Rarely are Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in action on the same day at two different events, but that will be the case for a second straight day on Friday. Federer will face Julien Benneteau in the Rotterdam quarterfinals while Nadal battles Carlos Berlocq for a spot in the Sao Paulo semis.
(1) Roger Federer vs. Julien Benneteau
Familiar foes Federer and Benneteau will be facing each other for the sixth time in their careers and for the third time in the last eight months when they meet again in the quarterfinals of the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament on Friday. Federer leads the head-to-head series 4-1 following wins last year at Wimbledon and in the Olympics. The second-ranked Swiss needed a comeback from two sets to prevail at the All-England Club on his way to the title. Benneteau’s lone victory came in front of the home crowd at the 2009 Paris Masters.
Federer had not played since the Australian Open but he was in cruise control for victories earlier in the week over Grega Zemlja and Thiemo De Bakker. Benneteau, still in search of his first ATP title at 31 years old, already owns eight match wins for his 2013 campaign. The world No. 39 opened in Rotterdam by taking out Tobias Kamke before beating Victor Hanescu, also in straight sets. With Federer playing well and almost always near his best on an indoor hard court, he will likely roll in straights.
Federer second-round Rotterdam interview:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTcoF_jAe4I]
Pick: Federer 6-3, 6-3
(1) Rafael Nadal vs. Carlos Berlocq
Nadal and Berlocq will be going head-to-head for the first time in their careers when they clash in the quarterfinals of the Brasil Open on Friday. This is the best possible time for someone to face Nadal (as if there’s ever a good one) and Berlocq is in pretty good form to boot. The 78th-ranked Argentine, who is coming off a semifinal showing in Vina del Mar, is a stellar 7-2 for the season following wins this week over Andrey Kuznetsov and eighth-seeded Albert Ramos.
The comeback is not exactly off to a perfect start, but it is at least going well for Nadal. Sao Paulo’s top seed reached the final in both singles and doubles in Vina del Mar and he is 2-0 so far this week (1-0 in both singles and doubles although he withdrew from doubles immediately thereafter). Nadal took care of Joao Souza 6-3, 6-4 on Thursday to book his spot in the quarters. Berlocq is always a tough opponent on clay, but Nadal should handle him without too much drama.
Nadal-Souza highlights:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fdUdXD9cmw]
Pick: Nadal 6-4, 6-4
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