2016 Wroclaw, Morelos and New Delhi Challenger Recaps Chris De Waard, Tennis Atlantic
Wroclaw
Top seed Evgeny Donskoy held match points against Jeremy Chardy in the first round of the glamorous 500 event in Rotterdam a week earlier, but it was back to the grind for him in Wroclaw this week. He started off well in his first two matches, but then the Rotterdam scenario repeated itself against Konstantin Kravchuk in the quarterfinal, with the seventh seed winning 7-6(4) 6-7(9) 6-4. In the second section veteran Marco Chiudinelli began an excellent run by beating Daniel Evans, fifth seed Mirza Basic and Alexander Kudryavtsev to set up a semi-final encounter with Kravchuk. It didn’t stop there for Chiudinelli, as he ousted Kravchuk in two tight sets, 7-6(8) 7-6(4).
In the bottom half another veteran would have a dream run. Jan Hernych, 36, came through qualifying and immediately made an impact in the main draw by beating third seed Jan-Lennard Struff in the first round, 4-6 6-2 7-6(5). Eventually he went all the way to the the semi-final, where he met second seed Dustijn Brown, who cruised tot he draw and didn’t drop a set. That would change against Hernych, however, as the 36-year-old beat Brown 7-6(5) 6-4 for a place in the final, his first since 2012. There the younger of the two would prevail in the veteran encounter. Chiudinelli, 34, won 6-3 7-6(9) to claim his first Challenger title since 2009. He gained thirty-seven ranking spots and landed at #146, while Hernych rose eighty-one spots to #269.
Morelos
The tournament lost its top seed beforehand as Victor Estrella Burgos withdrew and ninth seed Giovanni Lapentti took his spot. Lapentti lost his first round to Alessandro Giannessi, who took full advantage of the opportunity and reached the semi-final after beating sixth seed Alexander Sarkissian 2-6 6-1 6-3. There he faced fourth seed Alejandro Gonzalez, who had no problem getting rid of Giannessi in a 6-3 6-1 beatdown.
In the bottom half the top seeds held their own, resulting in both second Horacio Zeballos and third seed Gerald Melzer reaching the semi-final without too many problems along the way. They fought out a major battle, with Melzer eventually coming through in three hard-fought sets, 6-7(1) 6-3 6-4. The final against Gonzalez was easier for he Austrian, winning 7-6(4) 6-3 to take down his fourth Challenger title. He also reached a career high ranking of #116, rising twenty spots. Gonzalez rose eleven spots to #143.
Another top seed who didn’t get far here, with Yuki Bhambri getting upset by Joris De Loore in the first round, 6-4 7-6(4). De Loore lost the next round to Flavio Cipolla 6-4 7-6(2), who in his turn lost 6-3 6-2 to third seed Stephane Robert in the semi-final. Robert faced fourth seed Saketh Myneni in the final, who decimated second seed Kimmer Coppejans with the same score in the semi-final, 6-3 6-2.
So the final came down to two players who absolutely trashed the opposition on their way. Robert won his quarter- and semi-final respectively 6-2 6-0 and 6-3 6-2, while Myneni did so 6-4 6-1 and 6-3 6-2. Robert would be the one to continue the trend however, as the 35-year-old beat Myneni 6-3 6-0 to close out his spectacular run and win his seventh Challenger title, and the first one in five years. He rose twenty-two ranking spots to #139, while Myneni rose eight spots to #158.
2015 New Delhi, Wroclaw and Morelos Challenger Recaps Chris De Waard, Tennis Atlantic
New Delhi
Top seed James Duckworth seems to be having a case of the top 100 jitters. After a great start on the year, reaching the quarterfinal of Brisbane and the second round at the Australian Open (which saw him rise to #108 in the rankings), he suffered his third bad week in a row here in New Delhi. Losing in the second round to wild card Sanam Singh, it’s clear that change is needed quickly after failing to win back to back Challenger matches in three consecutive tournaments. #5 seed and defending champion Somdev Devvarman took advantage, taking out Singh in the quarterfinal, 4-6 6-1 6-3. He had an early lucky break already, seeing his first round opponent Antonio Veic retire while Veic was leading by a set.
The second section fell apart as well seed wise, with #3 Yuichi Sugita and #8 Alex Bolt both losing in the first round. Kimmer Coppejans was responsible for the latter’s demise and he kept up the good work, not dropping a set on his way to the semi-final. There Devvarman was way too strong, however, taking the Belgian out 6-3 6-1. In the bottom half second seed Alexander Kudryavtsev lost in the first round, but that wasn’t an upset given his opponent, Yuki Bhambri. Bhambri is severely underranked because of injury struggles and will find himself back in the top 200 very soon.
His run here will help, as he reached the semi-final without dropping a set and dispatching of #4 seed Ruben Bemelmans there in three sets, 4-6 6-3 7-5. The final between Devvarman and Bhambri was almost a carbon copy of their first round match less than a month ago in Hong Kong. There Devvarman prevailed 2-6 6-4 6-3, and here it ended 3-6 6-4 6-0. Given Devvarman was the defending champion, it does nothing for his ranking, even dropping him two spots to #155. Bhambri makes a big jump of 117 spots to #297.
Wroclaw
The tournament started with a hilarious moment between top seed Ricardas Berankis and Polish wild card Hubert Hurkacz. Hurkacz won a point playing an amazing dive volley, after which Berankis accidentally hit him in the face. Despite it being clearly unintentional, Berankis still received a warning from the umpire.
#5 seed Matthias Bachinger lost 6-1 6-7(5) 6-3 in the first round to Jesse Huta Galung, despite the Dutchman needing eight match points, which included this huge miss:
Huta Galung couldn’t keep up the good work, losing in the second round to Mirza Basic. Basic, on the other hand, went on a great run, going all the way to the semi-final, where he took out Berankis in straight sets, 7-6(4) 7-5. #4 seed Aleksandr Nedovyesov lost in a first round marathon to Jan Mertl, 6-7(3) 7-6(7) 7-6(1). In the bottom half, second seed Steve Darcis had to go deep in order to see off Michal Przysiezny in the first round, 7-6(4) 3-6 7-6(5). Darcis made it to the semi-final, where he faced #3 seed Farrukh Dustov, who took out #7 seed Michael Berrer 7-5 6-4 in the previous round.
Dustov surprisingly managed to see off Darcis as well, beating him 6-3 3-6 7-5 for a place in the final. There Basic was no match for him either, with the final ending 6-3 6-4 in Dustov’s favor. It was a monumental victory for Dustov, as his fourth Challenger title meant that he entered the top 100 for the first time in his career, rising twenty spots to #98. Basic finds himself at a career high ranking as well, cracking the top 200 at exactly #200, an improvement of seventy-seven.
Morelos
I predicted top seed Victor Estrella Burgos to lose in a quarterfinal encounter with Matteo Viola, but that scenario quickly disappeared as Viola lost in the second round. However, my initial hunch of Estrella struggling was shown to be right, as he needed three sets in all of his first three match to advance to the semi-final. This was much to the displeasure of Nicolas Barrientos, who fell in a third set tiebreak in the second round.
#4 seed Jimmy Wang fell in the first round to Giovanni Lapentti under suspicious circumstances, raising the question if this was another fixed match, following Molchanov in Dallas earlier this year. Wang started as the 1.40 favorite, but Lapentti suddenly was the overwhelming favorite with the first set far from decided and no signs of injury from Wang. This wasn’t the first time for Wang, as a similar suspicious pattern surrounded his match against Jarmere Jenkins at the Maui Challenger last year.
Gerald Melzer was the other semi-finalist from the top half, but Estrella Burgos convincingly took care of him there, 6-4 6-2. In the bottom half, #7 seed Austin Krajicek disappointed after his great quarterfinal run at Memphis, pushing world #5 Kei Nishikori to three sets. Here he lost to #288 Jason Jung in the first round, 5-7 6-3 6-4. Jung went on to lose to #3 seed Damir Dzumhur in the quarterfinal, 6-4 6-1. Alejandro Falla struggled immensely with wild card Daniel Garza in the second round, scraping by in three sets, 4-6 6-4 6-4. In the quarterfinal #5 seed Adrian Menendez-Maceiras took him out 7-5 6-3. Menendez-Maceiras fell in the semi-final to Dzumhur after an epic battle, 6-7(3) 6-3 7-6(5).
However, Estrella Burgos was completely warmed up after struggling in the early stages and won the final 7-5 6-4. Another of many special moments for Estrella Burgos as of late, as it meant his entry into the top 50 (#48). At 34, Estrella Burgos becomes the second oldest player in the open era to crack the top 50 for the first time. Dzumhur reached a milestone as well, cracking the top 100 for the first time at #87.
2015 New Delhi, Wroclaw and Morelos Challenger Previews & Predictions Chris De Waard, Tennis Atlantic
Clay has been taken out of the equation for this week, with three hardcourt tournaments taking place in India, Poland and Mexico.
Delhi Open 2015
ATP Challenger Tour
New Delhi, India
16-22 February 2015
Prize Money: $100,000
Seeds (ATP ranking in parentheses)
1: James Duckworth (113)
2: Alexander Kudryavtsev (127)
3: Yuichi Sugita (133)
4: Ruben Bemelmans (141)
5: Somdev Devvarman (147)
6: Luke Saville (166)
7: Radu Albot (167)
8: Alex Bolt (168)
The last direct acceptance is Fabrice Martin, ranked 315th. Yuki Bhambri received a wild card and will play second seed Alexander Kudryavtsev in the first round.
First round match-ups to watch
(2) Alexander Kudryavtsev – (WC) Yuki Bhambri
This is a nightmarish draw for both players. The only reason why Bhambri is ranked this low, #414, is because he has been out with injury for most of 2014. At the Australian Open this year he proved he is a lot better than that, qualifying for the main draw and playing three close sets against Andy Murray in the first round. He had a bit of a shocking loss against a slumping Somdev Devvarman in his previous tournament, so he will be looking for revenge. This is a repeat of last year’s Chennai Challenger final, which Bhambri won 4-6 6-3 7-5.
(8) Alex Bolt – Kimmer Coppejans
Bolt has displayed some good form to start off 2015, reaching a semifinal at Happy Valley, followed by a final at Burnie. Last week he hit a rough patch, falling to Zhe Zhang in the first round of Lanceston. Coppejans started off the year well with a victory over countryman Ruben Bemelmans, but has lost four consecutive matches since. Last week he played São Paulo on a wild card, where he played a close match against world #33 Santiago Giraldo, losing 7-5 7-6(4). Due to his early loss on the Brazilian clay, Coppejans should be well prepared to play on hardcourt again here in New Delhi.
Top Half
Top seed James Duckworth seems to be choking a bit at the sight of reaching the top 100. He had excellent opportunities to crack it at Hong Kong and Burnie, but lost to players outside of the top 250 in both events, falling in respectively the first and second round. Here another opportunity arises, with slumping #5 seed Somdev Devvarman landing in his quarter. #3 seed Yuichi Sugita sits in the second section, but he withdrew from Launcester last week with a lower back injury. This could open up a good opportunity for either Bolt or Coppejans to reach the semi-final here, with Bolt having the edge in their match-up. They will have fierce competition from Saketh Myneni, who has been on a roll since winning the Indore Challenger out of nowhere in October and seems to rise his level significantly in India.
Bottom Half
In the bottom half #4 seed Ruben Bemelmans has an excellent opportunity to build on his final in Glasgow. He is the strong favorite to reach the semi-final, where he in all likeliness will meet Bhambri or Kudryavtsev. Together with Bhambri, another young Indian has a good draw to make the quarterfinal, Ramkumar Ramanathan. He will face #7 seed Radu Albot in the second round to try and achieve that.
Predictions
Semis:
Duckworth d. Myneni
Bhambri d. Bemelmans
Final:
Bhambri d. Duckworth
Wroclaw Open
ATP Challenger Tour
Wroclaw, Poland
16-22 February 2015
Prize Money: €85,000
The last direct acceptance is Axel Michon, ranked 214th.
First round match-ups to watch
(2) Steve Darcis – Michal Przysiezny
Przysiezny’s fall from grace has been painful. Exactly a year ago he was ranked more than hundred spots better than his current ranking of #185. 2015 hasn’t brought much hope either, with Przysiezny failing to win a main draw match in his four tournaments so far. Darcis on the other hand won the Noumea Challenger, reached the quarterfinal at Montpellier, falling in three sets to Gaël Monfils and only had a small hiccup against Jurgen Melzer in the final qualifying round of the Australian Open, falling 6-4 in the third set. Needless to say, Darcis is a strong favorite to win this match.
Jurgen Zopp – Frank Dancevic
Respectively ranked #160 and #164, Zopp and Dancevic have seen better days. For Dancevic this was in a distant past, reaching the 65th ranking spot in 2007 after reaching the quarterfinal of the Montreal Masters and pushing Rafael Nadal to three sets, while Zopp reached his career high ranking of #71 in 2012, before his long stretch of injury problems started. Slowly but surely, Zopp seems to fight his way back, qualifying for Montpellier and reaching the semi-final of Bergamo last week. If he keeps that up, he should be able to hold off Dancevic.
Top Half
Top seed Berankis is the clear favorite here. Not only that, he also landed a remarkably cushy draw, guaranteed to face a wild card player in his first two matches. He reached the quarterfinal at Zagreb and should have gone even further, but in all honesty he choked against Andreas Seppi and fell in a third set tiebreak. He is projected to face #5 seed Iliya Marchenko in the quarterfinal, who comes off a good semi-final run at Bergamo. Marchenko lost to Nedovyesov, who in his turn lost the final and tops the second section. Nedovyesov should be able to reach another semi-final here.
Bottom Half
Second seed Steve Darcis has a tough draw, potentially facing Lukasz Kubot in the second round. Kubot’s ranking has dropped due to injury, but he is in more than decent form, which he showed at Brisbane last month, beating world #16 Kevin Anderson in the first round. If he survives the Pole, his countryman Niels Desein awaits, who won his first Challenger title in Glasgow two weeks ago. The top section is hard to call and will probably be decided between #3 seed Michael Berrer, #3 seed Farrukh Dustov and Jurgen Zopp. Although Tim Puetz, Jan Hernych and Philipp Petzschner are dangerous floaters, making this a stacked section.
Predictions
Semis:
Berankis d. Nedovyesov
Darcis d. Zopp
Final:
Darcis d. Berankis
Darcis leads the head to head 3-0, with all victories coming in three sets.
Morelos Open
ATP Challenger Tour
Cuernavaca, Mexico
16-22 February 2015
Prize Money: $75,000
Seeds (ATP ranking in parentheses)
1: Victor Estrella Burgos (52)
2: Alejandro Falla (120)
3: Damir Dzumhur (123)
4: Jimmy Wang (126)
5: Adrian Menendez-Maceiras (130)
6: Gerald Melzer (148)
7: Austin Krajicek (156)
8: Matteo Viola (188)
The last direct acceptance is Nicolas Barrientos, ranked 308th. Mexican legends Tigre Hank and Daniel Garza received a wild card.
First round match-up to watch
(3) Damir Dzumhur – Daniel Munoz-De La Nava
Dzumhur convincingly won Santo Domingo last week without dropping a set, but that was played on clay, so he might struggle a bit with the transition. Munoz-De La Nava is not a comfortable draw to play yourself into the tournament, he will fire at you and won’t give you any rhythm. Normally this is often his downfall, hitting way too many unforced errors, but against someone who is switching surfaces this might prove to be an effective endeavor.
Top Half
Victor Estrella Burgos achieved eternal legendary status in Quito, but will head a Challenger this week. His last hardcourt match, at the Australian Open, ended in a convincing loss against Jurgen Melzer, but in this field he should be able to keep his own. However, with Matteo Viola in the quarterfinal he faces an opponent who should be able to deal with his game quite well, which might prove to be a big hurdle after reaching such an enormous milestone recently. In the bottom section it’s hard to look past Jimmy Wang, who should reach the semi-final comfortably.
Bottom Half
Even though Austin Krajicek is the lowest seed in this half, he is the favorite to reach the final for me, especially after his quarterfinal run at Memphis last week, where he beat Mikhail Kukushkin and Ivo Karlovic before losing to world #5 Kei Nishikori in three sets. #2 seed Alejandro Falla will try to put up some resistance, trying to prevent Krajicek from making the final, but he has been in shaky form lately and isn’t a certainty to perform well here. Nevertheless, the competition isn’t all that strong either, so Falla should at least be able to set up an encounter with Krajicek.
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