Cincinnati R2 previews and picks: Federer vs. Pospisil, Ferrer vs. Kohlschreiber

August 13, 2014 Ricky Match previews 0

Fed presser 1Roger Federer and David Ferrer will kick off their Cincinnati campaigns on Wednesday. They are set for respective meetings with Vasek Pospisil and Philipp Kohlschreiber.

Vasek Pospisil vs. (2) Roger Federer 

Pospisil and Federer will be squaring off for the third time in their careers when they clash in round two of the Western & Southern Open on Wednesday afternoon. Federer leads the head-to-head series 2-0 following a 7-5, 6-3 victory at the 2011 Rogers Cup and a more hard-fought 6-3, 6-7(3), 7-5 decision last fall in Basel. Pospisil is much different player than what he was in 2011, and perhaps even different than what he was last fall. The 46th-ranked Canadian is now a Grand Slam champion (Wimbledon doubles this summer with Jack Sock). He rounded into singles form with quarterfinal showings in Bogota and Atlanta followed by a runner-up performance in Washington, D.C. Pospisil kicked off his Cincinnati campaign by saving three match points and outlasting Radek Stepanek 5-7, 6-1, 7-6(4).

Federer is back in action three days after losing the Toronto final to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. The 33-year-old Swiss is 44-9 for his 2014 campaign, which includes two titles and runner-up finish at Wimbledon. Federer is a five-time champion in Cincinnati and he played well at this event last year (lost to Rafael Nadal in a tight three-setter in the quarterfinals) having previously been in dreadful form. He should have plenty of confidence despite the setback against Tsonga, but Pospisil is not an easy opening opponent.
Pick: Federer in 3

[polldaddy poll=8242975]Philipp Kohlschreiber vs. (6) David Ferrer

Kohlschreiber and Ferrer will be facing each other for the 10th time in their careers on Wednesday. Ferrer leads the head-to-head series 7-3, including 5-2 on hard courts. The two veterans most recently collided early last season in the Auckland final, with Ferrer prevailing 7-6(5), 6-1. Ferrer is coming off a quarterfinal appearance in Toronto, where he fell to Federer in three sets. The 32-year-old Spaniard may be slowing down just a bit at this point in his career, but he is still a solid sixth in the world.

Whereas Ferrer snagged a first-round bye as the No. 6 seed, Kohlschreiber opened on Monday with a 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 win over Jeremy Chardy. The 24th-ranked German is 30-19 for the season, which is highlighted by a title on the clay courts of Dusseldorf. Kohlschreiber sorely needed a first-round victory, however, because he had dropped opening matches in both Kitzbuhel and Toronto. Ferrer is somewhat vulnerable, but past head-to-head history and current form suggest he should be able to hold off his underdog opponent.

Pick: Ferrer in 3

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42 Comments on Cincinnati R2 previews and picks: Federer vs. Pospisil, Ferrer vs. Kohlschreiber

  1. I also don’t understand why Fed has not used his slice shots more. He hardly used it in Wimby final and also in Toronto especially in the final where I hardly remember him slicing up the ball in a rally. Those slices are one of Fed’s biggest strengths. just don’t see the reason for underplaying them!!

    Reply

  3. Dimitrov was all over the place against Jerzy. I couldn’t decide whether he was just having a bad day or if he simply wasn’t interested in the outcome of the match.

    Reply

    • Frankly, Dimi’s game has got a long way to go. He is beatable often by most of the field as much as he can trouble the top guys but he doesn’t have enough variety in his toolbox to get past players like JJ whose serve and crazy style is a challenge.

      Reply

  6. Even my husband who professes to be a Fedfan, fell asleep during the Fed match. No one brings a tournament alive like Rafa does, no one.

    Reply

  8. Hahaha well I just hope you don’t compare the crowd from a first round ATP match to a slam semifinal crowd, don’t you? Or do you. No you did. Ok. Good.

    Instead maybe Gussie can make a pick of Venus or Serena’s first round match this week for sure, no?

    Reply

    • hawkeye63 ( at 2:00 pm)
      The author of this article bemones the lack of spectators at Fed’s match at RG (Of course, he blames people!):
      May 30, 2012: ¤¤ Empty seats show disrespect, not French fancy, for Fed¤¤
      http://www.espn.co.uk/tennis/sport/story/153134.html

      (And of course, the author doesn’t forget to mention that Rafa ‘gets booed by sections of the locals’, though it is NOT true. Some people certainly believe, if the Federazzi keep write this!)

      Reply

      • The author is misguided.

        The empty seats shown in his picture is of the elite (read very expensive) seats close to the courts that are bought up by corporations and given to clients that go unused.

        Again, this was a first round day match and was likely the same for Rafa.

        This is a very well known problem for most knowledgeable tennis fans particularly at the French Open.

        Thought you would know this.

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      • I hurried to rescue some modicum of balance.The observations you have made are not particular to Fed but of tennis in general. Why are you so sensitive about Fed?

        Hahaha, what “stone” did I throw?

        Why are you so sensitive about empty seats?

        Too funny!!!

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      • augusta08 ( at 3:28 pm),
        —I am laughing at the Federazzi!—

        But there are empty seats for all early round matches.

        I’m talking about the empty seats at all early round matches. Why are you so sensitive about empty seats?

        Reply

  11. I will admit sensitivity towards the federazzi bias and even to Fed’s arrogance to a somewhat lesser extent but I somehow doubt this is what you have imagined.

    As a player, he is truly brilliant. Just not as good as Rafa.

    I am also amused by fanbot bias and blindness in general (as you can probably tell).

    #HopeThisHelps

    Reply

  12. augusta08 ( at 3:28 pm),
    —Again you hurried to rescue Fed and threw a stone at Rafa!—

    What is this “stone” you speak of?

    Why are you so sensitive about empty seats?

    Reply

  14. hawkeye, why does it matter to you so much to prove that Roger is more popular than Rafa? As of today, Rafa is more popular than Roger:

    FB
    Nadal :- 14,500,855 likes
    Federer :- 14,398,772 likes

    Reply

    • Circumstantial at best. On social media only nadline (by less than 1% I might add).

      Other than the London Olympics and Spain against Rafa, I’ve never seen Fed not be the fan favourite in a match. Not. Once.

      #Lemmings

      Reply

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