of the men’s game. AO champ Roger Federer was stunned in a third set tiebreak against Evgeny Donskoy in Dubai. Donskoy was far behind the Swiss legend, but he didn’t give up, and Federer outright choked in uncharacteristic fashion.

Fernando Verdasco, who made the semis in Doha, has really enjoyed playing in the Middle East this year. The 33 year old made the final with wins against Andreas Seppi, Roberto Bautista Agut, Gael Monfils, and Robin Haase. His wins against Haase and RBA came in three sets. It was the first hard court final in six years for Verdasco.

Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau defeated Rohan Bopanna and Marcin Matkowski in a doubles final that featured two teams of full-time doubles specialists.

ATP Sao Paulo

Pablo Cuevas awoke in Sao Paulo, snapping a four match losing streak dating back to January, and going to win the title in the Brazilian destination for a third straight time. The renewed 31 year old won the final stop of the Golden Swing in a Monday final 6-7 6-4 6-4 over Albert Ramos, after rain delayed the match on Sunday.

Cuevas posted victories over Facundo Bagnis, Diego Sebastian Schwarztman, and Pablo Carreno Busta as well, with his win over DSS revenge for a loss to him earlier in the season, and a very close three setter.  Cuevas now has six career ATP titles, all of them on clay where he plays his best tennis by far.

Ramos fell to 1-3 in career ATP titles, but made his fourth title by defeating Gastao Elias, Guido Pella, and Joao Sousa, needing three sets against both Pella and Sousa. The Spaniard’s spin remains a damaging weapon on clay courts, and he’s now 11-7 on the season after making the Quarterfinals or better of every Golden Swing clay court stop. He’s also one of the handful of players to take part in all four Golden Swing tournaments.

Home joy was felt for Rogerio Dutra Silva and his fellow Brazilian Andre Sa as they defeated Marcus Daniell and Marcelo Demoliner in the doubles final.

2017 ATP Acapulco Preview and Predictions (@AbiertoTelcel)

Posted by Admin on February 27, 2017
Posted in: Acapulco, ATP, Steen Kirby. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

2017 ATP Acapulco Preview and Predictions
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

The top ATP Tour event this week is down in Mexico, as some of the tour’s best will battle it out at this 500 level tournament.

Abierto Mexicano Telcel
ATP World Tour 500*
Acapulco, Mexico
February 27-March 4, 2017
Surface: Hard
Prize Money: $1,491,310

*denotes joint ATP/WTA event

Top 4 seeds (ATP rankings in parentheses)
1: Novak Djokovic (2)
2: Rafael Nadal (6)
3: Marin Cilic (8)
4: Dominic Thiem (9)

First round matches to watch:

Bernard Tomic vs. Donald Young

Young leads the h2h 2-1 and has made two straight semifinals in back to back weeks. Tomic has lost three straight matches and badly needs to bounce back down in Mexico. The Aussie has struggled with his fitness this year, and despite the fatigue factor, I have Young slipping past Tomic.

(4)Dominic Thiem vs. Gilles Simon

Thiem has won his last three matches against Simon, including one recently in Rotterdam. The Austrian is the defending champion and has won seven of his last eight matches. Simon is steady and will put a lot of balls back in play, but unless fatigue dooms Thiem, he should win this match.

(8)John Isner vs. Steve Johnson

Johnson has made two straight quarterfinals and has won his last two meetings against Isner. The 31 year old American big server has struggled this season and badly needs to find form. Despite being favored, I have Isner dropping this opening round match to Johnson.

(3)Marin Cilic vs. (WC)Alexandr Dolgopolov

These players have split h2h meetings, and Dolgopolov is coming off a seven match win streak. Cilic has struggled this  year, but reached the quarterfinals in Rotterdam, and should be fitter than Dolgopolov. Despite his talented shotmaking, Dolgopolov should fall short against Cilic’s power.

(2)Rafael Nadal vs. Mischa Zverev

Nadal pummeled Zverev in Brisbane and is a heavy favorite in this one. The German has struggled since a run in Australia, but Nadal hasn’t played since then, and could be rusty. It will be interesting to see whether Zverev’s serve and volley bothers Rafa at all.

Top Half:

Novak Djokovic will open his title bid against Martin Klizan, big man Juan Martin Del Potro looms in round 2, presuming JMDP puts away qualifier Frances Tiafoe. This is a tough section for Djokovic, he should still defeat Del Potro, but then Marseille semifinalist Nick Kyrgios should await him in the quarters. Kyrgios opens with a struggling Dudi Sela, then the Young/Tomic winner. Kyrgios and Del Po both have the weapons to beat Novak, but I still can’t go against the multiple slam winner and world #2 to reach the semifinals.

David Goffin looks set to face Dominic Thiem in the the quarters. Goffin opens with a struggling Stephane Robert, his round 2 opponent is a Delray quarterfinalist, either Sam Querrey or Kyle Edmund. Goffin has been in great form, reaching consecutive ATP finals recently, he should beat Thiem after Thiem defeats Simon and Fritz/Mannarino.

Bottom Half:

The winner of Nadal/Zverev will face Rendy Lu/Paolo Lorenzi next, with Jack Sock the most likely quarterfinal opponent. Sock faces qualifier Yoshihito Nishioka, with either Feliciano Lopez or Jordan Thompson to follow. Given both Lopez and Thompson are struggling, the Delray champion Sock should be prepared for a battle with Nadal. Two of the best forehands in men’s tennis will go head-to-head, with Nadal likely to come out on top given his experience, and a better all-around game.

The winner of Johnson/Isner will face an American, either Ernesto Escobedo, or qualifier Stefan Kozlov. I have Johnson opposite Cilic in the quarters, after Dolgopolov, Cilic should defeat his countryman Borna Coric, who opens with local wild card Lucas Gomez.

Dark Horse: Juan Martin Del Potro

If Del Potro can find his range against Novak Djokovic, he could pull off a big upset, then defeat Nick Kyrgios to reach the semifinals. Del Potro has the power and ability, but he’s still likely too rusty to pull off that feat.

Predictions

Semis
Djokovic d. Goffin
Nadal d. Cilic

Djokovic leads Goffin 5-0 in the h2h, while Nadal leads Cilic 3-1, the top two players at this tournament should meet in the final.

Final
Djokovic d. Nadal

Djokovic has won seven straight against Rafa, the Serbian is a favorite to take the title despite a difficult draw.

Thiem, Cuevas Continue Early Season Success, Wawrinka Takes Dubai

Posted by Admin on February 28, 2016
Posted in: Acapulco, ATP, Dubai, Sao Paolo, Steen Kirby. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Thiem, Cuevas Continue Early Season Success, Wawrinka Takes Dubai
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

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ATP Acapulco

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Dominic Thiem continued his MEGA season with his second ATP title this month in Acapulco. The 500 level tournament is his biggest career result thus far and the 22 year old Austrian is making a push for the top 10. Thiem scored a comeback win in the final 7-6(6) 4-6 6-3 over Bernard Tomic after Tomic was up 4-1 and 5-2 in the first set. Tomic had a good tournament and showed his own flashes of greatness but the 23 year old Aussie could maintain a consistent high level compared to Thiem’s newly aggressive tennis this year.

Thiem is 18-4 on the season with room to grow as he has two titles, and two semifinals already this year. He beat Damir Dzumhur, Grigor Dimitrov, and Sam Querrey in resounding fashion without dropping a set, and also came back from a set down against Dmitry Tursunov in his second match. The former top 15 player Dimitrov was plainly outclassed by Thiem who is two years his junior.

Tomic moved to 12-6 on the season and posted his best result after a post Australian slump. He got revenge against Rajeev Ram for a loss earlier this month, and then beat Adrian Mannarino, Illya Marchenko and Alexandr Dolgopolov to reach the final. Dolgo was on fire in the opening set, and had his chances in sets 2 and 3, but somehow Tomic dealt with his shotmaking to advance. Dolgopolov upset David Ferrer early in the tournament, and the other favorite Kei Nishikori lost to Querrey.

Veteran Max Mirnyi teamed up with Treat Huey to defeat Alexander Peya and Philipp Petzschner in the doubles final. Mirnyi needs a couple more wins to make it 700 in his doubles career.

ATP Dubai

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The 500 level stop in Dubai saw world #4 Stan Wawrinka capture his second ATP title of the season. Wawrinka had a surprisingly easy path to the title after world #1 Novak Djokovic withdrew with an eye infection. Against unseeded veteran Marcos Baghdatis, he dazzled with his backhand in a great display of offense against offense from the baseline for a 6-4 7-6(13) victory.

Wawrinka had to fight back from a set and a break down, and work through a tough third set to beat serve and volleyer Sergiy Stakhovsky for the second week in a row, he was looking shaky early on, but wins over Franko Skugor and Philipp Kohlschreiber gave him momentum. Nick Kyrgios met him in the semifinals, as he had another good week on tour, but a back injury forced him to retire in set 2.

The Cypriot Baghdatis reached his first tour final since Atlanta last year, and he did so with surprising wins over Viktor Troicki, Vasek Pospisil, Roberto Bautista Agut, and Feliciano Lopez, dropping just the first set to Lopez en route. Troicki and RBA had been in good form as of late, but both looked exhausted in sloppy second sets against the 30 year old.

Italians Simone Bolelli and Andreas Seppi won 14-12 in a third set super tiebreak against the Spanish Lopez brothers Feliciano and Marc to capture the doubles title. Lopez still had a great week overall with a semifinal in singles and a final in doubles after a slow start to 2016.

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ATP Sao Paulo

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Pablo Cuevas defended his Sao Paulo title and won his second tournament in a row to move to 12-3 on the season, and cement his status as one of the best clay courters on tour. Cuevas is 10-1 on clay this year and dominated the Golden Swing with a quarterfinal in Buenos Aires, and titles in Rio and Sao Paulo.

His Sao Paulo triumph came with little signs of fatigue in a 7-6(4) 6-3 victory over Pablo Carreno Busta. He also beat Facundo Bagnis, the young upstart Thiago Monteiro, and Dusan Lajovic this week, dropping just a set to a promising Monteiro in some rather quick matches. Monteiro is 3-2 on tour this year after making his ATP main draw debut in Rio.

Carreno Busta was bageled in his opening set of the tournament against Albert Ramos but survived a third set tiebreak, and then went on to beat Daniel Gimeno-Traver in three sets, Roberto Carballes Baena, and Inigo Cervantes, in quarter and semifinal blowouts. It was the first ever ATP final for Carreno Busta, but victory was not to be had as Cuevas proved too strong. Pablo should be a threat on European clay in the spring as well.

Julio Peralta and Horacio Zeballos won the doubles title over Carreno Busta/David Marrero.

Steen Kirby (Marseille)

2016 ATP Acapulco Preview and Predictions (@AbiertoTelcel)

Posted by Admin on February 22, 2016
Posted in: Acapulco, ATP, Steen Kirby. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

2016 ATP Acapulco Preview and Predictions
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

The 500 level hard court tournament in the Mexican resort city of Acapulco continues to grow in stature and expand in prominence as a host of ATP stars will battle it out.

Abierto Mexicano Telcel
ATP World Tour 500*
Acapulco, Mexico
February 22-27, 2016
Surface: Hard
Prize Money: $1,413,600

*denotes joint ATP/WTA event

Top 4 seeds (ATP ranking in parentheses)
1: David Ferrer (6)
2: Kei Nishikori (7)
3: Marin Cilic (12)
4: Dominic Thiem (19)

Acapulco can stake a claim to the strongest field this week, as this 500 level tournament has drawn a deep and varied field.

First round matchups to watch:

Steve Johnson vs. Alexandr Dolgopolov

Steve Johnson won a three setter against Dolgopolov last year in Vienna, and he’s eager to take advantage of more hard court tennis after a rough start to 2016. Dolgo withdrew from Rio with a shoulder injury and may not be 100%, with that in mind, Johnson is likely a slight favorite.

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(5)Bernard Tomic vs. Rajeev Ram

Rajeev Ram stunned a tanking Bernard Tomic in Delray last week and ended up reaching the ATP final in one of the surprises of last week. Tomic has been in terrible form since the Australian Open swing and appears to be playing careless tennis once again. Ram is likely fatigued though, and thus Tomic has to be the favorite.

(8)Jeremy Chardy vs. (Q)Taylor Fritz

Delray quarterfinalist Jeremy Chardy will be the favorite against the young Memphis finalist Taylor Fritz, but Fritz got through qualifying and he’s an incredibly talented young gun. Chardy’s one dimensional attacking tennis is something Fritz could exploit with his offensive, and defensive game. Fritz is a solid player, but he’s still learning the ropes.

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Top Half:

Defending champion David Ferrer hasn’t reached an ATP final this season and went 4-2 on clay after Melbourne. He opens with John Millman, who has lost two straight matches, and should defeat Steve Johnson after that to reach the quarterfinals. Ferrer’s weak section could see him face Ivo Karlovic in the quarterfinals. The veteran Dr. Ivo hasn’t won a match this year, while his first round opponent Aljaz Bedene has also lost four straight since reaching an ATP semi to start the season in Chennai. Karlovic/Bedene will face either wild card Luis Patino, a futures player, or Robin Haase, who is 1-4 in his last five matches. Karlovic’s trusty serve should see him reach the quarters, only to fall to Ferrer.

Marseille finalist Marin Cilic could be dealing with jetlag. Cilic opens with qualifier Ryan Harrison who continues to play on the fringes of ATP caliber tennis. Cilic is 2-0 in the h2h against Harrison and Illya Marchenko or qualifier Tommy Paul will follow in round 2. Paul is a young gun with promise, though Marchenko is a slight favorite. Cilic should dominate this section if he’s not overly fatigued, but Harrison could surprise.

Tomic/Ram is slated to face futures player Tigre Hank or Adrian Mannarino, a quarterfinalist in both Sofia and Delray Beach. Tomic has two three set wins over Mannarino, both came last year on hard courts, and one was in Acapulco. His poor form makes the Frenchman a dark horse to reach the quarterfinals though. Cilic is also 2-0 against Mannarino, but his fatigue should catch up to him, and I have it Ferrer vs. Mannarino in the semis. If Tomic can find form, he should reach the semis.

Bottom Half:

Kei Nishikori is the favorite to take the title this week, and he’ll open with qualifier Thiemo de Bakker. Delray champion Sam Querrey lost to Nishikori in Memphis, and presuming Querrey beats a struggling Dudi Sela, he’s still likely to lose to Kei once more. Chardy should beat veteran Victor Estrella, or another Mexican local player, Lucas Gomez, to reach the quarters. Nishikori has won his last two hard court meetings against Chardy and is in better form.

Dominic Thiem is 13-4 with an ATP title this season. The Austrian is making a push for the top 15 and beyond and he’s one of the top players of the season thus far. Thiem has shown his skill on both hard courts and clay. His round 1 opponent Damir Dzumhur has nothing to compare to his skillset, with a struggling Sam Groth, or Dmitry Tursunov to follow. Tursunov is returning from a lengthy injury layoff and hasn’t successfully completed an ATP main draw level match since the 2014 US Open. Even if Thiem is fatigued, he should slide into the quarters with this weak draw.

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Grigor Dimitrov is a positive 10-4 on the season, but he has been denied a pair of ATP titles he was the favorite to claim in Sydney and Delray Beach. Dimitrov’s mental inconsistency is unlikely to be a problem in round 1 given his groundstrokes are better than a struggling Denis Kudla, but it could be an issue in round 2. The winner of Donald Young/Gilles Muller is in Dimitrov’s seedline, and the big server Muller, who dominated Young in Atlanta last year, has two ATP semifinals this season. Dimitrov beat Muller in Sydney but has lost to him twice before. That is an intriguing round 2 match, with Dimitrov the favorite to advance to the quarters.

The match of the tournament could be Dimitrov vs. Thiem in the quarterfinals, presuming both overcome fatigue, it will be their first meeting. Thiem has been better than Dimitrov this year, but Dimitrov is a good fast surface player, and will likely be somewhat fresher, thus I have him reaching the semis.

Dark Horse: Adrian Mannarino

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Mannarino will need to upset Tomic (or Ram), and Cilic, but he has a great chance to reach the semifinals as an unseeded player. His unique game is capable of peaking and posting big wins on fast surfaces.

Predictions

Semis
Ferrer d. Mannarino
Nishikori d. Dimitrov

Ferrer is 2-0 against Mannarino, Nishikori is also 2-0 against Dimitrov, and both have clear paths to the final.

Final
Nishikori d. Ferrer

Ferrer upset Nishikori in the Acapulco final last year, and Nishikori should be eager to get him back in this one. Kei has had a decided edge in their other recent hard court meetings, and he appears ready to rise up in this one.

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Steen Kirby (Marseille)

Ferrer wins third title of 2015, Federer and Nadal claim titles in the same week

Posted by Admin on March 1, 2015
Posted in: Acapulco, ATP, buenos aires, Dubai, Steen Kirby. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Ferrer wins third title of 2015, Federer and Nadal claim titles in the same week
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

ATP Acapulco

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David Ferrer extended his dominance of the Abierto Mexicano in Acapulco, as the multi surface champion claimed his fourth title at the tournament with a surprisingly easy 6-3 7-5 win over Kei Nishikori.

Ferrer improves to 18-1 on the season after the tournament, and he hasn’t lost a match since losing to Nishikori in Melbourne, with titles in Doha and Rio previously this year, giving him three titles on the season. Ferrer is an early leader out of the gate most ATP titles.

Nishikori played poorly compared to their meeting in Melbourne, spraying too many errors as he got off to a slow start and never truly recovered, while Ferrer was much more reliable, making for an opponent that was too formidable for the newly top 5 Nishikori.

Ferrer had some tough matches this week,he beat Igor Sijsling in straights with one set that was competitive, then got past Marinko Matosevic in straights and Bernard Tomic in 3 sets, 6-1 in the third. In the semis, he dropped the opening set to qualifier Ryan Harrison, who shockingly reached the semis, beating Grigor Dimitrov en route, along with Ivo Karlovic, but Harrison ran out of gas after that and Ferrer won the next 12 games for a three set win.

Nishikori performed better in his other matches this week than he did in the final, the Japanese number one extended his winning streak from his title in Memphis with wins over Alejandro Gonzalez, Rendy Lu, and Alex Dolgopolov without dropping a set, and then he beat Kevin Anderson once again in 3 sets.

Ivan Dodig and Marcelo Melo won the doubles title over Santiago Gonzalez and Mariusz Frystenberg, as the Mexican doubles specialist Gonzalez was denied a title on home soil.

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ATP Dubai

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Roger Federer claimed an untouchable seventh title in Dubai, as he and Novak Djokovic treated fans to another thrilling duel in their long running rivalry. Djokovic had his chances all match but Federer was remarkably clutch, saving all 7 break points faced, while breaking Djokovic on his only chance in each set for the title. Federer was dominant behind his first serve with 12 aces, while the rallying and aggressive play by both players was sublime and graceful. With the win, Federer proves that he remains a forced to be reckoned with against any opponent on tour, including the world number 1.

Federer faced little in the way of opposition all week as he dominated Mikhail Youzhny, Fernando Verdasco, Richard Gasquet, and the teenager Borna Coric, who reached the semifinals as a lucky loser. In the process, Coric shockingly dominated a listless Andy Murray in straights, and also took out Marcos Baghdatis and Malek Jaziri in 3 sets. Coric had a lot of luck this week in general, notably Baghdatis retired before a third set tiebreak with cramps. The 33 year old world number 2 now has two ATP titles on the season.

Djokovic improved to 13-2 on the year with straight set wins over Vasek Pospisil, Andrey Golubev,and surprise quarterfinalist Marsel Ilhan. He played a strange semifinal against Tomas Berdych, where he posted a first set bagel, then shockingly lost the second set, after breaking back no less,finally finishing of the match 6-4 in the third as Berdych came up just short of a quality comeback.

The veteran pairing of Rohan Bopanna and Daniel Nestor defeated fellow veterans Nenad Zimonjic and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi in the doubles final.

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ATP Buenos Aires

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Rafael Nadal refused to be denied a title on the Golden Swing on South American clay, as he got over the hump and took out Juan Monaco, his good friend and frequent doubles partner, 6-4 6-1. Monaco didn’t play poorly but he had little chance going into the final against an opponent he knows so well, and he seemed to be resigned to defeat at the start.

Rafa didn’t drop a set this week, not letting the letdown of a semifinal loss in Rio get to him, the Spanish number one and King of Clay beat all Argentine opponents this week, breaking local hearts in BA. His first win came against Facundo Arguello, then he scored wins over Federico Delbonis and Carlos Berlocq to reach the final, all without dropping a set, as Berlocq was perhaps his toughest opponent of the tournament.

Pico Monaco beat Maximo Gonzalez in round 1, then upset the highest ranked Argentine player, Leonardo Mayer 6-4 6-4. In the quarters he snuck past an in-form Pablo Cuevas in 3 sets, 6-4 in the third, and in the semis he ground his way past Nicolas Almagro 6-4 in the third set. That match was one he had every reason to take in straights but was forced to the distance in. By virtue of reaching the final, Monaco extends his streak of reaching at least one ATP final every year since 2008. He also drops to 1-2 in Argentina Open finals.

Jarkko Nieminen and Andre Sa beat Pablo Andujar and Oliver Marach in the doubles final.

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Steen Kirby (Marseille)

Only 1 Seed Qualifies at ATP Acapulco

Posted by Admin on February 23, 2015
Posted in: Acapulco, Adam Addicott, ATP. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Only one seed qualifies at ATP Acapulco
Adam Addicott, Tennis Atlantic

The final round of qualifying at the ATP Abierto Mexicano Telcel Open commenced today with only one seed managing to reach the main draw.

Third seed and world number 92 Alejandro González booked his place in the main draw following a  6-4 7-6(7-3) win over Jimmy Wang. The first set consisted of numerous breaks of serves with Gonzalez dropping his serve twice as Wang dropped three of his first four service games.

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After losing the first set, Wang did have the opportunity to make a comeback as he opened up a 3-0 lead in the second set, however, it soon disappeared as the third seed battled back to even things up as the set went into a tie-break. In the tie-break Wang furthermore faltered four times on his serve as the Colombian took full advantage to secure his place in the main draw.

Ryan Harrison qualified for the main draw of an ATP event for the second consecutive time as he eased past Michael Russell. Harrison, who entered the draw as an alternate, enjoyed an impressive win over Alejandro Falla in the first round before today. This is now the fifth time that Harrison has beaten his fellow countryman since 2009. The 22-year-old is currently ranked 169 in the world which is over 100 places below is career ranking high of 43 which was achieved back in 2012.

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One of Australia’s biggest future hopes, Thanasi Kokkinakis, had to come from a set down before squeezing his way past the experienced Alejandro Falla. During the two hour and 43 minute match the Aussie battled to a 4-6 6-3 7-6(7-3) win. It’s the second event in a row Kokkinakis has qualified for (qualifed in Delray Beach) and he is edging closer towards the top 100 mark, he is currently at a career ranking high of 138 in the world. Following his win,  Kokkinakis wrote about his win on Twitter.

Finally, rounding off the qualifiers was Austin Krajicek. Krajicek, a distant cousin of 1996 Wimbledon champion Richard Krajicek, came in the draw with a good amount of confidence. During the Memphis Open at the start of the Month, the American qualified for the main draw and the produced surprise victories over Mikhail Kukushkin and Ivo Karlovic. In the final round today he produced a straight sets win over fourth seed Aljaz Bedene.

Main Draw matches for the qualifiers

Alejandro González v Kei Nishikori (1) – This will be the first time they have played each other on the tour since 2006!

Austin Krajicek v Santiago Giraldo  – First meeting

Thanasi Kokkinakis v Dušan Lajović – ( Kokkinakis has a head to head lead of 1-0)

Ryan Harrison v Donald Young – (head to head is 2-2)

Adam Addicott TA Watermark

Tennis Atlantic 2015 ATP Draw Challenge Week 8 (Acapulco, Dubai, Buenos Aires)

Posted by Admin on February 23, 2015
Posted in: 2015 ATP Draw Challenge, Acapulco, buenos aires, Chris De Waard, Courtney Massey, Dubai, Jeff McMillan, Niall Clarke, Steen Kirby. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Tennis Atlantic 2015 ATP Draw Challenge Week 8 (Acapulco, Dubai, Buenos Aires)
Staff, Tennis Atlantic

Two 500 pointers are at stake with Acapulco and Dubai, while 250 points can be gained from the clay court tournament in Buenos Aires, as a vast majority of the ATP World Tour’s stars are in action this week.

Acapulco (draw)

2015 Abierto Mexicano Telcel Picks

Steen Kirby’s predictions

Round 2 Matches: Nishikori vs. Estrella, Haase vs. Dolgopolov, Anderson vs. Johnson, Troicki vs. Giraldo, Gabashvili vs. Kokkinakis, Young vs. Dimitrov, Becker vs. Tomic, Granollers vs. Ferrer
Quarterfinals: Nishikori vs. Dolgopolov, Anderson vs. Troicki, Kokkinakis vs. Dimitrov, Tomic vs. Ferrer
Semifinals: Nishikori vs. Anderson, Dimitrov vs. Ferrer
Final: Nishikori vs. Dimitrov
Champion: Nishikori

Courtney Massey’s predictions

Round 2 Matches: Nishikori vs. Estrella, Haider-Maurer vs. Dolgopolov, Anderson vs. Johnson, Troicki vs. Qualifier, Karlovic vs. Kokkinakis, Young vs. Dimitrov, Becker vs. Tomic, Matosevic vs. Ferrer
Quarterfinals: Nishikori vs. Haider-Maurer, Anderson vs. Troicki, Karlovic vs. Dimitrov, Becker vs. Ferrer
Semifinals: Haider-Maurer vs. Troicki, Dimitrov vs. Ferrer
Final: Haider-Maurer vs. Ferrer
Champion: Ferrer

Chris de Waard’s predictions

Round 2 Matches: Nishikori vs. Lu, Haider-Maurer vs. Dolgopolov, Anderson vs. Johnson, Troicki vs. Giraldo, Karlovic vs. Kokkinakis, Young vs. Dimitrov, Kamke vs. Tomic, Granollers vs. Ferrer
Quarterfinals: Nishikori vs. Dolgopolov, Anderson vs. Troicki, Karlovic vs. Dimitrov, Tomic vs. Ferrer
Semifinals: Nishikori vs. Troicki, Dimitrov vs. Ferrer
Final: Nishikori vs. Ferrer
Champion: Nishikori

Jeff McMillan’s predictions

Round 2 Matches: Nishikori vs. Lu, Haider-Maurer vs. Dolgopolov, Anderson vs. Johnson, Troicki vs. Giraldo, Karlovic vs. Kokkinakis, Young vs. Dimitrov, Kamke vs. Tomic, Matosevic vs. Ferrer
Quarterfinals: Nishikori vs. Dolgopolov, Johnson vs. Troicki, Karlovic vs. Dimitrov, Tomic vs. Ferrer
Semifinals: Nishikori vs. Johnson, Dimitrov vs. Ferrer
Final: Nishikori vs. Dimitrov
Champion: Nishikori

Niall Clarke’s predictions

Round 2 Matches: Nishikori vs. Lu, Haider-Maurer vs. Dolgopolov, Anderson vs. Johnson, Troicki vs. Giraldo, Karlovic vs. Kokkinakis, Young vs. Dimitrov, Becker vs. Mannarino, Granollers vs. Ferrer
Quarterfinals: Nishikori vs. Dolgopolov, Anderson vs. Troicki, Karlovic vs. Dimitrov, Mannarino vs. Ferrer
Semifinals: Nishikori vs. Anderson, Karlovic vs. Ferrer
Final: Nishikori vs. Ferrer
Champion: Nishikori

Opinions are mixed on how David Ferrer will fare coming off his Rio title, but Kei Nishikori is the consensus pick to win his second ATP title of the year, while defending champ Grigor Dimitrov is predicted to come up just short by most of our analysts.

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Dubai (draw)

2015 Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships Picks

Steen Kirby’s predictions

Round 2 Matches: Djokovic vs. Golubev, Zverev vs. Lopez, Berdych vs. Bolelli, Stakhovsky vs. Istomin, Baghdatis vs. Kohlschreiber, Sousa vs. Murray, Bautista Agut vs. Gasquet, Garcia-Lopez vs. Federer
Quarterfinals: Djokovic vs. Lopez, Berdych vs. Stakhovsky, Baghdatis vs. Murray, Gasquet vs. Federer
Semifinals: Djokovic vs. Berdych, Murray vs. Federer
Final: Djokovic vs. Federer
Champion:  Djokovic

Courtney Massey’s predictions

Round 2 Matches: Djokovic vs. Martin, Ilhan vs. Lopez, Berdych vs. Bolelli, Stakhovsky vs. Gulbis, Baghdatis vs. Kohlschreiber, McGee vs. Murray, Bautista Agut vs. Seppi, Verdasco vs. Federer
Quarterfinals: Djokovic vs. Lopez, Berdych vs. Stakhovsky, Baghdatis vs. Murray, Seppi vs. Federer
Semifinals: Djokovic vs. Berdych, Murray vs. Federer
Final: Djokovic vs. Federer
Champion:  Federer

Chris de Waard’s predictions

Round 2 Matches: Djokovic vs. Martin, Ilhan vs. Lopez, Berdych vs. Bolelli, Stakhovsky vs. Gulbis, Goffin vs. Kohlschreiber, Sousa vs. Murray, Bautista Agut vs. Gasquet, Garcia-Lopez vs. Federer
Quarterfinals: Djokovic vs. Lopez, Berdych vs. Stakhovsky, Goffin vs. Murray, Gasquet vs. Federer
Semifinals: Djokovic vs. Berdych, Murray vs. Federer
Final: Djokovic vs. Murray
Champion:  Djokovic

Jeff McMillan’s predictions

Round 2 Matches: Djokovic vs. Golubev, Ilhan vs. Lopez, Berdych vs. Bolelli, Rosol vs. Gulbis, Goffin vs. Kohlschreiber, Sousa vs. Murray, Bautista Agut vs. Seppi, Verdasco vs. Federer
Quarterfinals: Djokovic vs. Lopez, Berdych vs. Gulbis, Goffin vs. Murray, Seppi vs. Federer
Semifinals: Djokovic vs. Berdych, Murray vs. Federer
Final: Djokovic vs. Murray
Champion:  Murray

Niall Clarke’s predictions

Round 2 Matches: Djokovic vs. Golubev, Zverev vs. Lopez, Berdych vs. Bolelli, Stakhovsky vs. Istomin, Goffin vs. Kohlschreiber, Sousa vs. Murray, Bautista Agut vs. Gasquet, Garcia-Lopez vs. Federer
Quarterfinals: Djokovic vs. Lopez, Berdych vs. Istomin, Goffin vs. Murray, Gasquet vs. Federer
Semifinals: Djokovic vs. Berdych, Murray vs. Federer
Final: Djokovic vs. Federer
Champion:  Federer

2 people have Fed as champ, 2  people have Novak as champ, and everyone has the same semifinal pairings this week, in a draw that is expected to remain true to form late into the tournament.

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Buenos Aires (draw)

2015 Argentina Open Picks

Steen Kirby’s predictions

Round 2 Matches: Nadal vs. Montanes, Bellucci vs. Delbonis, Fognini vs. Berlocq, Qualifier vs. Vesely, Mayer vs. Monaco, Qualifier vs. Cuevas, Almagro vs. Ramos, Olivo vs. Robredo
Quarterfinals: Nadal vs. Delbonis, Fognini vs. Vesely, Monaco vs. Cuevas, Almagro vs. Olivo
Semifinals: Nadal vs. Vesely, Cuevas vs. Almagro
Final: Nadal vs. Cuevas
Champion:  Nadal

Courtney Massey’s predictions

Round 2 Matches: Nadal vs. Qualifier, Lorenzi vs. Delbonis, Fognini vs. Schwartzman, Qualifier vs. Vesely, Mayer vs. Monaco, Qualifier vs. Cuevas, Andujar vs. Zeballos, Nieminen vs. Robredo
Quarterfinals: Nadal vs. Lorenzi, Fognini vs. Vesely, Mayer vs. Qualifier, Andujar vs. Nieminen
Semifinals: Nadal vs. Fognini, Mayer vs. Nieminen
Final: Nadal vs. Mayer
Champion:  Nadal

Chris de Waard’s predictions

Round 2 Matches: Nadal vs. Qualifier, Bellucci vs. Carreno-Busta, Fognini vs. Schwartzman, Qualifier vs. Vesely, Mayer vs. Monaco, Andreozzi vs. Cuevas, Almagro vs. Ramos, Olivo vs. Robredo
Quarterfinals: Nadal vs. Carreno Busta, Fognini vs. Vesely, Monaco vs. Cuevas, Almagro vs. Olivo
Semifinals: Nadal vs. Fognini, Cuevas vs. Almagro
Final: Nadal vs. Cuevas
Champion:  Nadal

Jeff McMillan’s predictions

Round 2 Matches: Nadal vs. Qualifier, Bellucci vs. Delbonis, Fognini vs. Berlocq, Qualifier vs. Rola, Mayer vs. Gonzalez, Qualifier vs. Cuevas, Almagro vs. Zeballos, Nieminen vs. Robredo
Quarterfinals: Nadal vs. Bellucci, Fognini vs. Qualifier, Mayer vs. Cuevas, Almagro vs. Robredo
Semifinals: Nadal vs. Fognini, Cuevas vs. Robredo
Final: Nadal vs. Cuevas
Champion:  Nadal

Niall Clarke’s predictions

Round 2 Matches: Nadal vs. Montanes, Bellucci vs. Delbonis, Fognini vs. Berlocq, Qualifier vs. Vesely, Mayer vs. Monaco, Qualifier vs. Cuevas, Almagro vs. Zeballos, Nieminen vs. Robredo
Quarterfinals: Nadal vs. Delbonis, Berlocq vs. Vesely, Monaco vs. Cuevas, Almagro vs. Robredo
Semifinals: Nadal vs. Berlocq, Monaco vs. Almagro
Final: Nadal vs. Monaco
Champion:  Nadal

Nobody appears to be comfortable picking against Nadal on clay, with Pablo Cuevas a favorite for the final.

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Week 7 standings

Rio
1: Jeff (100 points) (+500 points overall)
2: Chris (82 points) (+300 points)
3: Steen (62 points) (+180 points)
4: Niall (62 points) (+180 points)
5: Courtney (46 points) (+90 points)

The two players with Ferrer as champion finished one and two, and Jeff had Fognini going deeper in the tournament, giving him an edge.

Marseille
1: Niall (118 points) (+250 points)
2: Jeff (110 points) (+150 points)
3: Chris (78 points) (+90 points)
4: Steen (68 points) (+90 points)
5: Courtney (56 points) (+45 points)

Niall and Jeff both correctly predicted Simon as champion, and a Monfils vs. Simon final, kudos to them as they led the pack this week.

Delray
1: Courtney (84 points)  (+250 points)
2: Jeff (46 points) (+150 points)
3: Niall (32 points) (+90 points)
4: Chris (28 points) (+90 points)
5: Steen (24 points) (+45 points)

Courtney blew the rest of the field out of the water this week in Delray, taking the title as her favorite Ernests Gulbis has before, she was the only one to correctly predict Ivo Karlovic as champion.

Overall standings (after week 7)

1: Steen: 4110 ranking points (+315 points overall)
2:  Jeff: 3000 points (+800 points overall)
3: Courtney: 2800 points (+385 points overall)
4: Chris: 2750 points (+480 points overall)
5: Niall: 2370 points (+520 points overall)

Jeff makes a big move this week, rising from 4th to second with a tremendous 800 point gain, Courtney won an event but actually dropped one spot into third, while Niall remains bringing up the rear.

ATP Draw Challenge (London Queens)