A pair of rematches will headline the Tuesday schedule in Cincinnati, where familiar foes Stan Wawrinka and Grigor Dimitrov are set for a second straight first-round encounter. Nikoloz Basilashvili and Andrey Rublev are also in action.
Stan Wawrinka vs. Grigor Dimitrov
Again? Yes, Wawrinka and Dimitrov will be facing each other for the fifth time since Wimbledon last summer and for the fourth time during this stretch in a first-round match when they clash at the Western & Southern Open on Tuesday. Wawrinka leads the head-to-head series 6-4 after most recently getting the job done 6-4, 6-4 in round one of last week’s Rogers Cup. The 23rd-ranked Swiss has won four in a row at Dimitrov’s expense, including 11 consecutive sets.
Nothing suggests anything will be different this time around. Dimitrov is a nightmarish 1-6 since losing to none other than Wawrinka 7-6(5), 7-6(4), 7-6(8) during third-round action at the French Open this spring. Wawrinka ended up losing to eventual semifinalist Karen Khachanov 6-4, 6-7(3), 6-2 in the Montreal second, but at least that means he will be well-rested for Cincinnati. The 34-year-old should extend Dimitrov’s woes without too much trouble.
Pick: Wawrinka in 2
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(Q) Andrey Rublev vs. (15) Nikoloz Basilashvili
Basilashvili and Rublev will be going head-to-head for the second time this summer and for the third time in 2019 when they meet again on Tuesday. They just faced each other in the Hamburg final, with Basilashvili surviving a high-quality, huge-hitting contest 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 to go back-to-back at that tournament. The 17th-ranked Georgian is 2-0 lifetime at Rublev’s expense, having previously prevailed 6-3, 6-4 on the hard courts of Doha.
Rublev has already fared well in Cincinnati, qualifying for the main draw with victories over Bernard Tomic (via first-set retirement) and eventual lucky loser Mikhail Kukushkin. The 21-year-old Russian is finally healthy again and will be back in the top 70 next week. Basilashvili is coming off a third-round performance in Montreal, where he played a trio of three-setters (lost to Alexander Zverev). The 17th-ranked Georgian really has not done a whole lot the past 13 months outside of Hamburg, and two Cincinnati matches already under his belt should give Rublev a decent shot at a minor upset.
Pick: Rublev in 3
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