Hamburg R1 previews and predictions: Kohlschreiber vs. Berlocq, Zverev vs. Cervantes

Two title contenders and fan favorites will be taking the court at home in Germany when first-round action continues at the 500-point event in Hamburg on Tuesday. Philipp Kohlschreiber is facing Carlos Berlocq, while Alexander Zverev is going up against Inigo Cervantes.

(1) Philipp Kohlschreiber vs. Carlos Berlocq

Kohlschreiber and Berlocq will be squaring off for the ninth time in their careers when they meet again in round one of the German Tennis Championships on Tuesday afternoon. The head-to-head series stands at 5-3 in favor of Kohlschreiber, who has won each of their last five completed encounters (not including two retirements). Berlocq is a perfect 2-0 against the German on clay, but one of those victories came way back in 2006 and another was by virtue of a fifth-set retirement during a 2013 Davis Cup clash in Argentina.

At 33 years old, Berlocq is toiling down at No. 87 in the world and saddled with a 1-3 ATP-level record this season. He skipped the grass-court swing, as usual, to go back to clay-court Challengers after reaching the French Open second round as a qualifier. Berlocq lifted the trophy in Blois, France prior to semifinal appearances in Milan and Bastad. Kohlschreiber compiled 6-1 grass-court record in advance at Wimbledon but promptly lost his opener at the All-England Club to Pierre-Hugues Herbert. The world No. 22, who is 26-13 for his 2016 campaign, generally does his best work in Germany; five of his seven ATP titles and 10 of his 15 final appearances have come in his home country. Kohlschreiber should be able to maintain that kind of success at Berlocq’s expense without too much trouble.

Pick: Kohlschreiber in 2

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Inigo Cervantes vs. (4) Alexander Zverev

Although Kohlschreiber is the No. 1 seed, a different German is arguably the title favorite. Zverev earned the ATP’s Star of Tomorrow Award in 2015 as the youngest man in the top 100, but this season will be remembered as his true breakout on tour. The 19-year-old owns 29 of his 47 career ATP-level match victories in 2016 and those have catapulted him to 27th in the rankings. Zverev advanced to round three at Roland Garros, finished runner-up to Florian Mayer on the grass courts of Halle, and then lost to eventual semifinalist Tomas Berdych in the last 32 at Wimbledon.

Up first for Zverev on Tuesday in Hamburg is Cervantes, whom he has never faced. The 26-year-old Spaniard is also enjoying his best season as a professional, although certainly not to the same extent as his opponent. Ten of Cervantes’ 14 ATP-level wins have come in 2016, but he has not done much of anything on the main tour since making a run to the Sao Paulo semifinals in February. The world No. 82 is coming off a Challenger runner-up performance in Braunschweig, where he beat Zverev’s older brother, but a significant spike in competition level should make for a brief stay in Hamburg.

Pick: Zverev in 2

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