Oeiras final: (1) David Ferrer vs. (2) Stanislas Wawrinka
Ricky: Ferrer leads the head-to-head series 7-3 heading into the Portugal Open final, including 5-1 on clay. Only one of the Spaniard’s clay-court victories ended in anything other than straight sets. It was their most recent encounter that came earlier this season in Buenos Aires, where Ferrer prevailed 6-4, 3-6, 6-1 in the final.Ferrer may be back to his early-season form (two titles, a semifinal Down Under, and a runner-up in Miami) after a slow start to this clay-court swing (WD from Monte-Carlo, opening loss to Dmitry Tursunov in Barcelona). So far in Oeiras he has taken out Edouard Roger-Vasselin, Victor Hanescu, and Andreas Seppi while looking better and better with each match.Wawrinka has not made a ton of noise since his epic five-set loss to Novak Djokovic in Melbourne. The Swiss booked his spot in the final thanks to scalps of Albert Ramos, Gastao Elias, and Pablo Carreno-Busta. Although current form suggests this one could be a thriller, Ferrer has an edge not only in their past history but also in finals experience. The top seed has been to this stage of ATP tournaments on 37 previous occasions, winning 20 of those times, while Wawrinka is 3-7 lifetime and has never won a title outside of a 250-point event. Ferrer 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-3.
Munich final: (3) Tommy Haas vs. (4) Philipp Kohlschreiber
Ricky: This is exactly what the German fans wanted at the start of this week: a final showdown between two of their own; two who happen to be their two best on tour. Interestingly, this is also the first meeting between Haas and Kohlschreiber away from grass and it’s their fourth in Germany. The only one outside of their native land came when they got a terrible draw last year at Wimbledon and Kohlschreiber won a first-rounder 3-6, 7-6(8), 6-7(5), 7-6(1), 6-2. The head-to-head series is tied up 2-2 overall.
Kohlschreiber is finally back on track after a bad leg injury earlier this season during Davis Cup action. The world No. 21 beat Evgeny Korolev and Viktor Troicki in straight sets before staging a comeback to outlasts Daniel Brands in a third-set tiebreaker. Haas, now 35 years old, is simply maintaining the great form that has been on display almost the whole season. The world No. 14, who reached the Miami semifinals thanks to a stunner over Djokovic, owns a 17-7 record for 2013 following Munich victories over Ernests Gulbis, Florian Mayer, and Ivan Dodig. Based on current form and an easier semifinal effort, Haas has to be the pick. Haas 7-6(4), 6-4.
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