Richard Gasquet and David Ferrer will continue their Beijing campaigns on Thursday. They are set for respective second-round meetings with Bernard Tomic and Marinko Matosevic.
Bernard Tomic vs. (5) Richard Gasquet
Tomic and Gasquet will be squaring off for the fourth time in their careers and for the third time this season when they clash in round two of the China Open on Thursday. Gasquet leads the head-to-head series 2-1, including 2-0 on hard courts. He prevailed 7-6(5), 6-4 last fall in Bangkok and 7-6(1), 6-2 this spring in Indian Wells. Their most recent showdown, however, went Tomic’s way via a 7-6(7), 5-7, 7-5, 7-6(5) decision in the Wimbledon third round.
Gasquet may already be a different player since his appearance at the All-England Club, especially in the mental department. The Frenchman’s U.S. Open semifinal run included gutsy five-set wins over Milos Raonic and David Ferrer. While Gasquet is 42-16 for the year after beating Florian Mayer in round one, Tomic is a more modest 25-17. The 20-year-old Aussie defeated wild card Ze Zhang 7-6(4), 6-4 on Monday. With Gasquet playing confidently, the No. 5 seed should avenge this summer’s loss without too much trouble.
Pick: Gasquet in 2
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(3) David Ferrer vs. Marinko Matosevic
Ferrer and Matosevic will be going head-to-head for the second time in their careers on Thursday. Their only previous encounter came this season on the clay courts of Roland Garros, where Ferrer rolled 6-4, 6-3, 6-4. The fourth-ranked Spaniard has followed up his French Open final with two more stellar Grand Slam performances (quarters at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open), but other than that he has been slumping. Ferrer lost early in Montreal, Cincinnati, and most recently in Kuala Lumpur.
Beijing’s No. 3 seed opened with a 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(2) victory over Vasek Pospisil, while Matosevic ousted a tired Julien Benneteau–the Kuala Lumpur runner-up–in straight sets. Matosevic is a relatively disappointing 18-24 for the year, which includes quarterfinal finishes this summer in Washington, D.C. and Montreal. The 56th-ranked Australian should able to keep this close against an opponent who is not in peak form, but Ferrer will likely handle the pressure moments in superior fashion–like he did against Pospisil.
Pick: Ferrer in 2
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Gasquet through, expect he will play Ferru….
rematch time!