Doha QF previews and predictions: Berdych vs. Tsonga, Karlovic vs. Verdasco

Tomas Berdych and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga will cap off a full slate of quarterfinal competition on Thursday in Doha. They will be preceded in action by a showdown between Ivo Karlovic and Fernando Verdasco.

(3) Tomas Berdych vs. (5) Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

Berdych and Tsonga will be squaring off for the 11th time in their careers and unofficially for the second time in as many weeks when they meet again in the quarterfinals of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open on Thursday. The two veterans just faced each other in the six-man Abu Dhabi event, with Tsonga getting the job done in a super-tiebreaker for the third set to take fifth place. Overall, the official head-to-head series stands at 7-3 in favor of Berdych. They did not collide a single time in 2016 after battling on three occasions in 2015–two of which were won by the Czech, most recently via a 6-3, 6-4 decision at the Paris Masters.

Both men missed out on the World Tour Finals last season, although Tsonga made a decent run at it with a stellar fall swing. The 12th-ranked Frenchman built on a quarterfinal showing at the U.S. Open with additional quarterfinal finishes in Shanghai and Paris, plus a runner-up performance in Vienna. Tsonga has advanced in Doha with victories over Andrey Kuznetsov and Dustin Brown, surrendering one set to Kuznetsov in the process. Berdych punched his ticket to the quarters by taking out Alessandro Giannessi in straight sets and Jiri Vesely in three. Based somewhat on the Abu Dhabi result but mostly on their respective levels from last fall and this week, Tsonga should have a slight edge.

Pick: Tsonga in 2

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(6) Ivo Karlovic vs. Fernando Verdasco

Karlovic will turn 38 years old next month, but he is ready to go for another season on the ATP World Tour. And it is off to a fine start, too, with straight-set Doha victories over Illya Marchenko and Karen Khachanov. Not surprisingly, the 6’11” Croat required four tiebreakers to get through those four sets and he did not break serve or get broken a single time. Karlovic has not yet earned a break point in this tournament, but he has saved all four of the break points he has faced.

Up next for the world No. 20 is a seventh career contest against Verdasco, with the head-to-head series currently tied at three wins apiece. Verdasco, who most recently prevailed at the now-defunct San Jose tournament back in 2011, is 2-1 against Karlovic on hard courts, 1-0 on clay, and 0-2 on grass. The 42nd-ranked Spaniard earned his place in the last eight by beating Vasek Pospisil and David Goffin in straight sets. Although Verdasco is clearly playing well, inconsistency may hurt him in a matchup in which he cannot afford even the slightest hiccup on his own serve.

Pick: Karlovic in 3

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