Doubles partners Novak Djokovic and Stanislas Wawrinka will be back in action on Thursday in Beijing. They await second-round showdowns with Fernando Verdasco and Sam Querrey, respectively.
(1) Novak Djokovic vs. Fernando Verdasco
Djokovic and Verdasco will be facing each other for the 10th time in their careers but for the first time in more than three years when they collide in the second round of the China Open on Thursday. The head-to-head series stands at 5-4 in Djokovic’s favor, with a 3-1 advantage on hard courts going to the Serb. Djokovic, who is 53-9 for the season, bounced back from his U.S. Open final loss to Rafael Nadal with a pair of Davis Cup singles victories against Canada. The world No. 1 opened in Beijing on Tuesday with a 6-0, 6-3 rout of Lukas Rosol.
Verdasco booked his spot in the second round by getting past qualifier Somdev Devvarman 7-6(6), 6-3. The 31st-ranked Spaniard emerged from a slump to reach the quarterfinals at Wimbledon followed by a final in Bastad and a quarterfinal in Hamburg, but his struggles are not necessarily a thing of the past. Verdasco dropped first-round matches at the U.S. Open and in St. Petersburg. He still has the talent to make this competitive, but it’s hard to see the underdog snagging a set.
Pick: Djokovic in 2 losing 8 games or more
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Sam Querrey vs. (6) Stanislas Wawrinka
Querrey and Wawrinka will be going head-to-head for the fourth time in their careers on Thursday. Wawrinka has won all three of their previous meetings (all on hard courts), including a 2013 Australian Open clash via a 7-6(6), 7-5, 6-4 decision. Their first two encounters were both thrillers; Wawrinka survived 2-6, 7-5, 7-6(8) at the 2009 Indian Wells Masters and 7-6(9), 6-7(5), 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 in the 2010 U.S. Open fourth round.
The ninth-ranked Swiss is in the midst of his best season on tour and in prime contention for the World Tour Finals. His record stands at 45-17 following a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over Andreas Seppi in the Beijing first round. Querrey kicked off his week by dismissing Mikhail Youzhny 7-6(3), 6-3. The 30th-ranked American is 26-20 for the year, for the most part a relative underachievement. Wawrinka has a major edge in current form, so this should be straightforward unless Querrey serves incredibly well.
Pick: Wawrinka in 2
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Reblogged this on Tennis Abides.
Querrey up a set and 4-3 (on serve) in the second
Yikes! Sam Q wins in 2! What’s going on with Wawa? He is THIS close to closing the WTF deal and he can’t………
RITB: It’s the blight of the Race to London. That’s what’s wrong with WaWa.
Dont know who you’ve got commentating on the Djokovic match but I am going bonkers listening to the Jason ‘know-all’ Goodall constant stream of coaching advice. OTH Verdi is showing signs of recovering from his Long Sleep and is making Djokovic work for the his (inevitable) win. He’s just managed to break Djoko’s serve.
ed251137, dare we dream?? If Fer beats Djoker Rafa is numero uno, no? I know, I know, not gonna happen although Fer may sneak a set out.
Vamos Fer!!
Yeah Goodall isn’t good for all as it turns out. He said Djoker has never lost a match at the main court in China. Wrong. He lost to Rafa at the very court at the Beijing Olympics.
Djokovic is a touch jittery……………..worried about handing the No.1 baton over perhaps?
RITB Too much to hope for. Verdi has only ever beaten Djoko on hard courts once and that was back in 2005.
Whoa, Ricky’s prediction has already come to pass, Djoker’s lost 10 games already!
Fer takes the 2nd set. Well, well…….
I was gonna go out for for coffee but that has to wait……………….
2nd time Verdi has ballsed up on an overhead smash.
… and Djoko took the third easily… ah well, we still need to wait a bit longer for Nr. 1
Definitely wouldn’t have picked Stanf in this one.
2nd week in a row that Wawa failed to win a match that would have made him Swiss No. 1 in the Race to London against guys he should have beaten (Querrey and Benneteau).
#StanfordYoureHired
#Tonto
#Tattoo
#Robin
#Watson
#ArmchairQuarterback
Not a criticism of you Sir Ricky but of Stan.
#SecondFiddleComfortZone
#PreexistingConditions
he was always going to lose to Benneteau. Querrey, on the other hand….
Can we have your prediction and a poll for who will make up the eight contestants for O2 assuming Murray will withdraw in due course?
sure. I’ll do it tomorrow.